Aprilia SXR 160
One of the first proper maxi-scooters comes to the Indian market in the form of the Aprilia SXR 160. We take a closer look at what makes this new offering stand apart
The Italians give us a maxi-scooter
After bringing one of the fastest scooters to our market, Aprilia are entering the maxi-scooter segment with the introduction of the SXr 160. this scooter made its first appearance at the Auto expo 2020 where it received a lot of attention owing to its sharp and aggressive design. this scooter uses the Sr 160 as its base and is supposed to be a more relaxed machine for touring purposes. in the indian market, the maxiscooter segment has not as yet picked up as most buyers are looking for the most affordable allrounder and would rather own a geared motorcycle if they were shelling out over rs 1 lakh. that said, this maxi-scooter is in a class apart and will be appreciated by those who like large and unique vehicles in their garages.
Let us start with the SXr 160’s design and styling, which is one of the salient aspects of this scooter. it gets a very proportionately designed body and further adding to the chunky appeal of this scooter are those LeD headlights at the front, reminiscent of the rS 660, the motorcyclelike handlebar which has a matte plastic cover, and a large smoked screen covering more than half the front end. the scooter’s aggressive design language continues towards the rear where we see well-positioned grab-rails and sharply styled tail-lights. the seat tapers towards the front for the rider, while the pillion has a fair share of room at the rear to be comfortable in the saddle for a long ride. there is a decent amount of storage under the seat as well as two storage pouches in the front. A USb charger is housed in the front storage area.
the SXr 160 uses the same engine that we see in the Sr 160. this is a 160.03-cc, SoHC, single-cylinder, three-valve motor putting out 10.74 hp at 7,100 rpm and a peak torque of 11.6 nm at 6,000 rpm. Aprilia say that this engine has been slightly tweaked to better suit the nature of the SXr 160. the eCU has been tuned for the power to peak slightly earlier than the Sr 160 engine. After a short ride, it was clear to me that the SXr 160 is slightly slower
than the Sr 160, the power being put down in a more relaxed manner, but still a very engaging machine to ride.
the maxi-scooter quickly gets up to speed when the throttle is twisted open and is stable even at speeds between 70 km/h and 80 km/h. i was able to get to an indicated top speed of 95 km/h. overall, it is a great engine for the everyday hustle and even for cruising at high speeds on the highway. if i had to nitpick, i would have hoped that the SXr 160 could do speeds of over 100 km/h. A higher top speed would have helped mark its territory in the maxiscooter segment better.
When it comes to handling capabilities, the SXr does not disappoint. it feels nimble and requires hardly any effort to flick from one side to the other. it weighs
129 kilograms, which means about 10 kilos heavier than the sporty Sr
160, although this weight could hardly be felt once the scooter was on the move. As we all know, the Sr 160 has one of the stiffest suspension set-ups we get in a scooter in india. for the SXr 160, Aprilia have tweaked the suspension set-up slightly to offer a more comfortable ride experience. the scooter tackles bad sections of roads with ease as compared to the Sr 160 and i was also able to get through a couple of off-road sections without any trouble.
Another major change in the SXr 160 is that it sports 12-inch wheels, as opposed to the larger 14-inch ones on the Sr 160. this has taken away the supersharp handling capabilities that the Sr 160 is able to offer, but the scooter still gave me a lot of confidence while tackling corners. braking hardware comprises a 220-mm disc at the front and a 140-mm drum at the rear. As reported in our earlier review of the Sr 160, this is one of the best braking set-ups that we get on a scooter in india. feedback from these brakes is highly impressive and perfect for bringing the scooter to a halt whenever needed in a sharp, precise, and instantaneous manner.
in terms of features, the SXr 160 gets a large LCD digital screen at the front with quite a sporty layout. the switchgear is the same as seen on the Sr 160 with one slight difference — there is now a “Mode” button on the SXr 160 which allows a rider to scroll through the varied information on display. the scooter also supports bluetooth connectivity to a rider’s phone. A small issue i found was in the design of the position of the ignition key slot. it is placed low and inside, away from a rider’s field of vision.
overall, the SXr 160 makes for a really unique scooter in our market with its combination of a stunning and bulky design language that makes heads turn everywhere, an adequately powerful engine for a peppy ride experience, and a treat for the pillion rider with the comfort it offers. its price (rs 1.27 lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi) makes it an expensive proposition for a scooter, but considering that i have already begun to see a few on the roads out here in Pune, there are surely many to whom the SXr 160 appeals. in recent news, Aprilia have also announced that there is an SXr 125 set to be launched very soon and bookings have already opened for the scooter. this is sure to boost the sales figures and widen the reach of the scooter.