"Best" Year of Bonneville T100

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David Eldredge

moped
Hello all. I am new here - been reading/lurking for a week or so. I had a KZ650 years (decades) ago, and have had the bug to start riding again. I have been quite taken by the Bonneville T-100, and after reading all of the glowing reviews, I think I may pull the trigger before too long.

My question is this, what year of T-100 is the "best"? I am the kind of guy who tends to wrench things myself rather than take them to a shop when possible. From what I have been reading, I am pretty sure that I will want to remove the AI, remove the air box, and get some aftermarket pipes (predators?). I may even want to do some head and cam work eventually. I guess my main dilema is whether I should go carb or EFI? Also, I wonder if there are any particular features that are good or bad for particular years.

I like the idea of buying new, but I hate to pay for new parts that I will probably remove right away, and I might not be able to wait on the mods until the warranty is up, so that might be voided too. I'm also not sure if I will regret having the EFI when I do the mods. I am open to buying used, but I will probably keep this bike for a long, long time, so I have a certain hesitancy in buying used and hoping that it has not been abused.

I live in Idaho, so the bike will be taken on rides that will cover elevations from 2700 to 5700 feet above sea level on a regular basis. I am about 6'1" and weigh about 205 if that matters. If there is any other info that would be helpful, please let me know.

So, if you were going to buy a Bonneville T-100 in the near future, which one would you buy, and why? Thanks for any help.
 
D

David Eldredge

moped
Maybe I should add that in general I am a fan of EFI. If I weren't planning on the mods, I would defenetely lean towards a brand new EFI T100.
 
tooblekain

tooblekain

750cc
If you want carbs, go with the 2007 and some 2008s for best year.

If you go EFI, you may be limited. However there's a great freeware program called TuneECU. All you need to do is buy the OBDII to usb cable and have a computer or laptop available. You can buy the cable on ebay for like $10.

I have a 2007 Bonnie and my good friend has an EFI Bonneville SE. When he got Predator mufflers we used TuneECU to put the Arrow 2 into 2 map on there.

As for abuse, you can check out the Big Brother Forum (hate to give it a plug www.triumphrat.net) and there are plenty of stories of people with 100+K miles.
 
sweatmachine

sweatmachine

moped
Unless you have a hard-on for EFI, I'd say the best years are 2006 or 2007. Those have all the internal engine case reinforcements in place, and it's before the bloated new gas tanks.
 
D

David Eldredge

moped
Thanks for the input everyone. You have given me some new things to check out. So it looks like 2007 is the most popular year so far.

The nearest dealer is a few hundred miles away, so I won't be able to make very good use of dealer support.

Any additional feedback/thoughts would be appreciated.
 
S

strokerlmt

Moderator
05/06/07 carbed BUT only because that is what I find is easiest to work on.
I like "keep it simple", then you ride on.
LMT
 
S

strokerlmt

Moderator
I am an old fart, but the black box, computer chip, semi digitalic nuclear powered best to figure out the problem system does not sit well with me.
Escalator stops in a famous commercial and the people on the escalator look around and start calling for help.
Tune it fix it it is not that difficult.
LMT
 
H

henrys

Street Tracker
EFI is a snap to tune with the free program "tune ecu". No need to take the carbs apart to change the air/fuel ratio. Also EFI will adjust for altitude automagically. Carbs are great on a classic triumph but I'll take my EFI on my new bonnie.
 
T-boy

T-boy

Rocker
Welcome David. I've had nothing but good luck with my '07, and yes you will want to remove the AI system and at least modify the airbox. I put the BC Sleepers on my bike and can't say enough good things about them.
 
KingBear

KingBear

Hooligan
henrys said:
EFI is a snap to tune with the free program "tune ecu". No need to take the carbs apart to change the air/fuel ratio. Also EFI will adjust for altitude automagically. Carbs are great on a classic triumph but I'll take my EFI on my new bonnie.
Click to expand...

Thread hijack...

Yeah, carbs are nostalgic and I do love mine, but electronic EFI is better for folks who ride through different altitudes or, like me, are just not mechanically gifted. The most mechanical thing I know how to use well is an old manual typewriter. Speaking of which (here's where the hijack comes in) I just discovered an iPhone app which let's you plug your phone into the on-board computer of your vehicle, and it runs your diagnostics for you. It won't fix your car but at least you will know if the mechanic is jerking you around. We need that for our bikes!!

We now return you to our regularly scheduled program...
 
mark66

mark66

TT Racer
Welcome and like the others with the '07 that's around the year I would look for. Got mine used and have had nothing but fun ever since, and it was stock so any mods I have done where all by me. That's half the fun for me......working on it.
 
