Unveiled at EICMA 2019, the Aprilia RS660 was set to be one of the hottest bikes for the next few years. Effectively a baby RSV4, the RS660 sees a brand new lightweight sports bike, with styling and tech from the RSV4.
Giving the factory boys something new to test!
The new images show Aprilia racing riders, Aleix Espargarό and Bradley Smith plus Aprilia test rider Lorenzo Savadori testing the RS660 at Misano in between the Moto GP races.
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Derived from the front half of the V4 engine, the 660cc parallel-twin engine generates 100hp. I think we would all have loved a fully-fledged mini V4 in the RS660. In theory, it also could pave way for Aprilia to get back into racing in the Supersport class subject to homologation. Failing that though, it makes a perfect base for the road.
The spec list is impressive, Dual Brembo front brakes, up and down quick shifter, upsidedown KYB forks styled to look like the Ohlins found on the RSV4, the lastest generation APRC electronics package, cornering ABS, full LED lights and a TFT dash give a top of the range spec beating all of the other current 600cc class. This is literally the bike a lot of people have been waiting for to swap the silly 1000cc roadbikes for something more sensible and useable.
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RS660 – Possible first bike for A2 riders!
Dry weight comes in at a claimed 169kg, so in real-world terms, we are looking at ~190kgs after adding some fluids. We expect the engine will be able to be restricted down to meet A2 riders, making an ideal first bike, however, to meet A2 rules the bike before restriction mustn’t be over 94hp, so with Aprilia claiming 100hp, this isn’t confirmed.
The RS660 is coming in two graphic schemes, the purple, red and black, classic Aprilia racing colours seen on the RS250 of the day. Also is black and red but it is kind of disappointing to not see a modern Moto GP rep colours so we can celebrate both the old school success but the modern effort too.
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Hopefully, production will start in October, price is still a mystery, but competition would surely be the Yamaha R6, Kawasaki Ninja 636, Honda’s CBR650R, and Triumph’s Street Triple all of which are around the £10-12k mark.
Newly released pricing shows the Aprilia RS660 has a list price of £10,150 after 31st December, and it sounds like the price will be £10k before December 31st.