Aprilia Tuono V4 R|Review

Literasia.com-After creating the best superbike of the new millennium, Aprilia revolutionizes the naked bike segment with its astonishing Tuono V4 R. Judging by the new models that Aprilia unveiled at INTERMOT a month ago and now at EICMA, parent company Piaggio evidently is capitalizing on the racing success of the RSV4. Aprilia has won world titles in the 125 and 250 GP classes by the truckload, but the return on its image has been confined to the racing community. Even the previous World Superbike challenger, the RSV1000, walked off the stage virtually unnoticed. Maybe Aprilia was too focused on the youth market at times, with tens of thousands of very hot two-stroke 125s rolling off the assembly line. That helped make profits soar but did little for the company’s image.

he performance and features of a superbike, the agility of a naked and the legacy of an innovative concept born in 2002 with the Tuono 1000 R - a bike that earned both critical acclaim and sales success - but with an extraordinary ace up its sleeve: the performance of a 65° V4 engine and the most advanced electronics available in a motorcycle today.

Like the original Tuono, the V4 R is also immediately recognisable with its triple headlight fixed top fairing, the distinguishing trait of a bike which, like its twin cylinder predecessor, has the body and soul of its WSBK homologated sibling, but now - as well as having two world championships (the 2010 constructors' and riders' titles) under its belt - features two more cylinders and 41 horsepower more than before, while weighing over 22 pounds less.

his is not merely an RSV4 stripped of its plastic; it is a naked evolution of that sportbike, conceived for a high-adrenaline, sport-leisure-touring mission. At its heart is the RSV4’s 1000cc 65-degree V-Four, detuned via milder cams from a claimed 180 hp at 12,250 rpm and 85 ft.-lb. of torque at 10,000 to 162 hp at 11,000 rpm and 81 ft.-lb. at 9000. The 13:1 compression ratio and the 48mm EFI throttle bodies have been retained, as have the high-efficiency, lightweight exhaust system and its torque-enhancing butterfly valve. Plus, it uses the same APRC package as fitted to the RSV4 Factory APRC SE, providing wheelie control, launch control and traction control all in one. The V4 R also should get the RSV4’s quick shifter as standard equipment.