C

cantilever

Scooter
sweatmachine said:
Is that kinda like an ATM machine?
Click to expand...

closer to an Automatic ATM I think.

The best year would be the one that costs you less money.... getting older motorcycles will save money on purchase, and potentially on insurance.

ultimately, your biggest decision between the year models is going to be:

- fuel injection or carbs
- cost of purchase
- color options available

I would have said to include cast vs spoke wheels, but you specified T-100 which is going to be the spokes only.

Can't go wrong with any of them. Find the cheapest, most well cared for example and get it.
 
D

David Eldredge

moped
Thanks to everyone for the welcomes and the good advice. I think I have it narrowed down to 2007 or newer.

A little more feed back in case it leads to more good input. I am pretty much a "jack of all trades - master of none", so I feel pretty comfortable doing basic wrenching on carbs or dealing with the EFI stuff as needed. I do like to avoid frustration when possible though, and I don't know if dealing with tuning carbs while dealing with elevation changes (it is likely that I will take rides from sea level to as much as 7,000 feet at times), or dealing with mapping problems with the EFI would be more frustrating. In general, I am much more comfortable with mechanical than electrical problems/glitches, but I like how EFI can make adjustments for riding conditions - elevation etc.

I look forward to working on the bike I get and customizing it, so I would consider changing parts, paint, etc. as I go. We have pretty long winters here, so I would probably have time to work on it.

So, at this point I think I am looking for a 2007 or newer T100 (I like the spokes and the looks), and I am not aware of any particular problems I should be watching for. I have read about some of the bikes being assembled in the UK, and some in Thailand. Do you think it matters? Anything else I should watch for?

Thanks again for the welcome and the help.
 
tooblekain

tooblekain

750cc
David Eldredge said:
Thanks to everyone for the welcomes and the good advice. I think I have it narrowed down to 2007 or newer.

A little more feed back in case it leads to more good input. I am pretty much a "jack of all trades - master of none", so I feel pretty comfortable doing basic wrenching on carbs or dealing with the EFI stuff as needed. I do like to avoid frustration when possible though, and I don't know if dealing with tuning carbs while dealing with elevation changes (it is likely that I will take rides from sea level to as much as 7,000 feet at times), or dealing with mapping problems with the EFI would be more frustrating. In general, I am much more comfortable with mechanical than electrical problems/glitches, but I like how EFI can make adjustments for riding conditions - elevation etc.

I look forward to working on the bike I get and customizing it, so I would consider changing parts, paint, etc. as I go. We have pretty long winters here, so I would probably have time to work on it.

So, at this point I think I am looking for a 2007 or newer T100 (I like the spokes and the looks), and I am not aware of any particular problems I should be watching for. I have read about some of the bikes being assembled in the UK, and some in Thailand. Do you think it matters? Anything else I should watch for?

Thanks again for the welcome and the help.
Click to expand...

Assembly shouldn't really matter. My 2007 has 41K and was assembled in Thailand...haven't had any major problems whatsoever. And I beat the $#!t out of mine too on occasion. My only problems I can think of are: old fart that has stabbed my tires several times; idiot dash bulb going out; bad oil leak from cam cover where I was cheap and didn't use the proper sealing washers, cam cover weaping oil (common problem but easy fix...and the newly updated cam cover rubber gasket and sealing washers should solve it), non running bike for a week when it turns out I was just simply out of gas.

Ive done all of my regular maintenance...she runs like a top. Plus I run her everyday so I haven't really had the need to completley overhaul and clean the carbs. I do put some Seafoam into the tank every 2 thousand miles or so to "clean" my carbs. What I love so far...did my last valve clearance check at 36K miles....and STILL within spec!!! valve clearance check is much easier on my Bonnie than it is my Daytona 675

As for elevation changes...when riding out in the mountains and desert all in the same day I just have to fiddle around with my idle adjuster knob. Havent had a need to rejet yet.

Well, here are obvious problems you will run into when you have carb'd versus EFI....no low fuel light; and remembering between flipping between ON and REServe
 
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dschief

dschief

750cc
Personally, I like the earlier bikes with the 790 engine. The 865s have better low end torque, but the 790s are screamers on the top, relatively speaking.
 
C

Clarke

Scooter
David, If you like the look of metal tank badges vs. plastic, the post 2008 model gas tanks won't work. 09 and newer tanks do not have fasteners to mount metal side badges. There are threads about this topic. Just fyi, something else to think about.
 
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