Triumph 660 Street Triple S A2 2017 — Specifications

What drives Triumph to engineer a dedicated engine rather than simply restricting an existing powerplant? That's the whole uniqueness of the 2017 Triumph 660 Street Triple S A2. Where the competition generally settles for a restrictive mapping on a standard block, Hinckley made the radical choice to develop a dedicated 660 cc triple, with reduced bore and stroke (76 x 48.5 mm). The result: 95 horsepower, the legal ceiling before A2 restriction, and 60.8 Nm of torque available from just 5,100 rpm. On paper, it's a more honest approach than a simple electronic sleight of hand. In practice, it also means that once you've earned your full A licence, you'll need to change bikes to taste the 765 cc of the R and RS versions. No derestriction possible here — that's the deal.

Chassis-wise, the Street Triple S A2 shares most of its hardware with its bigger sisters. The aluminium perimeter frame is identical, as is the swingarm. The geometry remains that of a sporty roadster, with a seat height of 810 mm and a dry weight kept to 168 kg. It's light, nimble, and you feel it from the very first roundabout. Against a Yamaha MT-07 or a Kawasaki Z650, the Brit plays the triple card — that distinctive sonic texture that fills in the torque between revs and delivers a smoothness that Japanese twins simply cannot offer. The 17.4-litre tank allows for decent range without turning every petrol station into a mandatory stop.

The suspension is by Showa, with a 41 mm non-adjustable inverted fork and a monoshock adjustable in preload only. It's modest, clearly calibrated for road and urban use. You won't find the fine-tuning of the R and RS versions, but for an A2 rider discovering the joys of a roadster, it's more than enough. The braking follows the same logic: twin 310 mm discs up front gripped by Nissin two-piston calipers, a single 220 mm disc at the rear. Effective without being aggressive, the setup gets the job done with standard ABS as a safety net. The electronics also include traction control and two mapping modes, Rain and Road. No Sport mode here — the intent is clear.

And that's perhaps where the positioning of this Triumph 660 Street Triple S A2 proves most interesting. At €8,500 in 2017, it sits above its Japanese twins but offers an undeniable extra dose of character. The triple sings where the twins purr, the chassis inspires confidence through sequences of bends, and the aggressive styling inherited from the Speed Triple gives it a presence its rivals can't match. The flip side is the lack of any mechanical upgrade path: unlike a Z650 or an MT-07 that can simply be derestricted, the Street demands a change of machine to step up in power. Triumph bet on a motorcycle designed for new licence holders, not a half-hearted compromise between two worlds.

For the A2 rider who wants something beyond a basic twin and accepts the idea of selling the bike when derestriction day comes, this Street Triple S remains a rare proposition. It offers a temperament, a quality of rolling chassis, and a personality that few accessible competitors can match at this licence level. A real motorcycle, not a motorcycle you're just waiting to outgrow.