Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and Speed Twin 1200 RS (2025) - Technical Review

The Speed Twin lineup are the best sellers in Triumph’s ‘Modern Classics’ range – hitting a sweet spot that combines some of the retro appeal of the Bonneville with a dash of modernity that means you’re not compromised when it comes to suspension, brakes or tech. And with that success in mind the Speed Twin 1200 is the leading Triumph’s onslaught of new models for 2025 with updated styling, a better chassis, more power and improved equipment levels plus a brand-new Speed Twin 1200 RS model for riders looking for a sportier edge.

Pros & Cons

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Price

In an era of inflation that’s sent prices for everyday items through the roof the fact that the 2025 Speed Twin 1200 starts at £12,495 - £500 or just over 4% more than its £11,995 predecessor – seems like a decent deal for a bike that also gained some notable improvements over its forebear in virtually every area. Meanwhile the new Speed Twin 1200 RS steps into the shoes of the soon-to-be-discontinued Thruxton RS, with sportier handling than the base Speed Twin 1200 but a more comfortable riding position than the old café racer, allied to a £14,495 price that’s only £300 more than the Thruxton RS it replaces.

Both versions of the Speed Twin are due in dealers this December in a range of colours – white, red or silver for the base model, orange or black for the RS – and accompanied by a range of more than more than 50 optional accessories to personalise the bikes, including clip-on bars and café racer seats to cater for customers who would previously have opted for a Thruxton.

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Engine & Performance

Triumph’s 1200cc, 270-degree parallel twin doesn’t need much introduction and the 2025 Speed Twin 1200 – in both base and ‘RS’ forms – features an updated version that both meets the latest Euro5+ emissions rules and gets a useful 5hp power increase over the previous model.

While it’s the performance-oriented ‘high compression’ version of Triumph’s 1200 twin, it’s still a relaxed motor, putting out a relatively modest 103.5hp at only 7,750rpm and 82.6lb-ft of torque at a mere 4,250rpm. The engine changes for 2025 include cosmetics like new, more angular engine casings and smaller silencers, plus internal changes with a different throttle body and camshaft design to get the extra power while still hitting the most up-to-date pollution standards.

There’s no difference between the engines on the base and RS versions of the 2025 Speed Twin 1200, and both drive through the same six-speed transmission and slip/assist clutch as before, but the RS model is the first bike in the Modern Classics range to get Triumph’s Shift Assist up and down quickshifter. It’s neatly hidden from sight, as are the rest of the engines electronics, cabling and cooling hoses, and as on other bikes in the range the under-engine exhaust collector and catalysts are disguised by trims that give the impression that the system is an old-school 2-into-2 setup with headers swooping straight into the silencers.

Where the old Speed Twin 1200 had a trio of riding modes – road, rain and sport – you now need to opt for the RS model to get all three. The base version has just road and rain settings.

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Handling & Suspension (inc. Weight)

The chassis has been an area of focus for the 2025 Speed Twin 1200 – with distinctly different approaches taken for the standard and RS models to draw a clear line between them.

The base model’s 43mm Marzocchi USD forks are similar to the previous version, but with softer springs than before the make for a more comfortable ride. At the back, the 2025 bike gains remote-reservoir shocks, again by Marzocchi, with a slightly reduced 116mm of travel compared to 120mm for the previous version.

The Speed Twin 1200 RS also uses 43mm Marzocchi forks, but this time with adjustable preload, compression and rebound damping, while the rear shocks are remote-reservoir Ohlins units – again fully adjustable for preload, rebound and compression – similar to those used on the old Thruxton RS.

More significantly, the RS has a higher rear end, with 123mm of rear travel, making for a sportier stance and quicker steering, and its more focussed riding position also pushes the rider’s weight further forwards.

