Opinion - Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
With this one I don´t find the words for a more detailled report.

Just the summary:
- it´s loud
- it´s mental
- it´s way to fast/powerfull
- it consumes way to much fuel
- it´s too expensive
- the Tuono isn´t really a naked bike - it´s a retuned RSV4 with more displacement, wide handlebar, trimmed fairings and a thicker seat
- it rattles and shakes
- it doesn´t like low speeds at all
- you sit on a rattling teapot at every traffic light, idling like a moron, annoying the crap out of everyone
- it doesn´t make sense - at least on the street and also not that much on the track as it´s a "naked bike"
- it will make you loose your licence or soul or probably both
- it´s based on the somewhat "outdated" RSV4 (e.g. standard headlights on a 20k bike while basically almost every 300cc scooter has LED ones today )

--> There is no logical reason what so ever to buy one!

Or short: It is by far the best bike I ever sat on and during those 20 minutes I had the most fun in months. I absolutely fell in love and ffs, and now I want one :banghead:


Oh and it is really really painfull to ride one, as your boner is constantly pressed against the tank!

And now....:snaphappy::snaphappy::snaphappy:

It was brand new, It had 9km when I took the pictures. First one to officially sit on it.

Foto (3 von 11).jpg
Foto (1 von 11).jpg
Foto (4 von 11).jpg
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
Epic bike

Only difference is that I had the 2018 Factory. So a diffrent paint job, the conventional and non electronic Öhlins stuff and for sure, the test bikes had the 2.300€ Akrapovic Slip on. Yes, no misstake. 2.300€ for the slip on. Difference isn´t that huge tho.
If someone asks himself why on earth someone would produce such an expensive and lumpy exhaust - well, as the valve and cat and everything is in there, it is (at least currently) the only avaible exhaust you can legally use within the Euro 4 regulation.

:nailbiting: Maybe when I retire.
A little tip: Don´t try one if you are not planning to buy one soon. It´s a trap.

I shouldn't look at porn @ work haha
I hope you don´t work on saturdays. Because when I returned the Tuono they asked me if I didn´t want to ride another bike. Yes, for real. And there was one I definitely wanted to try. :vamp:

Warning! The following images may contain pornographic material that´s definitely NSFW!!!

Foto (7 von 11).jpg
Foto (9 von 11).jpg
Foto (11 von 11).jpg
Foto (10 von 11).jpg
Foto (8 von 11).jpg
Foto (6 von 11).jpg

I found it to be quite a bit nicer than the fireblade.
Engine is way more exiting and has more grunt in the lower and mid range. Handlebars are wider and in a better angle, much more comfortable.
 
Last edited:

Katie

2017
CBR650F ABS
Feb 1, 2019
I love Aprilias (I've had five!!) but I'm still waiting for a Tuono GT to hit the market. As soon as Aprilia get that sorted, I'm in!

In the meantime, I'll stick with the CBR and the KTM :cool:
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
Jesus. All my dealership does for me is a free alternate ride when I bring my bike in for service, and thats an old banged up Kawa er-5 :(
Don´t you worry. They saw the glare in my eyes after returning the keys and smelled the chance to make me want a bike that cost another couple thousands more. :smuggrin: What can I say? It wasn´t that ineffective.


I just think the Tuono is still the better overall package because you can do basically everything with it. The naked bike aspect means it´s better on the street as it has a shorter gearing and more low/midrange and still a very impressive top end. The seat and handlebar in combination with the still present fairing make it a decent bike for some longer distances if that is what intrests you.
It also wipes basically every naked bike on track and gives many sportsbike a serious run for their money. (Let´s exclude offroad use and urban commuting).
Oh great, I started praising it again. Send help please !
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
I love Aprilias (I've had five!!) but I'm still waiting for a Tuono GT to hit the market. As soon as Aprilia get that sorted, I'm in!

In the meantime, I'll stick with the CBR and the KTM :cool:

I still like the CBR650 and think it´s a good alrounder and it most likely is one of the best second bikes.
What KTM do you have?
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
Or additional funds? ;)
The plan for the near future is to test out track stuff, maybe - if I really enjoy it - even go as far as getting a track bike (probably R6) as I´ll hopefully be able to afford that in the somewhat near future.
Secretly hoping to say goodbye to street riding. If I don´t enjoy the track (as much) the goal indeed is getting a Tuono.
However things will turn out, additonal funds are always welcome. Just tell me and I´ll let you know my bank details. :p
 

Katie

2017
CBR650F ABS
Feb 1, 2019
I still like the CBR650 and think it´s a good alrounder and it most likely is one of the best second bikes.
What KTM do you have?

