The 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm Has A Massive 2.45-Liter Engine And Now It Makes 180 HP Tire-Shredding Power

Two decades ago, England drove a stake into the motorcycle engine displacement arms race. The Triumph Rocket III left the Japanese and the Americans in its dust as its seriously chunky 2.3-liter three-cylinder was bigger than their engines while its 140 horsepower and 147 lb-ft of torque was unrivaled. There wasn’t a mass-produced motorcycle engine that was bigger or badder. Triumph has been keen on retaining its crown and the Triumph Rocket 3 and its 2.45-liter engine achieves just that. Now, with the 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm, you get the world’s biggest mass-production engine plus the kind of power that electric motorcycles punch out.

For many in America, the 2024 riding season is right around the corner. If you have the kind of cash required to strap yourself to a Rocket 3, Triumph says these motorcycles will be hitting dealers starting April 24. I sure hope you have decent gear because these bikes sound like you’ll be strapping yourself to a Saturn V or a Falcon Heavy. The Rocket III and its successor the Rocket 3 already had more than enough power to bend space and time, but Triumph figured why not, add even more power.

I’m not complaining, because the Triumph Rocket III/3 could go down in a list of all-time greatest motorcycles. Everything about these motorcycles is big, shouty, and coupled to life-changing amounts of power. So let’s see how Triumph figured out to make the experience even better.

For a quick refresher, you could say the Rocket 3’s story technically began in 1983 when British businessman John Bloor saved Triumph after it had fallen into receivership. The brand had been languishing and reached the end of the road, but Bloor believed Triumph could be a rockstar once again. Bloor poured millions of dollars into modernizing the storied brand while also launching attractive motorcycles. It worked and put Triumph back on the map.

In the 1980s and into the 2000s, motorcycle brands around the world set their sights on America, where Harley-Davidson was the king of the road with its hefty cruisers. The cruiser market was and remains such a huge share of new motorcycle sales in America that you can’t blame marques like BMW, Honda, and Triumph for wanting even a slice of it.

In 1998, Triumph Product Range Manager Ross Clifford recognized the need for Triumph to go big and powerful. Designer John Mockett was initially told to craft a bike bigger than 1,600cc. However, the competition was doing the same thing, like Honda with its VTX1800. In response, Triumph decided to put an end to the motorcycle displacement wars. In 2004, the Rocket III launched with a 2,294cc inline triple churning out 140 horsepower and 147 lb-ft of torque. No other mass-produced cruiser could touch it.

Now, I do say mass-produced because there are motorcycles with bigger engines, but they’re from boutique firms. Triumph doesn’t seem to count a Boss Hoss as a mass-produced bike.

Anyway, the original Rocket III was already one of the zaniest experiences you could have on two wheels. In 2019, Triumph released an all-new version of the Rocket III, now named the Rocket 3. This new bike shed the American cruiser-inspired design, instead going for a minimalist modern muscle cruiser look. Along with the all-new design came a new larger 2,458cc triple, which made 165 HP and 163 lb-ft of torque.

Strap Yourself In

Now we’re 20 years after the release of the Rocket III/3 and Triumph is cranking out an even better and faster Rocket 3.

The highlight of the 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm is that 2,458cc water-cooled triple. Power has been bumped up to 180 HP and 166 lb-ft of torque. Those power figures match the 2019 Triumph Factory Custom Rocket 3 (TFC) limited edition. However, just 750 of those were built and sold out quickly. This will be a motorcycle you will be able to buy.

Triumph hasn’t revealed any secret to getting 15 extra HP and a little more twist out of the engine. It’s all in the engine’s tuning, which now allows the engine to spin higher. As a result, peak HP now comes on at 7,000 RPM instead of 6,000 RPM. Torque is unchanged, hitting its peak at 4,000 RPM.

The horsepower figure is awesome. To put it into perspective, you’re getting just 20 fewer ponies in the stable than a Kawasaki Ninja H2, one of the fastest mass-production motorcycles you’re allowed to put a license plate on. But that torque figure? It’s out of this world for a gas bike. Triumph claims that the 166 lb-ft of torque figure is “record-breaking” and there’s some truth to it. That Kawasaki lays down 98.5 lb-ft of torque. Harley-Davidson has a 135 cubic inch V-twin that makes 143 lb-ft of torque. Aside from boutique builds, Triumph remains the king.

That’s so long as you don’t throw electric motorcycles into the mix. The Zero DSR/X I’m testing makes 100 HP and 166 lb-ft of torque, matching the Triumph on torque. These power monsters are totally something else to ride and not for the faint of heart. My own Triumph Rocket III makes 147 lb-ft of torque, so layering on even more power likely only adds to the feeling of holding on for dear life.

This is all to say the 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm sounds like a rollercoaster of thrill, only it doesn’t end a minute after it starts.

An aluminum frame and a beefy suspension back that lovely engine. You get an adjustable Showa 47mm inverted fork and a single-sided cast aluminum swingarm equipped with an adjustable Showa piggyback reservoir monoshock. Stopping the party is a Brembo Stylema M4.30 four-piston radial calipers clamping on a pair of 320mm front discs. A Stylema M4.32 four-piston caliper takes up the rear, squeezing a 300mm rotor.

At its heaviest, a Rocket 3 Storm weighs 706 pounds. To help you deal with the absolute unit, Triumph says the bikes come with new lighter cast aluminum wheels to lower unsprung mass. You’re getting a 16-inch rear and a 17-inch front wheel wrapped in 240/50-16 rear and 150/860-17 front Metzeler Cruisetec tires, respectively. The section width of that rear tire isn’t a typo!

Other assists come in the form of lean-angle sensitive ABS, cruise control, hill-hold control, and traction control. Additional technology comes in the form of ride-by-wire, keyless ignition, ride modes, a color TFT display and a USB port. One more bit of tech comes from a torque assist clutch.

The 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm will come in two versions.

The 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm R above is stripped down and sporty, featuring forward-set bars and mid-mounted pegs for more of a leaned-over riding experience. That version weighs 699 pounds.

If you want your power and be more comfortable while you’re enjoying it, the 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm GT below might be your pick.

This variant pulls its bars back, moves the pegs forward, drops the seat closer to the ground, and gives you a small windscreen plus standard heated grips. Seat heights are 30.4 inches and 29.5 inches, respectively. As noted before, the GT comes in at 706 pounds, courtesy of the slightly different equipment.

That’s really only the start. If you want, you can kit these motorcycles up with bigger windscreens, bars, controls, seats, and storage. Triumph lists other options including heated grips for the R variant but also a Bluetooth phone connection to enable music and navigation, a quickshifter, and TPMS.

Pretty And Pretty Expensive

In terms of style, Triumph is keeping with a sinister blacked-out theme. However, you can get a splash of blue, gray, or red in there. Add in the Rocket’s characteristic hydroformed three-exist exhaust system, and these bikes are total stunners. Triumph also notes anodized finishes and LED lighting.

Also potentially stunning is $24,995 for the 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm R and $25,795 for the 2024 Triumph Rocket 3 Storm GT. To be clear, adding 15 HP didn’t jack up the price super high as these new bikes are $1,200 more expensive than the 2023 models. Obviously, these are premium machines, but I doubt you’ll regret paying the price, not when you have a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon.

If you’ve fallen in love with what you see here, Triumph says deliveries begin April 24. That’s perfect timing to get you on a glorious ride right on time for summer. Good on Triumph for keeping things crazy. Bikes like these have no practical reason to exist, but the fun alone makes them worth it.

(Images: Triumph, unless otherwise noted.)