Long before today’s ridiculously competent Triumph Daytona 675 machines, the iconic British manufacturer was offering a different Daytona Super Sport in the form of the T100R. This 1968 Daytona example isn’t going to take home any trophies at shows or contests anytime soon, but it nonetheless possesses a number of elements, including its half century of wear and tear that give it a certain charm that even today’s Triumph retro models can’t fully replicate. Wearing surprisingly clean original factory paint – including the factory “Daytona Super Sports” script on the top of the tank and an odo that has yet to make use of its fifth digit, this Triumph example boasts some awesome patina and is just an all around fantastic retro British sport machine.
The T100R was just one of many T100 variants that Triumph produced from ’59 to ’74. In 1967, the T100R Daytona replaced the T100S/R, featuring updates to the engine like racing “Q” cams with radiused followers, a new cylinder head that utilized larger intake valves, a revised frame and swingarm, and dual 1-1/8-inch Amal carburetors. The updated 490cc air-cooled OHV parallel twin engine now put down 41hp at 7,200RPM and had a claimed top-speed of over 100mph. (105 to be exact). The T100R weighed in at 371lbs wet, 25lbs less than the Bonneville, and supposedly it sold new in 1968 for a whopping $1,199.
While Triumph’s 650 Bonneville was the manufacturer’s best selling bike in the 1960’s and was substantially more popular than the 500cc T100 and its variants, the T100 and T100R played a more vital role in Triumph’s racing efforts. Harley-Davidson had won every Daytona 200 from ’55-’65 (and several races before and after that decade), but Triumph was determined to end the Milwaukee-based manufacturer’s decade-long win streak. Triumph engineer Doug Hele developed the T100’s mechanical prowess while improving the bike’s handling, enabling Buddy Elmore and Gary Nixon to pilot these Triumph racers to consecutive Daytona 200 victories with Elmore winning the famous event in ’66 and Nixon winning it in ’67. As you have probably guessed by now, this is the origin of a Triumph moniker still used on its sport models today.
Cycle Magazine tested the then-new Triumph T100R in 1967 and recorded a 14.9 second standing quarter, hitting just under 90mph while doing so. Moto journalists described the T100R as being similar to the Bonneville, only with much better flickability. Aside from not being particularly impressed with the T100R’s seven-inch single-leading-shoe front brake – which they described as “adequate” – Cycle World had a lot of positive things to say about the race-derived T100R. The publication also stated the machine possessed something of a “Jekyll and Hyde” personality, with the Daytona performing more like a “strong 350” when below 4,500RPM, but coming alive at 6,000RPM where it had noticeably more power.
This example is from 1968, a fact that matters for a handful of reasons. In ’68, the Daytona came from the factory with the new BSA group 8-inch twin-leading-shoe drum front brake, an update that remedied the so-called “adequate” front brake Cycle World had previously griped about. (Fun fact: with the exception of some of the last units produced in February of ’74, the Daytona never came stock with a disk brake, though many examples have since been fitted with one). The Daytona would continue to see production until ’74, and went mostly unchanged following the ’68 model. The introduction of Yamaha’s TX500 almost instantly made the Daytona noticeably long in the tooth, however that’s not to say the ’68 Daytona isn’t a seriously fun vintage sportbike.
This example’s owner happens to be a Triumph collector who is currently thinning the herd of original paint bikes he/she possesses. According to the ad, this T100R “starts right up and runs great”, and as previously mentioned still wears its original factory paint which has held up remarkably well over the last half-century. Aside from a little fading on the front fender, the seller describes the rest of the paint as “like new”. The ad also mentions the rubber covers on the fork have some cracks, as well as a small tear on the side of the seat. As the seller points out, this machine is a “rare bike to begin with, but extremely rare in this original condition.” While it does have a few flaws here and there, I personally feel they just add more character to the bike, while also conveniently bringing the price down a bit.
You can find this 1968 Triumph T100R Daytona Super Sports example with only 8,836-original-miles, for sale here on Craigslist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with a price of $8,500.