1290 Super Duke GT - It's a new addition for me so I'm just starting to get to know it but it is stunningly fast compared to the VFR it replaced! And, so far, it's way more comfortable.


Oh, and there is no help - you have been Aprilia'd - the bling factor means that your credit card is theirs...
 

miweber929

2014
CBR650F
650 Alumnus
Staff
Feb 13, 2015
Woodbury, MN
Riding Since
1975
1290 Super Duke GT - It's a new addition for me so I'm just starting to get to know it but it is stunningly fast compared to the VFR it replaced! And, so far, it's way more comfortable.
Oooo, very nice bike; was and still is, the only real contender that would cause me to get rid of my trusty Sprint GT. But until I start getting better reports on their reliability (every single owner I’ve talked to with one has been stranded or had a major failure on theirs), the wife wants to travel more than a week, and as long as I can still get parts for it, the Triumph is a great second bike.

Keep us informed on your thoughts, be interesting to hear another opinion on the KTM.

Thomas @Thomas the track is a blast and really the only place you can truly ride a fast bike to it’s limits. It’s addicting and a blast to test yourself, your skill and your machine. But make no mistake, the track and the street are two different animals with two different sensory packs. I do like to ride fast and somewhat hard at times, and to test myself and my skills every so often so once a year I wrangle up the guys, we go down south and blast corners for several days being all guys and stuff. I’ve also raced for a short time years ago and track ride every few years as my time allows. It’s an itch that’s great to scratch.

But what I really like, and what trips my trigger for riding a motorcycle, is getting on and seeing things, smelling the smells, feeling things like the air temp change as you go up a mountain or into a valley that you don’t in a car. Maybe riding a while, grabbing lunch at a cafe in some small town, watching the sunset over a lake, water rushing down a mountain creek into a river or seeing wherever the road takes me. Corners are great, and I ride “spiritedly” but getting home is the main focus. I’d know never be able to give that up because that’s more fun to me than a day at the track.

So think about what excites you about riding. If it’s the speed and thrill, track only is a good choice. If it’s the other stuff, then gear up, accept the dangers on the street and ride off into the sunset.
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
Oooo, very nice bike; was and still is, the only real contender that would cause me to get rid of my trusty Sprint GT. But until I start getting better reports on their reliability (every single owner I’ve talked to with one has been stranded or had a major failure on theirs), the wife wants to travel more than a week, and as long as I can still get parts for it, the Triumph is a great second bike.

Keep us informed on your thoughts, be interesting to hear another opinion on the KTM.

Thomas @Thomas the track is a blast and really the only place you can truly ride a fast bike to it’s limits. It’s addicting and a blast to test yourself, your skill and your machine. But make no mistake, the track and the street are two different animals with two different sensory packs. I do like to ride fast and somewhat hard at times, and to test myself and my skills every so often so once a year I wrangle up the guys, we go down south and blast corners for several days being all guys and stuff. I’ve also raced for a short time years ago and track ride every few years as my time allows. It’s an itch that’s great to scratch.

But what I really like, and what trips my trigger for riding a motorcycle, is getting on and seeing things, smelling the smells, feeling things like the air temp change as you go up a mountain or into a valley that you don’t in a car. Maybe riding a while, grabbing lunch at a cafe in some small town, watching the sunset over a lake, water rushing down a mountain creek into a river or seeing wherever the road takes me. Corners are great, and I ride “spiritedly” but getting home is the main focus. I’d know never be able to give that up because that’s more fun to me than a day at the track.

So think about what excites you about riding. If it’s the speed and thrill, track only is a good choice. If it’s the other stuff, then gear up, accept the dangers on the street and ride off into the sunset.

It´s difficult to be completely honest.
While I really want to do a trackday this September I have mixed feelings. I see it as a potential place to ride the way I want to but also have the fear of me getting the taste of it and getting addicted. But I´d also be happy if that happened.
No really, I said it´s strange.

