Aprilia Tuono 660
Unlike Triumph with their Trident, Aprilia have gone gizmo bonkers with the new Tuono. It’s also a more serious proposition than the Trident – money no object it’s this summer’s go-to…
You may feel like rolling your eyes at Aprilia’s marketing slogan for their Tuono 660: As powerful as thunder, as light as a cloud. It kind of sounds like it was scribbled by someone who’s watched too many Muhammad Ali documentaries. Thing is, with 94bhp and a ready-to-play wet weight of just 183kg the new Aprilia has impressive power-to-weight. In fact, the middleweight’s horses-to-kilos ratio is near as damn it identical to our measured numbers for the original RSV Tuono. Yes, this £9700, 659cc paralleltwin middleweight is up there with the 998cc V-twin that set the blueprint for the modern supernaked. Pretty remarkable.
And the 660 feels like a scaled-down supernaked after the Triumph; compared with the friendly British triple the Italian twin is tall, broad, firm and more aggressive, the sort of bike that encourages you to rumble down the cul-de-sac with your elbows sticking out and dark visor firmly shut. ‘You’d expect that two lightweight 660cc mid-size bikes would be broadly similar,’ muses Hugo, ‘but the Trident and Tuono couldn’t really be much further apart.’
Eager. That’s the best word for the Aprilia. The RS660 sportsbike on which it’s based is extremely agile, but with its high and wide ’bars, upright stance, tweaked steering geometry and less weight on the front end the Tuono’s handling is instantaneous. Jumping on and throwing it around is amazingly easy – the largest input required in getting it
‘Eager. That’s the best word for the Aprilia… handling is instantaneous’
to turn is having the thought. It’s the firmest chassis set up and feels decidedly sporty after the supple and relaxed Yamaha, but the forks and shock are the finest quality here. You notice it in the smooth way that the front end deals with frantic brake-and-turn chicane pin-balling, how it stays level at speed down rutted lanes that make the MT-07 wibbly and the Trident crashy. And at how potholes are damped out. Eager engine too – the twin is well-mannered and tractable low down but really wants to be revved, picking up with a defined rush at 8000rpm and streaking for the limiter. Turn off the traction control and anti-wheelie gubbins, and under hard acceleration the 660 wheelies for England. OK, Italy. And yet it’s as frugal as the Trident. Langy is an ungracefully-ageing sportbike fan and smitten: ‘The Tuono is nimble, easy to throw around, with the best outright handling. It’s fast, exciting... but without being too much.’ This is key with the 660. Next to the other two it has the most attitude, however, it’s got a lighter feel and cheerier character than, say, a Triumph Street Triple RS. Calling a bike fun can be wishy-washy as it’s not exactly easy to measure, but compared with a bike such as the RS the new Tuono is… well, more fun. More smiles, fewer hard stares.
Some serious gizmos, mind. There’s traction, wheelie and cruise control, tweakable engine braking, riding modes (preset but adjustable), daytime running lights and a colour dash (but no IMU, so no cornering ABS). Multi-function switchgear has a hint of KTM and doesn’t feel quite the same quality as the Yam’s buttons, but there’s nowt actually wrong and it’s easy enough to use. More importantly the Tuono is perhaps closer to being half-faired than ‘proper’ naked, and the modest screen makes a real difference – holding an extended 80mph motorway cruise is much easier than on the bare Trident and MT.
It’s not ten-out-of-ten perfection. Whoever signed off the headlight switch requires a slap – you’re forever catching full beam by mistake. Through properly tight corners on sunny-butcool spring roads the Aprilia seems a bit skittish and like it’s teetering, where the Triumph is reassuringly secure. The Brit triple is also more the sort of bike you’re likely to hop on for a breezy dash to the shops – there’s something about the Tuono that begs for a colour-matched playsuit and planned excursions. Yes, it’s amusing and enjoyable, but this is serious fun rather than capers. Money no object the Tuono is superb. But the other two deliver quicker smirks – just – for fewer quids.