Both versions of the bike weigh in at 216kg wet, but the base Speed Twin 1200’s brakes, which were radial Brembo M50 Monobloc calipers on the previous version, have been swapped for Triumph-branded radial four-pots, still on 320mm discs. The 2025 Speed Twin 1200 RS sticks with Brembos, this time using M4.30 Stylema radial calipers, and both machines get a two-pot Nissin stopper on the back, acting on a 220mm disc. A new addition is cornering ABS, which is standard on both versions of the 2025 bike.

While both versions have 17-inch wheels front and rear, with identical tyre sizes, the standard-fit rubber mirrors their differing purposes – with Metzeler Racetec RR K3s on the RS version and Metzeler Sportec M9RR on the standard Speed Twin 1200.

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Comfort & Economy

Further distinctions emerge between the standard Speed Twin 1200 and the RS model when you step aboard, with Triumph angling for comfort on the base version by combining its softer suspension with a more upright riding position than before.

On the standard model, the bars are 17.8mm higher and shifted forwards 13.4mm compared to the old Speed Twin. The RS, meanwhile, uses a different design, with bars that are 16.2mm lower than the standard 1200 and another 9mm further forwards. Those forward-mounted bars are combined with pegs on the RS that are 40mm further back and 6.5mm higher than the base bike’s making for a sportier riding position overall.

The RS’s taller rear suspension means its seat is 5mm higher than the standard model, coming in at 810mm rather than 805mm, but more noticeably it’s trimmed with a grippier material on the rider’s section.

You might not instantly spot it, but the fuel tank design shared by both 2025 Speed Twin 1200 models is also new, with a slightly less retro shape than the previous version. Think 1970s rather than 1960s. Its capacity is unchanged at 14.5 litres, though, and while the fuel consumption has yet to be confirmed, it’s unlikely to stray far from the 46mpg of the older bike, making for a theoretical range of around 175 miles if you’re prepared to risk running dry.

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Equipment

As well a technology including cornering ABS and cornering traction control, both new to the Speed Twin for 2025 and tied into the riding modes to alter the settings, the 2025 bikes get a new, single, circular instrument panel instead of the traditional twin-clock setup of the older model.

The dial itself combines a semi-circular LCD upper section with a small, colour TFT panel underneath. As we’ve become accustomed to, the dash gives phone connectivity, allowing turn-by-turn navigation, and there’s a USB-C charging socket.

The headlight, shared by both models, is a new design, as are the brackets it bolts to. It’s LED, of course, and Triumph promises improved lighting. Don’t be surprised if the same unit spreads to other models in the future.

There’s already a wide range of accessories, most notably the low, clip-on bars that can convert either the base or RS model into more of a café racer, particularly when combined with the optional ‘bullet’ seat or pillion seat cowl.

While the Speed Twin 1200 RS has become the first bike based on the Bonneville parallel twin engine to get an up/down quickshifter as standard, the same component can’t be added to the base model, even as an option. Triumph explains that’s because there’s only space for the required linkage and load sensor with the RS’s rear-set footpegs, making the quickshifter incompatible with the more upright riding position of the standard Speed Twin 1200.

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Rivals

The changes to the Speed Twin 1200 for 2025 might be relatively subtle, but the combination of the new headlight, reshaped tank and squarer side panels makes for a machine that sits closer to the muscle roadsters of the 70s and 80s than the Bonnevilles of the 60s. When it comes to competition, plenty of bikes go for a similar idea, but few are quite as authentic as the Triumph.

BMW R12 nineT | Price: £14,420

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Power/Torque

109bhp/84.8lb-ft

Weight

220kg

Kawasaki Z900RS | Price: £11,799

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Power/Torque

98.6bhp/82.6lb-ft

Weight

216kg

Ducati Scrambler 1100 Sport Pro | Price: £14,495

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Power/Torque

86bhp/65lb-ft

Weight

206kg

2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Verdict

We’ll give a verdict once we’ve ridden the bike.

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2025 Triumph Speed Twin 1200 and RS - Technical Specification

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