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Triumph Bonneville Silver Jubilee
(by Ian Falloon, Mar 2022)
Falloon on
the royal twin
The public’s fascination
with the British Royal family is not a new phenomenon.
And it extends well beyond popular entertainment for the
masses. Even motorcycles aren’t immune from this
popularism and in 1977 Triumph decided to capitalise on
a significant Royal event, the Queen’s Silver Jubilee
(25th Anniversary).
At the time the Triumph
board included several unpaid managerial advisors, one
being Lord Stokes, former Chairman of British Leyland.
He suggested Triumph capitalise on the event and managed
to obtain Palace approval for a limited edition model.
Thus each came with an official commemorative
certificate, and the Bonneville Silver Jubilee would
become one of Triumphs most successful models of Meriden
era.
The early 1970s was an
extremely turbulent time for the British motorcycle
industry. By 1973 most companies had closed their doors
and only Norton and Triumph remained. But despite
significant government assistance their annual losses
were still horrendous. In an effort to save the
industry, Norton and Triumph merged, with production to
be consolidated in two factories; the BSA plant in Small
Heath, Birmingham and the Norton facility at
Wolverhampton.
No one told the workers at
the small Triumph factory at Meriden in the West
Midlands. With the threat of closure looming, the
Meriden workers blockaded the factory in September 1973,
effectively halting Bonneville production for nearly two
years.
When Bonneville production
resumed late in 1975 it was still ostensibly an
anachronism in a world now used to oil tight
four-cylinder superbikes with overhead camshafts and an
electric start. As Triumph was limited in their
developmental resources, the Bonneville’s updates were
primarily to enable it to be sold in the traditionally
profitable US market.
This included a left-side
gearshift, rear disc brake and new Lucas switches.
Although the revamped T140 suffered from hot running,
unreliable electrics and vibration, it still possessed
great mid-range power and excellent handling. And the
traditional scourge of British twins, oil leakage, was
largely tamed.
The modest dry weight of
177 kg was also around 45kg lighter than comparable
Japanese 750s at the time. But reliance on the US market
saw Triumph caught out by a falling dollar after retail
prices were already established and cash flow remained a
serious concern. By 1977 Meriden needed a quick
lifesaver and the Bonneville Silver Jubilee was just the
ticket.
Basically the Jubilee was a
standard 750 Bonneville, sharing the venerable long
stroke (74x82 mm) 744cc 360-degree parallel twin. With a
mild 7.9:1 compression ratio, and fed by a pair of small
30 mm Amal carbs the engine produced a very modest 44
horsepower at 7000rpm.
What set the Jubilee apart
were the gaudy details, including shiny chrome-plated
engine covers, fork covers and taillight bracket. Blue
and red striping highlighted the rather undistinguished
silver paint, striping accents continuing on the 19 and
18-inch wheel rims and special Dunlop K91 “Red Arrow”
tyres.
The Jubilee’s most unusual
styling feature was the blue seat with red piping. Even
the silver chain guard received the royal treatment,
accented in three colours. The hand-welded frame was the
often criticised and controversial “oil-in-the-frame”
type first introduced with the T120 in 1971. But by 1977
it was well developed, with shorter shocks to lower the
initially intimidating seat height.
For the Jubilee Triumph
introduced a pair of Girling gas-filled upside down
shocks, with the spring pre-load at the top, these soon
making their way to the rest of the Bonneville range. US
examples received the smaller, traditional “teardrop”
style fuel tank, with UK and export versions the less
attractive “breadbin” style.
Initially it was envisaged
that only 1000 Jubilees would be built, hence every
machine carried the proud boast of “One in a Thousand”.
However, demand persisted so Meriden produced another
1000 and finally a further 400 for general export. For
these final examples Triumph replaced the emblem with
“Limited Edition.” Obviously “One in about Two and Half
Thousand” didn’t have quite the same ring!
One thousand were destined
for the US but they sold very slowly as Americans
couldn’t really identify with the Royal event. Even in
America the extravagant looks were considered over the
top, and Jubilees sat in US showrooms gathering dust
well into the 1980s.
Elsewhere they were
immediately considered investments and many were
squirrelled away with little or no miles put on them. As
a Meriden spokesman said later, “They were brilliant. 50
per cent of owners put them away and never ran them so
the warranty call back was minimal!”
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