VOL. 56 ISSUE 13 APRIL 2, 2019 P95
The extra torque right through the rev range has
allowed the use of longer fifth and sixth gears,
something seriously helpful down Mugello's enor-
mous front straight as the 1100 was still pulling like a
train at 186 mph when it was time to hit the anchors.
The top speed is one thing, but what's more inter-
esting is how it gets there. The RSV4 has always had
a silky smooth throttle response when you consider
the staggering amount of power on tap, and the 1100
is no different. Low speed, low rpm connection from
the throttle is superb, allowing you to dial in power
progressively and smoothly with nary a dip in
forward drive from beginning to end.
The best part is that even though the power
is stupendous, it's not intimidating. Just riding it
out of the pits, the RSV4 was smooth and easy
to ride, so despite the fact it'll go 200 mph down
the straight, the 1100 will also make a great bike
to duck down to the café for a coffee on.
The eagle-eyed will have noticed the new
RSV4 Factory motor has the same dimensions
as the Tuono 1100, but if you're thinking about
swapping parts, it's not going to happen. Aside
from the cases, the motors are completely dif-
ferent. Airbox, injectors, cams, pistons, crank,
and all the assembled parts that go with them—
none of them are interchangeable.
It's difficult not to fall in love with the motor
and gearbox on the RSV4. Mated to the Aprilia
Quick Shift system as part of the class-leading
Aprilia Performance Ride Control (APRC) elec-
tronics suite, gear shifts are so fast and direct
it's like like slicing a Katana sword through a filet
mignon.
Down Mugello's straight, you throw gear after
gear to the motorcycle as the speeds increase
north of 190 mph, and at this point, one of the
RSV4's major technological features kicks in. The
winglets on the side of the all-carbon fairing will
produce 17 lb of downforce at 300 km/h (186
mph). These winglets are the same shape as those
mounted on Aleix Espargaro's RS-GP machine but
Standard equipment,
the RSV4's titanium
Akrapovic muffler
has one of the most
glorious roars of
any machine with a
license plate.
