This is one of Hinckley’s press bikes from 1990. It uses four-cylinder 998cc version of the short-stroke 750 Daytona/Trident engine.

This bike was shipped to the Isle of Man for the TT Races in 1990 by MCN where Chris Dabbs and Keith Heuwen attempted to convince the punters that this was Triumph’s answer to the CBR1000F etc.

There’s a video from Duke (www.dukevideo.com) documenting the whole episode. They say: “Top tester Chris Dabbs puts the 1000cc sports superbike through its paces in every way possible and makes some comparisons with the Yamaha FZR1000. Ex-GP rider Keith Huewen joins Dabbs on some ‘A’ and ‘B’ roads in the UK before flat out timed runs at Bruntingthorpe testing ground where the Daytona does 156 mph with our camera on-board! Then it’s off to the Isle of Man where the handling of the new superbike is fully explored. There’s even footage of an – unplanned – crash test (not Dabbs’ or even the bike’s fault we might add!!) Comprehensive, informative and fun. Don’t miss it!”

[There’s a DVD and a download as well]

Dabbs did indeed crash the bike by riding it into a straw bale – the dent is still evident in the silencer!

I’ve ridden this bike and it’s not bad for an early 90’s “superbike” and probably would have done well against the CBR of the time. Unfortunately for Triumph, the FireBlade appeared soon after and shifted the goal posts (slightly…)

It is top heavy with a long stretch to the bars but comfy as long as you are tall enough (I am). The pilot’s eye view is a bit strange as Triumph appear to have bolted an extra cylinder on the right hand side of the bike. When you look down, the engine protrudes from beneath the tank about 1″ more on the right than the left!

I like Daytonas. Here’s the pair.

Update March 2014

The bike has an MOT and is now for sale at Bridge Moto in Reading:

Update April 2014

Gone from their website so I assume sold…