First of all I have to say my plans, intentions and mentality constantly changed since basically the moment I started to ride a bike. And right now it´s probably the peak of all that.
Slowly but surely only speed and thrill is what makes me really happy. Sure, from time to time a somewhat relaxed ride is nice, taking a few stops, talking to people, continuing the ride, ...
But I could basically be at my familiar home stretches all day, riding those few kilometers up and down in a pace I definitely should not be in. Taking risk I definitely should not take.
From time to time riding around near the speed limit, "looking at things", maybe having a lunch stop and returning in the same manner gets less and less appealing.
I thought that´s just me getting so used to "always the same" roads and maybe "touring" is the solution. So I went out, bought myself a ram mount, downloaded an app onto my old smarphone, stuffed my powerbank in the tank bag, clicked onto "random tour", choose the option "B roads with corners" and went for it. Did it help? Kind of. Ended up going up and down a small and nice part of that route as soon as I found a road section that I liked. Great.
I´d rather ride up and down that one place tho - in silly manners.
And that´s where my problem is. I am sick of it. I don´t want to risk my licence - and probably even health or life - 90% of the time sitting on my bike. I don´t want to fear a cop car sitting in that parking lot after that upcoming stretch every time. I don´t want to risk getting tarred and feathered by some locals one day.
And oh god - how would that be on a Tuono if I really ended up buying one - which I would, I know myself - that thing screams and demands you to go hard on it. And I could not / can´t resist as I also enjoy doing it.
I will never understand - and please don´t get me wrong here - how some people can sit on a S1000RR or something similar, a thin cloth jacket, going exactly the speed limit in 6th gear, trundling through corners sitting straight as a tree on their bike. I could just never restrain myself to do that and would probably get 0 fun out of it. I almost envy those that can.

So I don´t really have that much options, do I?
Simply stopping to ride? - No, that´s definitely not an option. Therefore I enjoy riding and bikes in general way too much.
Just continuing like that? Meeeh, everything went well so far. No crash, no trouble with the law enforcement, no licence loss (hell, I just got a 10€ fine once for going 8km/h over the limit in my car). But how long will I get that lucky?

Trying out a racetrack? - That seems like the most promising thing to do. No speed limit, no cops, no angry locals preparing their torches, no unexpected stuff on the road (most of the time at least), no sometimes absolutely useless and over the top regulation for part you throw on your bike,... And yes, you still can and most likely will crash there but at least you got some buffer zone and people around that can react almost instantly. I also imagine it´s great to have some people around that enjoy doing more or less the same and having the same passion and similar goals. Just ripping around as fast as they can or they want and feel comfortable to go, trying to improve and probably being able to go even faster after that.
I guess I see it as an avaiable chance to either use it as a way to sattisfy the "need to go fast", maybe then the "fun in going reasonable slow" will come back. Maybe sell the CB and get something smaller and/or completely different that´s also fun when not going fast, taking that thing out from time to time "getting on and seeing things, smelling the smells, feeling things like the air temp change as you go up a mountain or into a valley that you don’t in a car. Maybe riding a while, grabbing lunch at a cafe in some small town, watching the sunset over a lake, water rushing down a mountain creek into a river or seeing wherever the road takes me" (I really like that phrasing :bookworm:).

Or like I said in a previous reply, not enjoying / feeling the need to ride on the road at all. Well, I know myself good enough to say that that´s the more unlikely route. Guess the time not sitting on a bike between the not so cheap weekends at a track would be too long for my taste.

What´s left to think about is the small bike, as that would be a real challange for myself. I really like many bikes, different engine types, brands, etc. But sadly not one of them is reasonable or "slow".
For example a MT/FZ 07 or Vitpilen/Svartpilen would be ideal, smaller, cheaper to own, still nimble and fast enough but also not too powerfull. Sadly I just don´t like how they look at all.
 

Katie

2017
CBR650F ABS
Feb 1, 2019
Sounds like you need to get some serious speed out of your system! Book into a couple of track days, hire the bike to do it on and see whether you enjoy the 'ordinary' stuff a bit more as a result?

And,if you're looking at a smaller bike, how about the KTM LC390? Fast, nimble, fairly mad but still solid enough to be practical?
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
Maybe offroad/enduro type stuff could get your thrills on?
I might have to test SMC690. Offroad isn´t my kind of party. Same goes for cruisers.
Sadly there are no current road legal supermotos in the ~350-500cc range as far as I know. Like a KTM Supermoto with the 390 engine in it could be nice.

And,if you're looking at a smaller bike, how about the KTM LC390? Fast, nimble, fairly mad but still solid enough to be practical?
Actually the Duke 390 might be worth a look.
 

