It’s a strange but cool looking beast. Angular, fussy, oddball, interesting. The long travel suspension, bark-buster hand guards, alloy bash plate and nineteen-inch front wheel might hint at off road potential but, trust me, nothing would be further from your mind than hurling this bad boy up a green lane. Especially after paying eight grand for it.
We read a piece by Jane Armed Robbery on the Tre K in The Sun. She claimed it was a bit boring or words to that effect. This made us wonder if she’d actually even started it up, never mind ridden it. We disagree, Janey.
Press the starter on the Tre-K (but don’t give it any gas, as the sticker on the tank informs you) and it coughs into life with an instant, nasty bark. You can always rely on small volume Italian manufacturers to flaunt EU noise regulations and the Tre-K doesn’t disappoint. The racket from the tailpipe is pure race grid and you can almost sense the noise meter man’s unwanted attentions.
Blip the throttle and it impresses further. Revs rise and fall so fast it’s as if someone’s nicked the flywheels. To call the Tre-K engine responsive would be doing it down. This is engine is a race engine. Sounds like it, too. Compared to the Triumph there’s far more mechanical noise. Much more drama. Way more urgency.
It’s much the same once you’re moving but despite its willingness to rev, the torque on hand is immense. Brutal. The Tre-K will pull (hard) in a high gear from tickover. The fuelling isn’t perfect but putting the motor under this sort of loading doesn’t fluster the map. This characteristic, this low-down tractability makes it a gas to ride when there’s little grip. A great bike to learn power-sliding on… should you fancy.
One of its fuelling foibles rears its head only at crawling pace. I’m not sure whether this is a trait of having so little flywheel effect, or just mapping, but damn, it’s easy to stall, particularly pulling away from lights. It coughs, spits back and dies – and then the blare of car horns begins.
It’s a strange but cool looking beast. Angular, fussy, oddball, interesting. The long travel suspension, bark-buster hand guards, alloy bash plate and nineteen-inch front wheel might hint at off road potential but, trust me, nothing would be further from your mind than hurling this bad boy up a green lane. Especially after paying eight grand for it.
We read a piece by Jane Armed Robbery on the Tre K in The Sun. She claimed it was a bit boring or words to that effect. This made us wonder if she’d actually even started it up, never mind ridden it. We disagree, Janey.
Press the starter on the Tre-K (but don’t give it any gas, as the sticker on the tank informs you) and it coughs into life with an instant, nasty bark. You can always rely on small volume Italian manufacturers to flaunt EU noise regulations and the Tre-K doesn’t disappoint. The racket from the tailpipe is pure race grid and you can almost sense the noise meter man’s unwanted attentions.
Blip the throttle and it impresses further. Revs rise and fall so fast it’s as if someone’s nicked the flywheels. To call the Tre-K engine responsive would be doing it down. This is engine is a race engine. Sounds like it, too. Compared to the Triumph there’s far more mechanical noise. Much more drama. Way more urgency.
It’s much the same once you’re moving but despite its willingness to rev, the torque on hand is immense. Brutal. The Tre-K will pull (hard) in a high gear from tickover. The fuelling isn’t perfect but putting the motor under this sort of loading doesn’t fluster the map. This characteristic, this low-down tractability makes it a gas to ride when there’s little grip. A great bike to learn power-sliding on… should you fancy.
One of its fuelling foibles rears its head only at crawling pace. I’m not sure whether this is a trait of having so little flywheel effect, or just mapping, but damn, it’s easy to stall, particularly pulling away from lights. It coughs, spits back and dies – and then the blare of car horns begins.
Price £7699 Top speed 140mph (indicated)
Front suspension 50mm Marzocchi telescopic fork, preload, rebound adjustment
Rear suspension Extreme Technology monoshock, preload, rebound adjustment
Front brakes Four-piston calipers, 320mm discs
Rear brake Twin-piston caliper, 240mm disc
Dry weight 205kg (410lbs) Seat height 810mm Fuel capacity 23.5-litres
Colour options Yellow
Engine 1130cc, liquid-cooled in line triple
Bore & stroke 88mm x 62mm Compression ratio 11.6:1
Power 125bhp at 9000rpm Torque 84.8ft-lb at 6250rpm
