Scrambler- a motorcycle that is incredibly versatile and can have use both in an on-road or off-road environment. What you just read is somewhat the definition of a scrambler style motorcycle and when one thinks of a scrambler two things come to mind…Steve Mcqueen and Triumph. In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s Hollywood’s “King of Cool” actor Steve Mcqueen popularized the original Triumph Scramblers by riding them all over the West Coast as well as racing them in the Baja Rally. At the time, Mcqueen put Triumph and the Scrambler on the map to the point that Triumph became a recognizable brand in the United States, a brand that was at the forefront of motorcycling’s “British Invasion”.
After a hiatus of several years Triumph resurrected the Scrambler in 2006 in its Modern Classics line up and just like the 1960’s they took the world by storm. Fast forward to today where the Scrambler is still one of Triumph’s most popular models and now it comes in three different displacements and trims. For the sake of this article, I will discuss the redesigned 2023 Scrambler 900. The Scrambler 900 is seen as the middle child in the Scrambler line up that doesn’t seem to get the respect that it deserves. It’s powered by a 900cc twin cylinder engine that provides 64 horsepower and 59-foot pounds of torque. Not exactly fire breathing compared to its 1200cc bigger brother but it’s still plenty enough to have fun with…on and off road. With a seat height of 31 inches, it’s a motorcycle that is fairly accessible to shorter riders and even though it does weigh in at 492 pounds it does wear its weight fairly well.
On the suspension side of things, the Scrambler 900 has 41mm forks in the front and twin shocks with adjustable preload in the back. The ride isn’t too bad and while it does seem soft at times in both on and off-road settings, it was very comfortable, and I never bottomed it out in off road situations which kind of surprised me. To stop the Scrambler 900’s heftiness, it has a single disc with a Brembo 4 piston caliper in the front and a single disc with a Nissen 2 piston caliper in the rear. It’s not the best braking system out there but again it isn’t too bad, and the ABS works fairly well. To sum up the suspension and braking components on the Scrambler 900 is kind of like that middle child that receives hand me downs and leftovers. The components are good, but they aren’t the Brybe and Nissen brake set up’s the 2024 Scrambler 1200’s and Scrambler 400X have let alone the Marzocchi suspension or massive 43mm forks that graces the other models.
Now enough about the stats and generic information, let’s get into how the Scrambler 900 rode. Since it is an on and off-road bike I put it to the test in both areas. On pavement, the Scrambler 900 was great riding around Charleston, and it had the perfect blend of power and handling to zip around downtown through the congested streets and alleys. The suspension wasn’t too bad on the brick and cobble stone streets and on smooth pavement it rode very well. In the braking department the Scrambler 900’s brake set up worked well and the ABS was more than adequate especially in one instance where I had to brake hard to avoid some tourists who decided to walk out in front of me down by the waterfront. Around town in a commuting fashion the Scrambler 900 did very well, and I was able to get 51 miles per gallon on its 3.1-gallon fuel tank.
Since I prefer to ride off pavement, I was drooling at the possibility of taking the Scrambler 900 into the dirt, I mean let’s be honest I was wanting to pretend to be Steve Mcqueen while romping down dirt roads. I spent a few days after work riding the Scrambler 900 out to Francis Marion National Forest and the ACE Basin on the outskirts of Charleston. Once I got off the pavement, I put the Scrambler into Off Road mode which turns off the bike’s traction control and ABS. I was able to zip around dirt and gravel roads with ease and while the suspension and braking wasn’t near as good as the Scrambler 1200 XE it was still fairly solid and did the job. While riding around off pavement the Scrambler 900’s weight didn’t exactly become a problem, but it was noticeable especially at slow speeds when I was riding through deep gravel.
Overall, how did I feel about the 2023 Triumph Scrambler 900… well it’s kind of difficult to answer that question. I purchased my Scrambler 900 from Charleston Triumph at an MSRP of $11,495 and after freight, set up, sales tax, and title/registration I was out the door for $13,000. For the money the Scrambler 900 isn’t a bad deal and falls in line with the Bonneville T100’s and Speed Twin 900’s. For a no thrills bike that doesn’t have the fancy electronic dash with riding modes and fully adjustable suspension it really isn’t a bad deal. I enjoyed riding the Scrambler 900 and as the “urban scrambler” as Triumph branded it, it does the job and does it well. It’s a bike that has a little character and is at home in the city as a commuter bike. Off pavement it does lack quite a bit compared to the Scrambler 1200’s however, that’s to be expected. It can handle dirt but it’s not its forte’ and maybe that’s why I didn’t love the Scrambler 900…I liked it but didn’t really love it. For what the Scrambler 900 is it’s not a bad bike and it does fit in between the Scrambler 1200’s and the new Scrambler 400X. It’s a bike that is truly an “urban scrambler” and I recommend them for anyone looking for a Triumph with some vintage character while roaming around the city or commuting to work, if you want to spend more time playing in the dirt then on pavement then the Scrambler 1200 is better suited.
Stryker ADV 