The ship was very much on fire when this bike was made. Triumph had gone through decades of bad finances and bad management. Labor disputes were affecting production. Quality was famously poor. And the machinery being produced was far from cutting edge. After all, 1976 was the year Kawasaki introduced the KZ1000. The Bonneville T140 was using an engine with a lineage that stretched back to the 1940s.
And yet, many credit the T140 as being the bike that kept the Triumph flame alive. And with it, the once mighty legacy of British motorcycling.
“If it wasn’t for the T140 Bonneville, would anyone be riding a new Triumph today?” wrote Sam Hewitt in Classic Bike Guide.
Powered by a five-speed 744cc air-cooled parallel twin engine promising 49 horsepower at 6500 rpm, the T140 was produced from 1973 – sort of – to 1983. I say “sort of” because the first few years of production were disrupted by labor disputes, which fed quality-control issues.
By 1976, things were moving along OK, though. For that year, Triumph (finally) moved the gear lever to the left side and replaced the rear drum brake with a disc brake. Triumph had very much hoped the bike would see success in the US market but by this late date, Americans had turned their interest toward faster, more reliable things. It didn’t help that the T140 was somewhat overpriced. The bike was far more popular in its home market of the United Kingdom, where it was priced below Japanese rivals.
The T140 “is a comfy, rapid classic that can lope along all day, stop when you ask it to and blast off into the middle distance occasionally when you open the taps,” according to Hewitt. But it has its quirks. Famously, the thing drinks oil like a sailor drinks booze on shore leave.
“A T140 can be expected to use a pint [of oil] every 200 miles,” Hewitt advises.
And if you’re pushing the engine, vibration can also be an issue. Hewitt suggests a T140 owner keen to ride aggressively will want to stop often – both to rest, and to give the bike a good looking over for loose bolts.
This particular example “has just undergone a full professional rebuild,” according to the seller. “Everything is dialed in and ready to ride or show.” And certainly it’s a looker, helping one understand how Triumph of the 1960s and ’70s managed to survive for so long despite its many failings. The T140 kept the iconic name afloat just long enough that it was able to be saved by John Bloor in 1983.
With 911 miles on the clock, this T140 is for sale for $4,900 (That strikes me as affordable for a classic) in Peoria, Arizona, here on eBay.