Triumph Thunderbird 1700 Commander
Triumph Thunderbird 1700 Commander Author: Roland Brown Posted: 13 Feb 2014 It would be easy to take a quick glance at the Thunderbird Commander and assume it was barely different to the mean black Thunderbird Storm that Triumph released three years ago. The Commander has chrome in many places where the Storm is black, including headlights, engine covers and exhausts, but the shapes of the two big naked cruisers and their 1699cc parallel twin engines are almost identical. There's much more to the Commander than chrome and two-tone paintwork though. Its dohc, eight-valve engine is borrowed straight from the Storm, though a new airbox and exhaust system combine to reduce peak output by a few horsepower to 93bhp, while adding a more aggressive exhaust bark thanks to a new valve in the exhaust. And the chassis is completely new, designed to improve both handling and comfort. The Commander...