Triumph TR5T Trophy Trial

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Triumph tr5t 73 04.jpg
Triumph TR 5T500 Trophy Trail
Manufacturer
Production 1973 - 74
Class Enduro
Engine
Vertical twin, OHV
Compression ratio 9:1
Top Speed 145 km/h b/ 90 mph
Ignition Coils and points, alternator
Battery 12V
Transmission 4-Speed
Suspension Front: Telescopic forks, Slimline
Rear: Swingarm, Girling shock absorbers
Brakes Front: Drum, single leading shoe, 152 mm / 6 in
Rear: Drum, sngle leading shoe, 203 mm / 8 in
Front Tire 3.00 x 21
Rear Tire 4.00 x 18
Wheelbase 1384 mm / 54.5 in
Seat Height 813 mm / 32 in
Weight 159 kg / 350 lbs (wet)
Fuel Capacity 9 L / 2.4 US gal / 2.0 Imp gal
Manuals Service Manual


It could reach a top speed of 145 km/h b/ 90 mph.

Engine[edit | edit source]

The engine was a Air cooled cooled Vertical twin, OHV. The engine featured a 9:1 compression ratio.

Chassis[edit | edit source]

It came with a 3.00 x 21 front tire and a 4.00 x 18 rear tire. Stopping was achieved via Drum, single leading shoe, 152 mm / 6 in in the front and a Drum, sngle leading shoe, 203 mm / 8 in in the rear. The front suspension was a Telescopic forks, Slimline while the rear was equipped with a Swingarm, Girling shock absorbers. The TR 5T500 Trophy Trail was fitted with a 9 L / 2.4 US gal / 2.0 Imp gal fuel tank. The wheelbase was 1384 mm / 54.5 in long.

Photos[edit | edit source]

Triumph TR 5T500 Trophy Trail Triumph TR 5T500 Trophy Trail Triumph TR 5T500 Trophy Trail Triumph TR 5T500 Trophy Trail


1974[edit | edit source]


Overview[edit | edit source]

The Triumph TR5T Trophy Trail 500 isn't a serious motorcycle, but that doesn't mean it's a bad motorcycle, either. The TR5T was built just to be a cheerful little number that could fill a niche in the market. Lightweight, with a good engine and an adequate chassis, it wasn't a motorcycle intended for serious competition, but more a cycle built as an entertaining play-bike for those with hundreds of miles of forest roads or black-topped one-laners to ride.

In its day, the TR5T was quite the opposite of those great, honking 650cc desert sleds that were so popular in the scrub-lands of California and Arizona; this was an East Coast special, intended for more leisurely pursuits in the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts or the Shenandoah Mountains of Virginia.

In the early 1970s, the engineers at Triumph were trying to spiff up their line of models at the lowest cost possible, since Triumph was having severe financial problems. Triumph had been partnered with Birmingham Small Arms (BSA) for over 20 years, with the two brands kept very separate until the late 1960s, when the British motorcycle industry started collapsing with barely a whimper. At the Meriden factory, workers began cobbling together bikes by picking and choosing from the Triumph and BSA parts bins, and in 1971 some enterprising worker realized that with a few minor modifications, the Triumph 500cc engine could be fit into the new BSA scrambler-type frame.

The U.S. had always been Triumph’s best market, but sales of the high-piped street-scrambler T500C models had dropped off, thanks to cheaper Japanese machines. However, the marketing suits at the Meriden factory figured that a Triumph-powered woods bike might have good sales potential, so they built one.

Introduced for the 1973 model year, the Trophy Trail was known as the Adventurer in the U.K. Rumor had it that the Trophy Trail was, in truth, a tribute to the 1973 International Six Days Trial (ISDT) that was being held in the U.S. This was the first time since 1913 that the ISDT had a venue outside Europe. This new model was not intended to go up against ferociously focused machines put forth by outfits like Jawa, Husqvarna and John Penton, but would be the layman’s version, giving the image of derring-do while offering a modicum of comfort.

The ISDT was originally intended to be a reliability event, with the motorcycles running for six days, and repairs could only be done by the rider with tools he carried. This made a great deal of sense back before World War I, as roads were in pretty rough shape. After the end of World War II the event had been altered to fit a more modern format, with the course being run mostly on dirt roads and trails, with a bit of pavement in order to keep everybody honest as to lights and braking. Many manufacturers took winning deadly seriously, but not the boys designing the TR5T.




Make Model Triumph TR5T Trophy trail 500
Year 1973 - 74
Engine Type Vertical twin, OHV
Displacement 490 cc / 29.9 cu in
Bore X Stroke 69 x 65.5 mm
Compression 9:1
Cooling System Air cooled
Induction Single 28 mm Amal concentric carburetor
Ignition Coils and points, alternator
Battery 12V
Starting Kick
Max Power 22.4 kW / 30 hp @ 7500 rpm
Transmission 4-Speed
Final Drive Chain
Front Suspension Telescopic forks, Slimline
Rear Suspension Swingarm, Girling shock absorbers
Front Brakes Drum, single leading shoe, 152 mm / 6 in
Rear Brakes Drum, sngle leading shoe, 203 mm / 8 in
Front Tire 3.00 x 21
Rear Tire 4.00 x 18
Rake 27o
Wheelbase 1384 mm / 54.5 in
Ground Clearance 178 mm / 7 in
Seat Height 813 mm / 32 in
Wet Weight 159 kg / 350 lbs
Fuel Capacity 9 L / 2.4 US gal / 2.0 Imp gal
Consumption Average 4.3 L/100 km / 23.4 km/l / 55 US mpg / 66 Imp mpg
Top Speed 145 km/h b/ 90 mph