Can a cruiser be built for speed? In the case of the Rocket, the answer is definitely "yes!" This thing will run 11.5 quarters all day long, and possibly much quicker if Triumph hadn't tuned the ECU to limit full power in the bottom three gears.
We can already hear the clickity-clack of keyboards out there in cyberspace as the self-righteous among you begin drafting a letter to tell us that these are cruisers and not sportbikes, and therefore any performance numbers are moot. We'd like to interrupt the process by reminding you that any potential buyer of one of these ground pounders is definitely interested in the muscle under the hood. Besides, we had a ton o' fun winding them out to see what they'll do, so save your virtual ink and read on.
When Triumph announced the Rocket 3, it boasted that the 2.3-liter bike would out-accelerate a Hayabusa to 60 mph. Our data proved that's not gonna happen. Nonetheless, the Rocket easily puts the others in this test on the trailer, posting a 0-60 mph dash in just 3.32 seconds (a Hayabusa will do it in under 3 seconds). The big Trumpet proved easy to launch thanks to a long wheelbase and a cooperative clutch, getting to 60 mph in just 161 feet compared to the 210-feet-plus of its less sprightly competitors.
Its runs were also the most consistent thanks to having the only tachometer of the bunch. The Rocket blazed through the quarter-mile with an 11.48 at 119.3 mph and continued to accelerate hard until it hit an aerodynamic brick wall (and possibly a speed limiter) at an actual 135.4 mph.
We figured the radical Rune was going to be able to win the drag race against the more ponderous-feeling Vulcan by the way in which it is able to light up its rear tire with only minor provocation. Actually, it turns out that the Rune's proclivity for tire-burning antics is its Achilles heel in contests of speed. Its lack of rear bite is likely due its rear tire, a sportbike-sized 180/55-17 Dunlop, so it doesn't have the huge contact patches offered by the 200mm and 240mm donuts on the V2K and Rocket, respectively. Also, having the shortest sidewall and stiffest rear suspension inhibits advantageous weight transfer. In addition, mass is the enemy of acceleration, and the Honda has the most of it.
The Rune's 4.23-second run to 60 was the slowest in this group, tardier than even the slow-shifting Vulcan that did the sprint in 4.09 secs. Similarly, the Rune's best quarter-mile run of 12.56 seconds was slower than the V2K's, although it ran through with a slightly higher trap speed of 111.2 mph. We're certain that, given more time for additional runs and lowered tire pressure, we'd be able to hustle the Rune through the quarter about 3-tenths quicker. On the plus side, the Rune's ability to do feet-up rolling burnouts long enough to blow out a rear tire has to be worth something in the bragging rights that seem to surround the puffed-out chests of this trio.
The big Honda proved to be very stable at speed. Its top end is limited by a speed governor, evidenced by its digital speedometer that flashes 131, 132 then 131, etc. Our super-trick Vbox data acquisition system proved that its actual top speed is 122.9 mph, once again just being nicked by the Kawasaki that topped out at 123.7 mph.
2005 Bruiser Cruiser Shootout - Performance Data
The Vulcan proved to have less traction than the Rocket but more than Rune. To lessen wheelspin, it launches best just above idle speed where there's still mountains of power that can be meted out by an accommodating clutch. While the Rune would lower its ETs with more traction, the Vulcan could easily save a tenth or two with a different gearbox. Its short first gear means a nearly instant shift to second, and the big gears working inside its 5-speed transmission don't like to be hurried. It takes a moment after jamming it into second before it clicks in and begins transmitting power, hindering its times to 60 mph. Still, it was able to embarrass the pricy Honda with its 4.09-second run to 60 and its 12.43 at 108.9 mph run through the quarter-mile. A motocross-style second-gear launch might be the best procedure for quick times.
Another bit of interesting info emerged from our downloaded data helps sort out how these bikes gather mph at speed. With the most power and the least weight, it came as no surprise that the Triumph was able to accelerate from 60-80 mph in the least amount of time, taking just 1.91 seconds to gather up 20 clicks from 60 mph. It should be noted that these are not top-gear roll-on numbers, but rather how quick it piles on speed through that particular parameter during our dragstrip runs.
Unlike the runs from a dead stop, traction would not be a limiting factor in this acceleration contest. The Rune bested the Kawasaki in this test, taking 2.51 seconds to perform the feat compared to the 2.74 seconds from the Vulcan.
