Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128218
wheel on one of the brief occasions the Aprilia Superbike ever headed the Edwards world title-winner on the racetrack in 2002. But I still reckon if Aprilia wants to sell any significant number of Edwards Milles in the USA this year, it will need to offer the Lone Star livery at least as an option though I guess this is nothing that a good aftermarket spray job couldn't take care of. Okay - but what is there under Alice's frock? Well, what La Edwards represents is an Evoluzione version of the stock RSV-R, just clocking up its fifth birthday in uprated 2003 guise, and a repeated winner of twin-cylinder sportbike comparos around the world, whose specification has been further enhanced in a number of ways. "We've fitted redesigned conrods to cope with extra power and higher revs," says Mille R&D chief Mariano Fioravanzo, "and use 57mm Bing throttle bodies instead of the original 51mm ones from the RSV-R, fitted with bigger trumpets which have been reduced from 60mm to 30mm in length to increase midrange and topend power. We've also completely redesigned the ducting and the bottom of the airbox, including widening the intake manifolds leading into it from 58mm to 70mm, all to increase airbox pressure and improve flow." All this has naturally required remapping the Nippon- denso EFI (which still retains a single injector per cylinder), first for the stock single-silencer catalyst exhaust the bike is delivered with, with which power is increased to 133.3 bhp at the crankshaft from the stock Mille R's 130 bhp output, and torque to just over 78 ft.-Ibs. at 7500 rpm. However, in addition there's a kit 2-12 Akropovic steel exhaust system with titanium-wrap twin silencers that is also included, together with a dedicated EPROM chip for the Denso ECU and a 16T gearbox sprocket to improve acceleration over the stock 17T one. The kit exhaust not only frankly enhances the 60-degree Vtwin's engine note - though without making it over-loud, so you won't upset your neighbors if you leave it on permanently in between the track-day use which is all it's cue I e supposedly approved for - and not only saves 7.5 Ibs. of weight over the standard catalyst pipe, it also raises crankshaft power to exactly 136 bhp at 9750 rpm, without sacrificing lowdown rideability, claims Fioravanzo. "There's also a notable improvement in midrange power," he adds, "with another 8 bhp between 50007000 rpm from the kit exhaust compared to the homologated version. It's a really worthwhile improvement." He's right. Riding the EvoMilie at Monza underlined the responsiveness and controllability of the V-twin engine even when fitted with the kit exhaust. In spite of the bigger throttle bodies, La Edwards is still very userfriendly, allowing you to crack the throttle hard open in second gear while still cranked over for a strong drive out of the mickey-mouse first chicane, without any problems with the supergrippy rear Pirelli Dragon Super Corsa unhooking and going walkabout. Just ride the impressive torque curve from as low as 4000 rpm upward, with a notable but controllable rush of extra revs from 7500 rpm up to the ten grand power peak and the reminder you've topped out engine performance from the 10,500 rpm shifter light on the dash. Grab another gear, and you get the same fluid, refined surge of power from a bike which is however very highgeared - I saw 260 kph (about 162 mph) past the pits on the digital speedo just as I stood on the brakes at the 200-meter b"ard for that mickey-mouse chicane, and there we. e still another 2000 rpm or so to go n e _ os; • JUNE t t, 2003 45