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/1305997
(Left) The lights are a work of art. Inside the headlight assembly sit cornering lights, daytime running lights that switch on and off depending on available light and turn signals. 2021 APRILIA RS 660 R I D E R E V I E W P76 Yet the RS 660 also excels by offering rel- ative newbies or older returnees the chance to expand their horizons in riding terms on a bike that is far from intimidating, rather, simply enjoyable to be on. Delivering a claimed 100 horsepower at 10,500 rpm while weighing just 372 pounds dry (or 403 pounds fully loaded with 3.96 gallons of fuel), with peak torque of 49.42 lb-ft on tap at 8500 rpm, the Aprilia RS 660 establishes a middleweight twin line in the sand that no other manufacturer has yet drawn—well, apart from Norton, with its 105 horsepower/348 pounds 650 Superlight which finished eighth on its race debut in the Isle of Man's 2018 Lightweight TT, but is currently in abeyance while new Indian owner TVS figures out what to do with the bankrupt British company it's now acquired. AT LONG LAST The chance to spend a day getting acquaint- ed with a pre-production model at the press launch held high in the Dolomite Mountains north of Aprilia's Noale HQ outside Venice, revealed a bike that rewrites the script for sporting street bikes, in proving that the old cliché that less can indeed be more still has some validity, after all. For while the dynamic excellence of its engine performance and handling qualities are standout features, in a way the single most distinctive element in the RS 660's makeup is its ultra-rational riding position and overall archi- tecture. For this is a twin that thinks it's a single, thanks to its svelte, slim build, centralized mass and short 53.94-in. wheelbase, which trans- lates into nimble handling and agile steering, yet without sacrificing stability either on fast sweeping turns, or under the excellent braking delivered by its Brembo brake package. Yet you have no sense when sitting aboard its 32.28 inch-high seat that the RS 660 is in any way cramped, or that you're sitting perched atop it like on a more extreme 600 four or 675 triple supersport contender, which, until now, has represented the pointy end of the middleweight sport-bike sector. Instead, you feel that you're sitting in the Aprilia rather than on it, and moreover the vo- luptuously shaped upper triple-clamp carries the flat-set handlebars (complete with large balance weights to offset vibration) higher than the top of the fully adjustable 41mm Kayaba fork legs. This means that, thanks also to the way the well-upholstered seat narrows where it meets the fuel tank, it's not only easy, even for shorter riders, to put both feet flat on the ground at stop lights, you also don't have any excessive body weight bearing down on your wrists or forearms. The Aprilia twin has a balanced riding posi- tion that's also relatively spacious, thanks to the quite low-set flip-up alloy footrests with a distinct ridge on the end so that your feet don't slip off them. Yet these aren't so low that ground clearance becomes a problem even with the excellent grip from the relatively skinny 5.50-inch rear wheel and 180/55-17