Just some thought on the RSV successor

[eyilon]

I cant underline enough the importance of Aprilia to continue the V2 engine range, and preferably the V60 config. The Rotax engine makes a very distinct sound that can easily be distinguished from other 2 cylinders
(note:ducati L2). In my opinion one of the reasons I fell in love with Aprilia. It has a much rawer raspy caracter than the lazy sound of the Ducati'es. I have the feeling Aprilia is going to use their new in house L2 1200. This is understandable because its their engine.

Aprilia has for me been more of a European industry project. I've never had any romantic Italian afair with Aprilias as some describe, specially the Ducati crowd. For me Aprilia has been darn good bikes that has the looks, end of story. And they are a bargain for what you get. Just get the best bits and pieces and put them together to a refined and balanced product with cutting edge performance and reliability. Thats why I have no problem with the Rotax gem. I dont mind its not Italian. Why not a Rotax 1200? But I have the feeling its not gonna happen....

The V4 project is very exiting and in my opinion the best way to go for a ultimate superbike project, but I still want a V2 that is a razor sharp trackday tool and that shines when riding in sport mode for the roads.This is what they've done before. Cause I'm afraid they are gonna make a more compromised 1200, just as many manufacturers has done in the past fading out old "racing" models. Aprilia NEEDS to take on Ducati in the big 2 cylinder segment. Its emotional, its marketing! The way Ducati has been promoting and releasing the 1098 is just amazing. The old trick by increasing volume is very clever and works well. And concidering the volume increase of the Duc, the power output is no revolution, its pure mathematics. I remember the discussions when the 600 sportbike era started, how some stated the 600 where just as fast or faster than the bigger bore bikes, others said: nothing beats VOLUME. I've seen time after time how the smaller capacity bikes shine on track, but in general I tend to agree with the later. And for petrolheads nothing equals the rush of a big engine, and this apply for journalists too.

Anyone notice that both Ducati and MV has used steroids? Mastebike of 2007 is on steroids!!!! And they havent used the Factory on any of the comparios on net yet, and the 1098s is been used every time!! By the way the Masterbike 2006 laptimes where actualy faster than last year (yes, same track!). This to everybody who believes every year is a revolution in development, including journalists. Well one can argue the technical value of these test. As far as I recall a high ranked Honda representative who attended the Masterbike mayhem as observer a couple of years ago, questioned the validity of the tests, but one undeniable fact remains: MARKETING.

Sorry for this long post and the topics have been discussed before, I just had to get it out of my system , and yes I'm very biased, thats why I bought Aprilia! Yes, I could afford Ducati but I prefer the less snobbish Aprilia way. I just love the way they think motorcycle, period.

[budoist]

I think that the move away from Rotax engines in inevitable. With the cash inflow from Piaggio, it makes more sense financially to build the engine in house if they can and cut out the middle man. The RSV/SXV has shown that they can build an engine that performs well, but they need to work on the reliability of the engine. We'll see how the Shiver and Mana will work out.

The position that their V-Twin bikes will take with the advent of the 1000cc V4 will be interesting to watch. They cannot make it a balls out sportbike, because then it will compete with the V4 unless priced much lower. It may be used in a more street oriented, sporty bike (the new Falco?).

I don't think that they have to compete with Ducati in the twins arena. Ducati's marketing of the 1098 really played on a few key criticisms of the company - the 996 inspired design, the increased power and reduced weight of the new platform, the longer maintenance periods and lower cost. I really think that if Ducati didn't have the lower cost and lower maintenance, they hype wouldn't have been as effective because it was really a combination of the usual yearly updates while simultaneously making it cheaper (just about never happens).

The novelty of the V4 engine alone will get Aprilia some press once the bike is released. If they nail the styling then it could be a big hit for the firm, which they need right now. Here's to hoping!

[hank]

Using Rotax was an excellent choice by Aprilia - after all, Rotax is one of the premier engine builders on the planet: personal water craft, snow mobiles, flat track racers, cart cars, ultralight planes, motorcycles, whatever....

And BMW even chose Rotax to initially build their 650 thumper engine (Aprilia initially built the rest of the chassis for BMW).

Not a bad company to be associated with, even in the initial phase of development...

[Crazy Horse]

My personal opinion is that if Aprilia does not build a big twin based on a superbike platform then myself and many others will be picking up the 1098/1198 from Ducati. If I wanted a four cyl. I would have one. If people think the twins are pricey to work on wait till they start work on a V-4.

[Bill in OKC]

And they havent used the Factory on any of the comparios on net yet, and the 1098s is been used every time!! By the way the Masterbike 2006 laptimes where actualy faster than last year (yes, same track!).

I noticed that too. The Factory wins the Masterbike competition and from then on, everyone always use the R for comparos. I just read the Jan. "Bike" magazine. A test between the 1000R and 1098S... They call the R the Masterbike winner and write like they are testing the Master Bike winner against the 1098s. Why doesn't anyone use the Factory for important comparisons like that? It makes the entire test pointless.

[Crazy Horse]

It wouldn't have made that much of a difference. The 1098 handles good and just plain runs away from the Aprilia.

[Bill in OKC]

The biggest complaint against the R was its heavy handling - something that the winner of the Masterbike competition wouldn't have. If they tested the Factory against the base 1098 there *might* have been a point to reading the article.

[Crazy Horse]

The RSVR and Factory both have ohlins front suspension. The differences are not that drastic. What class did the Aprilia win Masterbike in?

The RSVR is an outdated design, Aprilia needs to do something if they want to compete.

[Bill in OKC]

The Factory won overall - top dog - and it wasn't that long ago. It beat the 999 which is by all accounts a better handling bike than the 1098. Maybe BIKE just didn't take the time to set their machines up properly?

[hank]

The Factory won overall - top dog - and it wasn't that long ago. It beat the 999 which is by all accounts a better handling bike than the 1098. Maybe BIKE just didn't take the time to set their machines up properly?

I believe the Aprilia won in 2006 & the MV Agusta won in 2007.

Also, this is the first I heard of the 999 being a better handling package than the new 1098 Bill, do you have any supporting links or references to that statement?

[Crazy Horse]

Yes it was 2006 when Aprilia won. 2005 the 999s won, hmm. They are in the maxisport class. The superbike class is the 1000cc inlines. I do not hold much credibility to the testing. if you look at the maxisport class the same three bikes and different results each year.

[Diablo1]

I wish Aprilia doesn't abandon the Rotax V60. Surely they could improve the engine to make competitive power with the 1098. They've already got a chassis fully sorted for the V60, so all they really need is more displacement, bigger valves, and strengthen parts of the engine to improve reliability at higer power output. Modifying the current engine has to be a lot easier than designing a new engine from scratch. Keeping some of the original DNA is a good thing from a marketing standpoint.

[Crazy Horse]

Safest you can go with the current engine is the 1060 kit.

[Diablo1]

Safest you can go with the current engine is the 1060 kit.

Ya, then something breaks. So let's redesign that something so it doesn't break. I know 100mm is the accepted max for pistons to fit the current cylinder, but nothing is stopping them from designing a new set of cylinders and larger pistons. I know someone will say you can't fit even larger pistons in the narrow V angle, but there are ways around that problem too - like longer rods, taller cylinders, shorter piston skirts, or a staggered crank pin.

[duc slayer]

I also believe the last test was done with the base R model, because soem twit trashed the Factory on the first day or setup day