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Aprilia RSV 1000R
Since its introduction in 1998, the Mille has always been a
good track bike, overshadowed perhaps by the success of Ducati in competitive
racing but, to their credit has consistently remained one step ahead of the
Bolognese firm in terms of outright sales over the last few years, making the
Mille the best selling 1000cc sports twin in the UK. And with good reason too.
While the Mille has never been one of my favourite road bikes, its ability on
the racetrack never fails to impress. The years the Noale-based firm have spent winning 250cc World Championships clearly haven't gone to waste, and even on the stock settings the front tyre can be buried into the tarmac going into the turn with the kind of feedback that serves only to make you try harder and brake deeper into each of Losail's sixteen corners. Even the 'lower-spec' 'R' model gets Öhlins front forks as standard, which goes some way to explaining that sublime front end feel, while the rear end gets a Sachs monoshock in place of the Factory's Öhlins unit.
The damping from the Sachs shock can feel a little uncontrolled under hard
acceleration out of corners though, with a vague, floating feel from the rear as
it bobs up and down on its stroke, never really feeling settled. Two clicks of
rebound and compression damping and half a turn of preload and its pretty much
sorted, so I wouldn't be too gutted if your budget won't stretch to the
Öhlins-equipped Factory as the Sachs shock appears to be more than up to the
job. Other than those initial rear end wobbles, stability under hard acceleration
out of the turns is surprisingly good, especially considering the less expensive
bike doesn't come with a steering damper. Replace the smooth Tarmac of Losail
with the bumpy asphalt of Croft though, and I'm not so sure the same could be
said. Luckily the bottom yoke is pre-tapped to take a damper, so retro fitting
one really couldn't be simpler. Now this is where Aprilia really have done something quite clever. The Flash
memory in the bike's CPU comes pre-programmed with two maps, so should you want
to fit an Akrapovic system or end can, it's merely a case of getting your
nearest Aprilia dealer to plug a machine in and switch the map over to suit,
which should save a few quid on Power Commanders and dyno time.
Engine Source By RobHoyles
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Any corrections or more information on these motorcycles will be kindly appreciated. |