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CYCLE WORLD TEST
Tuono V4: Aprilia builds another awesome way to lose your license
DON CANET
www.cycleworld.com
EVIDENTLY, THERE’S A STANDARD METHOD OF creating a naked sportbike and then there’s the Italian way. Most manufacturers have done it by producing minimalistic, significantly detuned sportbikes that are just as well-suited to urban commuting as they are to the occasional weekend romp. But the original Tuono, introduced a decade ago, changed the nakedbike landscape. Aprilia essentially took its RSV Mille superbike, stripped it of its bodywork and bolted on a wide, motocross-style tubular handlebar—and instantly put our driver’s licenses in jeopardy. The Tuono thus redefined the modern naked “superbike,” making all other hooligan bikes of the era seem meek by comparison.
Tuono—“thunder” in Italian—is a fitting name for this bike, considering the reverberation of influence it’s had on this category, an impact clearly evident in the Ducati Streetfighter and MV Agusta Brutale. Like the Tuono, those sassy-’n’-sexy Italian nakeds have delivered mile after mile of race-derived performance and backroad bliss without the backaches.
Every editor who took our V4 testbike for a ride returned Tuono struck (sorry!) with excitement and awe. “Aprilia has once again done a great job of taking one of its pure sportbikes and transforming it into a naked,” noted Senior Editor Blake Conner. “By leaving the engine alone for the most part and giving the bike a great chassis with quality suspension, brakes and handling, Aprilia has created one of the most gnarly streetfighters ever mass-produced.”
The new Tuono V4 retains the best features of the RSV4 repli-racer, including its Aprilia Performance Ride Control (APRC) electronics. That lends it a fair degree of street civility without neutering its performance in the process—although a few alterations to the lOOOcc, 65-degree RSV4 engine do help make it a better road bike. Revised valve timing and 20mm-longer, fixedlength intake stacks have improved lowend and midrange power. Additional crankshaft inertia and shorter ratios in the bottom three gears provide smoother running, better shift action and easier acceleration away from stops.
Runs on the CW dyno validated that street-savvy tuning. Compared with the 2011 RSV4 Factory SE we last tested, the Tuono showed a measurable increase in torque throughout the rev range below 10,000 rpm. It also made just 2 fewer peak ponies, even though the 12,500-rpm rev limit is 1000 rpm below that of its superbike sibling.
“Sounds like Darrell Waltrip pulling out of the Daytona pits,” declared Feature Editor John Burns following a spirited weekend flaunt. “This one takes over from the Triumph Street Triple as my favorite-sounding bike.” Paul Dean, our more-senior Senior Editor, weighed in, as well. “It’s really fun to ride anyplace where you can open it up. It squirts from corner to corner in a rush, making awesome noises along the way, and you can flick it into and out of turns almost like a big dirtbike.”
No argument from me. The bike feels light and comfortably compact, and the saddle is lower and narrower up near the tank than the tallish one on the previous Tuono. That allows improved footing at stops, which is welcome due to the stingy steering lock that can make tightspace maneuvers a chore. The engine is mounted lower in the frame than on the RSV4, a change that Aprilia says helps improve handling by adjusting the center of gravity to partially offset the Tuono’s more-upright riding position. This, combined with the leverage provided by the wide, tapered handlebar, lends the Aprilia a much lighter feel than you would expect on a 480-pound (fully fueled) motorcycle.
Aprilia’s familiar tri-map throttle-bywire system, which offers three modes labeled as Track, Sport and Road, has been reprogrammed (as has APRC) for the Tuono package. The modes can be toggled on the fly and offer a choice between Track’s full power and response; Sport’s full power with slightly softer response in the first 15 percent of throttle opening; and Road mode’s reduced output above 6500 rpm and further taming of throttle response. Regardless of the selected mode, a momentary softness below 2500 rpm hampers linear delivery when easing away from a stop. Just a hint of aggressive acceleration smoothes things out when you have the luxury of nothing impeding your path.
“After flogging the Tuono through several miles of extremely technical tarmac, I realized that I wasn’t being physically worked like I would have been on most any other machine at that same pace.”
There is, however, a fair amount of lash in the driveline that’s mostly felt in the lower three gears when jockeying the throttle through traffic. The slipper clutch appears to be a major contributor of that freeplay, and exceptionally sensitive throttle response at very small twistgrip openings makes matters worse.
Casual acceleration through the bottom three cogs was slightly problematic for the Aprilia Quick Shift, often resulting in clumsy clutchless up changes. A slight dip of the clutch while holding steady throttle provides reliably slick changes in those situations. In the upper gears, the AQS always works seamlessly, as it does throughout the entire gearbox under moderate to full-on acceleration.
The engine tolerates being lugged at low rpm in a taller gear, illustrated by its smooth, shudder-free top-gear roll-on acceleration from 30 mph (2200 rpm), something that’s not an option with a Ducati Streefighter. And the Tuono’s sweet spot when cruising the highway is incredibly broad and free of vibration between 50 and 90 mph in top gear. This, along with the low-cut windscreen’s non-turbulent airflow at helmet height, makes for a serene, gliding sensation while keeping with the flow of freeway traffic.
“On the open road, the Tuono performs well, but it has two characteristics that, for me, detract from its potential as an all-day ride,” wrote Dean. “The seat, like on so many other Italian bikes, is too hard and a little too slick, so it doesn’t do anything to help offset the bike’s firm suspension; and the throttle response is too sensitive, especially when the throttle is just barely cracked open.” The seat truly is brutal after a few hours, and that, combined with how badly the yellow seat-skin material shows dirt smudges, gives ample reason to seek an accessory replacement.
