Triumph’s new seat-lowering Tech takes on Harley’s innovation

When Harley-Davidson introduced the industry’s first adaptive ride height feature on the Pan America 1250 Special in 2021, it signaled a challenge for competitors to develop their own seat-lowering technology. Triumph Motorcycles has answered the call by unveiling a similar feature called Active Preload Reduction, integrated with the Showa semi-active suspension in its current Tiger 1200 series.

This technology has been designed to lower the seat height when the bike comes to a stop by reducing the rear suspension preload. It’s a significant improvement for models like the Tiger 1200 GT, GT Pro, and GT Explorer, which have relatively tall seat heights of 33.5 to 34.5 inches. The Tiger 1200 Rally Pro and Rally Explorer models sit even higher at 34.4 and 35.2 inches.

Active Preload Reduction can lower the seat heights by up to 0.78 inches, depending on the combined weight of the rider, passenger, and luggage. With accessory low seats, you can achieve an additional reduction, bringing the lowest setting to less than 32 inches for the GT family and under 33 inches for the Rally bikes.

Unlike Harley’s approach, Triumph includes the preload reduction feature as standard on all new Tiger 1200 motorcycles. It can be easily activated by pressing the “Home” button on the right switch cube for one second. For existing 2023 Tiger 1200 owners, the feature can be added via a software update at an authorized Triumph dealership, with no additional upgrade fee.

Triumph’s Chief Product Officer, Steve Sargent, emphasizes that this new feature enhances accessibility, providing riders with greater confidence and better contact with the ground at slower speeds, ultimately benefiting vertically challenged riders.