Sunde

2018
CB650F ABS
Jun 2, 2018
Denmark - Århus
I love being on the track it is seriously a blast, strangely as long as i get to blow off steam once every 2-3 months on the track i am good, but eventually i do find myself needing that fix, otherwise my street riding does become a little too spirited. On the street tho, part of what i really enjoy about bikes and what keeps me coming back to my bike, is the technical aspect of riding. I never get tired of practicing a technique, be it trail braking, perfecting my body position, nailing those throttle blips whilst being hard on the brake, and so on. And then now and then putting it all together and hop on the racetrack.
As others have said, road and track are different beasts, crack the visor open, feel the air, smell the smells and practice mastering the craft of riding, which afaik is a lifelong kind of mission.
 

miweber929

2014
CBR650F
650 Alumnus
Staff
Feb 13, 2015
Woodbury, MN
Riding Since
1975
Thomas @Thomas you have your head on straight enough to know:

- riding on the road is dangerous
- you have a need for the speed/thrill
- riding like how you want to is bad for your license/health/pocketbook

All good things!!!!

Try a track day, you’ll be fine. Think of it as a release, try it on your bike a few times before making an rash decisions about selling, upgrading, downsizing, track only, etc. A 600cc sportbike a few years old will make a great track bike that will take you from beginner to intermediate to even a racebike without too much into it. And I personally found I was “slower” and safer on the streets after I did track days because I had a place to go fast and take chances.

Don’t get my earlier statement wrong, however, as I don't ride slow or just go the speed limit, I just watch where I do it and how I do it. There’s a great article on how to ride on the street and be safe and still have fun called “The Pace”, look it up, it’s a good read.
 

Thomas

2015
CBR650F ABS
650 Alumnus
Apr 8, 2017
Germany
as long as i get to blow off steam once every 2-3 months on the track i am good
That´s what I am hoping for.

what i really enjoy about bikes and what keeps me coming back to my bike, is the technical aspect of riding
That´s pretty much my reason to ride. The actual process itself. Not so much the stuff around that, that´s more of a nice bonus.

practice mastering the craft of riding, which afaik is a lifelong kind of mission
Definitely! I wont stop voluntarily. That´s why I also think it´s not bad to have a bike for the road. Practicing the basic stuff and still being used to it. Like 3 months between trackdays without sitting on a bike once is almost a little winter break.

Think of it as a release, try it on your bike a few times before making an rash decisions about selling, upgrading, downsizing, track only
That´s the plan, hopefully the first experience will be in September.

A 600cc sportbike a few years old will make a great track bike that will take you from beginner to intermediate to even a racebike without too much into it.
Yeah, nothing set in stone but so far - in case I actually decide do that step - I was thinking about a R6 from around 2010. A not too old, not too new 600cc inline 4 supersport should be a reasonable choice. Quite some performance out of the box with the Yamaha with quite some room for improvements.
A buddy said no way, get a ´09 S1000RR, they go for around the same. IMO one of the worst things you could do tho. Already see quite some people getting ridden by their bike instead the other way around - but of course the first trackday has to be intermediate group without instruction then.
Oh well, at least that´s material for some quite amusing videos. :angelic:

Don’t get my earlier statement wrong, however, as I don't ride slow or just go the speed limit, I just watch where I do it and how I do it. There’s a great article on how to ride on the street and be safe and still have fun called “The Pace”, look it up, it’s a good read.
That´s how I understood it, no worries. My statements might have been a bit exagerated. Of course I`ll try to do what I like to do on a familiar road, when I think the traffic and weather allows it, after making sure there is no gravel/dirt or other nice surprise (coloured blue and silver most of the time) around.
And no matter how much steam I will blow off at a track, spirited riding is what I like and what I ride for. I don´t expect myselft to never pass 100km/h and 20° lean angle after that. Maybe just a bit toned down sometimes would be nice, while knowing there is a place and time you can go balls out soon.
Not going to rush out and sell my bike. Still enjoy the CB, will definitely finish the season with it. Maybe something different might help a bit tho. This time I might not end up with a oh so tame inline 4 Honda after all.
I just like to think about it, plan in advance, becauso often you can already filter out a few wrong ideas then.
Really enjoyed the Hypermotard. Yes, also a corner weapon but still different. At least you could go through a few gears. That one might just a bit expensive with plenty power. As I don´t really trust the earlier smaller models, maybe the Dorsoduro 750 is something that would work. I´ll see.



Thanks for all the feedback so far.
 
Top Bottom