A few raw edges are to be expected with an Italian thoroughbred such as this. Besides, the moment you experience the Tuono’s full performance potential, most of those shortcomings are either forgiven or forgotten. “Open the throttle quickly, and the speed is delivered in a deceptively fast manner,” said Conner in his notes. “The power comes in such a linear manner above 6000 rpm that you don’t realize how quickly you are eating up numbers on the speedometer.”
Those digital speedometer readings are pretty accurate below triple digits, too; I verified this with our test gear after pulling a full-on vertical third-gear power wheelie at 90 mph without any assist from the clutch! That’s an amazing feat that I don’t recall ever before achieving on a production motorcycle.
If those kinds of antics make your palms sweat, know that APRC offers three selectable levels of wheelie control that do a good job of keeping the front Pirelli Rosso Corsa skimming the road surface.
Launch control is another feature of APRC, albeit one of little use outside of actual race starts. Even then, I achieved my best launches and quickest quartermile test results with all electronic aids defeated. There also are 8 levels of traction-control sensitivity that can be toggled with a thumb and forefinger on the left handlebar switchpod; and unlike the systems on competing bikes, TCS can be switched on and off on the fly. Set to its lower sensitivity levels, the system is very effective at maintaining a minimal amount of rear-tire slippage, allowing for some massively thrilling corner exits.
“A few raw edges are to be expected with an Italian thoroughbred such as this. Besides, the moment you experience the Tuono’s full performance potential, most of those shortcomings are either forgiven or forgotten.”
Minor chassis tweaks between the Tuono and the RSV4 include moving the headstock 10.5mm forward, a 0.5-degree increase in rake, 2mm of additional trail and a 0.3-inch-longer wheelbase. It all adds up to enhanced stability that drew no complaints from any of our testers. The chassis was extremely agile, yet the Tuono remained remarkably composed when ridden hard on backroads. The gearing felt a tad tall, however, requiring the use of first gear to maximize drive out of the hairpins when ascending the face of one of our favorite roads in San Diego County. Considering the bike’s generous freeway sweet spot, dropping the 16-tooth countershaft sprocket by one tooth would be a very productive improvement.
Suspension calibration is unaltered from that of the RSV4 R, resulting in an honest track-quality level of feedback through the Sachs fork and shock. The front feels extremely planted and tracks over bumps and ripples without unsettling the chassis or altering its line. Steering is light and neutral, allowing quick side-to side directional changes with notably less effort than required on a typical clip-on-equipped supersport. There’s also very little tendency for the bike to stand up when turning in with the front brakes applied; in fact, trail braking is something the Tuono does particularly well. The two-piece (non-Monobloc), radial-mount Brembo calipers up front provide an excellent balance of initial bite and sheer stopping power.
After flogging the Tuono through several miles of extremely technical tarmac, I realized that I wasn’t being physically worked like I would have been on most any other machine at that same pace. The relaxed sporting ergos, light controls, nimble handing, confidence-bolstering electronics and stirring exhaust beat put me in a zone that made me feel anatomically connected to the Tuono. That’s a sensation I’ve chased ever since getting a class M endorsement on my license many years ago.
Thank you, Aprilia. Now I just hope I can keep that license!
EDITORS' NOTES
“This thing is sick! Third-gear power wheelies when snapping the throttle at 90 mph, and that’s at Palmdale (2600 feet) elevation! Imagine what it will do at sea level.”
I’d just had my first good opportunity to romp on the Tuono and couldn’t contain myself, pulling over to shoot Editor-InChief Mark Hoyer a quick text message. “Can’t wait to find out. Have fun,” came the reply from HQ.
Following a solid week of riding the Tuono around the urban sprawl in a fairly responsible manner, it was liberating to be thundering down a desolate strip of highway. At last, I could let ’er sing full song with not a soul in sight.
Like the magazine, I also turned 50 this past January and intend to remain on the throttle for many issues to come. Nothing against Denny’s discount, but sitting upright while letting Aprilia’s naked superbike eat supersedes any senior benefit I can imagine. —Don Canet, Road Test Editor
As much as I would like to say that the Tuono V4 is perfect, it isn’t. But, in this case, I’m willing to look the other way and ignore its few flaws. The fuel-injection mapping could be better right off the bottom, and I wish the driveline lash were absent, but overall, these issues aren’t deal breakers. Why? Because the Tuono is one of the most entertaining motorcycles of all time.
Just like its V-Twin predecessor, the RSV4-based version is a total blast to ride. It’s the type of bike that, when you head out for a quick afternoon ride, you end up missing dinner. It happened to me and would likely occur more often than not on the Tuono. If I were given the choice between the RSV4 sportbike and the Tuono, it’s no contest: I would take the naked bike without hesitation. Simply put, it’s a more versatile all-rounder, while still providing the potent performance that I expect from a streetfighter. —Blake Conner, Senior Editor
All this talk about the likelihood of losing your license on a Tuono is true, but it’s almost become cliché when discussing any of the naked bikes from Italy. Besides, you can vaporize your motoring privileges almost as easily on just about any sporting motorcycle, naked or not.
But there is no denying the sheer, unadulterated excitement you experience when riding the Tuono. When you’re banging through the gears at WFO, the V-Four’s exhaust pierces the air with an ear-splitting shriek while the intake roars with such vengeance that you wonder if it’s going to suck the gas tank down into the throttle bodies. Thanks to the magic of its electronic rider aids, the Tuono can even do all this while slammed over in a hard, fast corner. And the reason you got into that corner so hard and so fast in the first place is the amazing flickability of the agile, wide-barred chassis.
So, it isn’t my license that I’m likely to lose on the Tuono; it’s my mind. —Paul Dean, Senior Editor
APRILIA
TUONO V4
List price_$14,999
www.cycleworld.com
