New 2021 Yamaha MT-07 vs. Triumph Trident 660: Which Should You Buy?

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[eliotsalandybrown]

I think 14 minutes discussing specifications (which we can all read online) and only 4 on how they feel to ride (which we can't read online) is out of balance.

[dyoung]

Had the MT for 4 years, moved to Trident this March, done 4000 miles . It’s that good.
Exhaust-
MT OE pipe is quiet and just purrs. Had a straight through pipe and it was just to loud. OK for short blasts but annoying on long runs. If you don’t set up the fuelling it doesn’t feel so smooth.
Trident sounds great as OE . From 6000rpm it rasps gloriously. I think an open pipe would be actually too loud and would soon be tiresome.
MT Suspension - upgraded immediately to Maxton. Soft, wallowing, disconnected OE. Definitely not designed for 90kg rider. Powering out of roundabouts, back end so loose.
Trident - Showa. This ‘budget’ unit is great and chassis feels solid. Not needing to upgrade, maybe after 20000miles / 3 years. Freshen it up. Rides like it’s on rails, but can be harsh on some of our really shitty pothole roads
MT - Brakes. Just a bit soft and lacking bite. Upgrade with better pads and lines.ABS cuts in too quick on the rear and when on heavy engine braking.
Trident- Solid feel, braided lines. ABS really smooth and doesn’t cut in on downshifts. Slipper clutch is great.

Quickshifter on Trident is a must . Brilliant on downshifts. 2 to 6 upshifts from higher revs the better. Absolutely brilliant fun. Holding the throttle wide open and flicking up the gears, it’s infectious and really brings out the exhaust note. Note : Turning of the TC makes the process wild. It will lift.

Rider Modes. They work well. Rain is good, TC does make a positive difference. Watch out if you change settings within the modes, you can accidentally set rain settings into the road mode. Then wonder why you have slow throttle and TC comes on everywhere 🤣 Remember to reset to factory.

Overall I like the style, engine and brand. Fixtures, fittings and finish is top quality.
Safe ride.

[mikethebikemttracer]

I have done a lot of touring on my MT07 with the furthest being Croatia and Slovenia from North Devon. It is a great country lane Sunday ride bike as well. I regularly get 80+ MPG if I stay within the speed limits. I think it was a mega good deal at £6300 in May 2017. 18, 000 enjoyable miles.

[RichDunn]

I like the CP2 and Yamaha build a nice reliable bike. But I'd go for the Triumph personally, because aside from preferring its looks and triple feel/sound. It also has traction control, a slipper-clutch, rider modes, and 10k service intervals; which are a lot of key advantages, for very little extra money.

[nikola]

I’ve owned 2014 MT-07 for few years, excellent bike to commute every day, and I did 1400 miles road trip had lots of fun with that bike, with little bit tune up you will love the bike even more

[stanleyknife]

Only rode the Trident recently and overall I liked it. I agree with you about the brakes - they do the job, but I would have liked a bit more power. The initial throttle opening is a bit soft for me (I know this bike is aimed at riders who probably haven't been riding as long as I have), but once above 4000 rpm, it was fantastic. Sounds brilliant too. The MT-07 feels agricultural in comparison, especially at low revs, but like the Trident, sounds brilliant on full chat. As you eluded to, it will probably come down to looks and price - personally I like both and the price of the Trident is pretty competitive, if a tad more than the Yamaha. Great video as usual Bob, keep up the great work.

[JohnReedHammond]

The new (since the early 2000s) Triumphs are incredibly reliable. Absolutely equal to any other manufacturer, but truly badass bikes in style and performance

[mylifeinthailand]

I live in Thailand and I’ve seen a lot of different bike reviews, the Brit reviewers tend to say great for commuting but here every bike can be used for touring. I have a Thai friend who has a Ninja 650 with top box and panniers fitted, he changed the windscreen and took the clip-one off the fitted a Z650 bar

[franmarch]

I have a Yamaha XSR 700 which is the cafe version of the MT 07. It is a great bike! I am extremely satisfied with it.

[philipdhiatt]

Thanks for the review, you did an excellent job. I own a 2021 MT-07, same model and color you tested; I changed the exhaust, air filter, and flashed the ECU; now it's like riding a totally different bike, super fun.

[spacetraveler]

I test rode both. I brought the triumph. The Yamaha was good but I felt like I was riding a plastic toy. The triumph was just so solid and felt cool.

[VETTE_Drummer]

I feel like the XSR-700 is the more comparable bike to the Trident given the body styling similarities, but besides the body it's the same bike as the MT, soooo... im splitting hairs with that lol. Great review man, im loving your videos. And I love your triumph. The more I see it the more I kinda want to get one.

[jackgirote]

everyone complains about the triumphs throttle. I own the trident. I don't notice it. I think its really meant to keep it from jerking when your traveling in lower speed traffic.

[cp]

That triple sounds awesome! Go Triumph 👍

[kakkacarmenelectra]

Love triumph, but the 07 just sounds so phenomenal with an aftermarket exhaust.
Had the 07, swapped for a street triple and miss that CP sound so much

[bryanl.]

I chose my MT07 for a major reason: reliability.

[jayc]

It was a wonderful experience watching this video. This is the most honest comparison ever. Way to go Bob! Cheers!

[boris]

I sold my Ducati Monster 796 and bought a MT07 and I Love it 😀 . What a joy to ride, and the best part is which nobody ever talks about is how easy it is to maintain and dependability over European bikes.

[pistolpete]

Can’t go wrong with either bike! Great video!

[G.W._Cook]

For having ridden both extensively, I see a much starker contrast between the two, it could be down to where I live being mostly mountain roads (French Alps).

But to me, the MT has a pretty bad chassis, that doesn't inspire confidence, the braking (on the 2020) was significantly worse on the MT. I'm not a heavy rider (under 75kg equipped/165lbs), but the MT gets willowy very easily. And despite its softer suspension, it's less comfortable on most roads, than the Trident.

And speaking of comfort, the seat on the MT is pretty bad too, after an hour of riding, I'm in pain, whereas I can last two hours on the Trident before I feel any form of discomfort. On the other hand, the knees are more bent on the Trident, controls feel a bit higher, which does become a problem after 4 hours straight (yeah I know it's dumb to ride that long). The Trident requires a slightly taller rider on stock seat than the MT does.
The Trident also feels much more nimble on twisty roads, brakes give a lot of confidence, and the engine feels as torquey as the CP2, but it revs much higher and sings much better on stock pipes.
In terms of fuel economy, it's dead even, I've been just under 4L/100km on both and near 6/100km on both, though because the Trident is smoother at very low revs, I tend to be lower overall in daily riding.

Two things I'd like to mention about the Trident: the fly screen does help, and traction control does trigger quite often on strong hairpin exists (probably because it would lift the front wheel on acceleration alone in 2nd gear)

In conclusion, I'd say that if you live in a very flat area with nice roads, gentle corners or do a lot of city riding, the MT is absolutely fine. But if you want to ride aggressively, have a lot of tight corners, mountain roads, the Trident is way better there. Both would benefit from after market exhausts though, and only the MT has real options right now (at least for street legal stuff).