I've never been one for trying to 'up' the engine performance of any bike I've owned. Simply put, if I wanted something more powerful, rather than spending a load of cash on upgrading a motor, I'd go out and buy something with more power out of the crate. Currently I have my Tuono V4 sat in the garage with at least 100 bhp more on tap than my Thruxty.as an example. But I got to thinking, the Thruxton's 865cc engine is in a pretty mild state of tune for a DOHC 8 valve fuel injected motor, chucking out only 69 bhp. I have no skills whatsoever in computer mapping the engine's black box, I do know a local chap who is good in that department, but I just wondered if any of you had gone down this route and if so what benefits did you achieve? Basically is it worth doing or should I leave well alone? I should say a previous owner removed the secondary air injection set up and the bike has aftermarket silencers so perhaps it is chucking out a few more ponies than standard already.
Hmm, even with lots of expensive modifications it’s never going to get anywhere near the Tuono ballpark, and you’ll always have the Tuono there making the Triumph feel dog slow, maybe just sell it and get a 1200?
I had my 2008 865 cc America tuned on a dyno. Dyno showed 51 HP @ rear wheel std , tuner got it up to 58/59 HP ! But the biggest gain was ride/tractability ! It pulled much better @ all rev ranges. Strangely tyre wear and longevity improved, and fuel economy changed significantly. Hard riding used much more fuel ... Like 10 to 15 % more ! Riding it as a cruiser and being smooth on throttle and gentler on acceleration .... fuel economy jumped from 240/260 km tank range to ~300~ km on a good day. Further tuning after 904 cc big bore kit and port and polishing the cylinder head , ~70-80 HP is possible. Porting the head probably released most of the HP !!!
I'd say go for a Power Commander and get a custom map. BHP increase might be insignificant at 2 or 3 extra but you'll get more torque which you will notice for sure and a better throttle response. Then sort the suspension out so you carry more speed everywhere. I actually have a Power Commander 5 for sale that was on my 2018 T100 which is compatible with your bike. It has a map installed which Norman Hyde had Dynojet develop for for the T100 when running their Toga silencers and a de-cat. Let me know if you're interested, £150 + delivery so £230 saving https://normanhyde.co.uk/hinckley-triumph/t100-from-2016/dynojet-power-commander.html
Thanks but no thanks mate. I've got Hagon shocks on the rear, so its not a bad handling bike already. I've been given a Tune ECU disc and I have the link cables, just no idea what to do with that stuff as I'm computer illiterate, so I think I'll take it down to the local chap I mentioned in the OP and see what he can make of it.
They stay on the bike and install alongside the ECU and hold the map file used for tuning. Your ECU isn't flashed with any software so if the PC was removed nobody would be any the wiser. You could use Tune ECU these days but a lot of tuners prefer Power Commanders still as they allow for live mapping meaning the adjustment and set up process is quicker. I'm sure that there reputable tuners developing maps for Tune ECU but there are a lot of maps floating about of unknown origin. Get a map wrong and you could kiss your engine goodbye. I still run a PC on my 1200 Thruxton and it'll be on there when the bike is sold. Often, owners using a Power Commander will have had a map developed for their bike on a Dyno which ensures long term reliability. It's not the cheapest route which also puts people off. It's personal choice, there'll be people offering both options and in either case they may know something or nothing about what they're doing.
