VOLUME 57 ISSUE 44 NOVEMBER 3, 2020 P81
out of the engine in any context:
its pickup is gentle in the wet,
quick without being fierce in the
dry, and it's always satisfyingly
responsive when you want to
ride harder. The 100-mph mark
sees the engine turning at just
7500 rpm, so just two-thirds
of the way to that 11,500 rpm
redline. This is going to be an
absolutely superlative track-day
bike, which, on a twisty circuit
will eat 1000cc superbikes for
lunch in the hands of a mod-
erately skilled rider and deliver
heaps of satisfaction, and fun,
in doing so. Well, maybe not for
the guy on the Superbike!
A BIKE FOR ALL
Because it's so ideally balanced
and the steering geometry so
well-chosen, the RS 660's ultra-
forgiving handling is completely
intuitive, with excellent feedback
from the front Pirelli thanks to
the surprisingly compliant and
responsive Kayaba fork that's an-
odized to look like a far costlier
Ohlins front end, yet was just
about as effective in damping
out the many bumps and lumps
in the Dolomite road surfaces,
while allowing you to maximize
the lightweight bike's appetite for
turn speed once the roads dried
up.
The default suspension settings
we were given were excellent, an
ideal balance between an effective
and stable bike in mixed condi-
tions—which, while fairly tautly
damped was also comfortable in
city streets torn up by traffic or
frost-ravaged mountain roads,
where ride quality was quite sat-
isfactory by sport-bike standards.
It's also very maneuverable, with
an improbably tight turning circle
for a fully faired motorcycle.
Like most previous Aprilia
designs the well-designed, full
color TFT dash is very readable at
a quick glance, with the different
pages of data easily available—
though scrolling through them is
best done at rest.
But the home page has just
enough data to avoid being
overcrowded, with a large central
digital speedo, a quickly legible
gear-select readout on the right,
the time and trip (of two) selected
on the bottom right, and the tacho
sweeping across the top of the
speedo, then the engine temp and
fuel level above that. There are six
warning lights across the bottom
of the screen, but a total of no less
than 17 all told dotted around the
dash outside the screen. There's
no risk of being under-informed
riding this motorcycle!
Despite the speed with which
it is been readied for production
since that unveiling of the show-
(Left) New and old riders alike
are going to love the RS.
(Below left) The swingarm pivots
inside the crankcase, helping reduce
weight and centralize mass, and
there's no linkage for the shock.
(Bottom) Superb Aprilia Quick Shift
system is a factory standard. It's also
a first for the middleweight class.
