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RideFast Aug2020

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Aprilia Tuono V4 1100RR<br />

The Tuono has repeatedly won<br />

awards for The Best Naked Bike of<br />

the Year time and time again from<br />

publications all over the world. It<br />

was praised for the usability of its<br />

65º V4 motor, the sharp handling<br />

from Aprilia’s famous chassis knowhow<br />

and electronics that were<br />

celebrated as the Best in the World.<br />

Times have changed, the<br />

competition is afoot, and yet the<br />

Tuono might still retain the King of<br />

all Naked Bikes crown. Although, it<br />

depends on who is providing the<br />

accolades.<br />

Based on the spec sheet, the<br />

Tuono is taking nothing home but<br />

a participation award. It produces<br />

175hp and 121Nm of torque, figures<br />

that beat only the BMW S1000R<br />

on this day. The wet weight of<br />

209kg is also some distance from<br />

class-leading and can draw a sigh<br />

of relief that the Z H2 was present<br />

with all its extra metal, and a<br />

weight of 239kg or it would have<br />

been in trouble.<br />

Even the outward appearance<br />

of the Tuono is a little outdated – it<br />

looks like an RSV4 superbike with<br />

bits of fairing chopped off, and<br />

that hasn’t changed for five years.<br />

Moving off the spec sheet and<br />

onto the race track, the Tuono<br />

finds itself once more riddled with<br />

problems. The first being that<br />

it’s a little dull compared to its<br />

whacky peers. The second is that<br />

it clearly isn’t the fastest – down<br />

the straight, it is 3km/h slower<br />

than the Super Duke (that had to<br />

short shift for two gears to stop<br />

it flipping), 6km/h slower than the<br />

Streetfighter V4 and a massive<br />

13km/h slower than the Z H2. And<br />

these bikes, with their standard<br />

road gearing, struggled to reach<br />

even fourth gear on Red Star’s<br />

back straight. Top speed runs on<br />

longer straights will reveal even<br />

more significant gaps.<br />

The handling is still excellent,<br />

but the competition has caught<br />

up – both the Streetfighter and<br />

the Super Duke have raised the<br />

bar somewhat, and thus tip into<br />

corners at the slightest nudge of<br />

the handlebar, something that<br />

was previously the domain of only<br />

the Tuono.<br />

In these scenarios, things might<br />

not look great for the Aprilia’s<br />

faithful nudie, but as we said at<br />

the beginning of the story, it might<br />

yet take the crown.<br />

Aprilia is famous for its chassis<br />

design, a trait provided by the<br />

university near the factory that<br />

is world-renowned for its studies<br />

in motorcycle frame design –<br />

they wrote the book, literally.<br />

Fittingly, then, the Tuono is ever so<br />

confidence-inspiring, especially on<br />

the front end; the most important<br />

end on a motorcycle.<br />

The motor helps too because<br />

the Ducati needs to be revved to<br />

the heavens and the Super Duke<br />

still requires some delicacy with<br />

its throttle. The Tuono is like Baby<br />

Bear’s porridge – just right.<br />

It’s very likely that, in the<br />

right hands, the Super Duke<br />

and Streetfighter will produce<br />

quicker lap times. In the hands<br />

of everyone else, the easygoing,<br />

confidence-inspiring Tuono should<br />

be King.<br />

KEY SPECS<br />

Engine type: 1077cc, Aprilia<br />

longitudinal 65° V-4 cylinder<br />

Power: 175 horsepower<br />

Torque: 120Nm<br />

Wet Weight: 185 kg<br />

Seat height: 825 mm<br />

Base price: R289,011<br />

“Always a crowd-pleaser, and<br />

the same can be said for the<br />

new 1100 Tuono. Just all-round<br />

satisfactory.” Rob says<br />

56 RIDEFAST MAGAZINE AUGUST 2020 RIDEFAST MAGAZINE AUGUST 2020 57

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