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 The
Aprilia Factory, a fancy tweaked R with Öhlins suspension and
Öhlins steering damper, lovely forged aluminium wheels, saving
around 25% weight on the R's cast wheels, and various carbon fibre
panels. Looks a little bit Christmas tree but is very nice and
weight is down 4 kgs on the R but the motor is unchanged so power
is the same.
The new bike is an inch or so lower and shorter
than the old Mille and sports a new lighter engine which Aprilia
claims makes 138 bhp at the crank. Most noticeable design changes
are the twin pipes, sharper look and central air intake in the
front fairing. Indicators are now incorporated in the mirrors
and tail unit. Riding position is not too extreme but is a deal
more aggressive than the older Mille and it is a fair old reach
over that long tank, so you get more wrist abuse.
Suspension is set up pretty stiffly but the Öhlins
has a good range of adjustment so you can get a compromise setting
for your favoured cart tracks. The downside is a loss of handling
- rather like Ducatis we have found these bikes lose a lot more
than modern fours when you back the suspension damping off. But
certainly the right stuff is all there for fast smooth roads and
race circuits.
 Frame
is black, which is OK although I can't really see the point -
anodised ally lasts a lot longer and looks fine. Still, better
than Aprilia's latest creation with its unmatching shades of gold
for the frame, wheels and suspension. Ergh ..
Don't count on carrying too much in the tail unit,
although it's got more space than bikes with underseat exhausts;
there's room in there for a puncture kit and phone. As a bonus
there's a little more room in a cubby hole in the seat hump. Of
course the bike comes with a (rather small) pillion seat which
fits in place of the race hump. If your passenger has a big arse
the tail unit bodywork will give her extra support!
Steering is noticeably quicker on the Factory, so
the lightweight front wheel must make a difference. The Brembo
brakes are good, plenty of feel and good stopping power - very
reassuring when you've been lulled into a bend a bit too hot by
that relaxed chugging old motor. Braking mid bend in one of those
moments of gentle panic does not stand the bike up and the rigidity
of the Brembos allied to the Öhlins gives you loads of feel for
the front tyre. But the Brembos don't stay very effective in the
wet ... perhaps it's the linings.
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Apparently
bikes are supplied with fuelling map 1 loaded into the ECU,
a closed loop mode using the Lambda sensor exhaust probe
to maintain a 14.7:1 air/fuel ratio. There are several variations
of map 1 and each can be switched by some dealer trickery
to map 2 for racing use with open mufflers. Before installing
a Power Commander this closed loop mode must be disabled
by switching to engine variant 2, otherwise the PC will
be getting duff information..
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The Akrapovic road legal system fitted to this R
seems to improve the general grunt from the motor without being
at all noisy. Baffles are removable to allow better breathing,
although some alteration to the fuelling may be needed to make
the most of it.
Out on a run with a Ducati 1098 and a Gixer the
Aprilia acquitted itself passably well. Enough power for back
road scratching but the engine definitely feels a bit lacking
when the pace picks up on more open A roads. On the plus side,
the quick steering makes mid bend line alterations easy. It also
makes the front feel nervous and a little uncertain at times.
Winding on some more rear rebound helped this considerably, but
perhaps the price to pay for the excellent steering will always
be a bit of a nervy front wheel. I believe Aprilia have slowed
the steering a shade on the latest model.
One small point on suspension adjustment - the compression
screw on the forks is a bit daft as is sits just underneath the
mudguard stay, so an allen key will only fit short side in, making
things rather time consuming.
Top yoke is rather fancy. Öhlins forks require a
small hex allen key to adjust damping. The tacho is analogue -
everything else is on the digital screen; pretty comprehensive
with a lap timer, clock (for slower laps ..), odometer, 2 trip
meters, oil temperature and various warning signals.
 Large
air intake at the front delivers lots of cool oxygen to the injectors,
but can be a bit of a bugger for small flying animals if they're
a touch slow on take off. Make sure you empty them out regularly
to avoid an over rich mixture.
Bit of a stretch to the bars, more 80's Exup that
'07 Blade, but it works when you're belting down a nice twisty
road. Bike makes a nice change from a Japanese four but from what
we've seen of Dooks and this Aprilia, Italian bikes will never
match the Inscrutables on sheer quality of engineering.
Engine is dry sump as old English bikes were, so
oil is carried in a tank at the side of the motor, unlike the
usual modern arrangement where the oil is carried in the sump.
This means there is always a supply of oil whatever the attitude
of the bike but does lead to some black art judgement when checking
the oil or doing an oil change. Basically don't check the oil
on a cold engine - go for a decent run first to get a proper reading
otherwise you'll wind up with an airbox full of oil.
Oh, and prepare to go down to the shed and dig out
that old steel concertina toolbox full of 8, 9, 11, 13, 15 mm
etc. spanners you've never used. The Aprilia will demand all of
these and more for the simplest of tasks.
The bike is a lot of fun and is reasonably comfortable,
nothing like as snatchy as a Honda SP and easier on the body than
the 1098. It is a bit top-heavy though, so be prepared for some
slight correction and a degree of nervousness in slow hairpins;
you can't just sling it in regardless. The V-twin engine has enough
torque to keep things rumbling along around 9000 rpm. But this
is not a powerful motor when compared to modern Japanese fours,
so you will have to be prepared to redline it to stay with your
mate's Gixer. And change gear frequently!
Some of this may sound a bit negative, and the
Aprilia is a blinding bit of kit in the right circumstances. It
may not have the everday practicality of a Japanese sportster
but it has arguably the best front end in the business and that
engine is very addictive. 'Better than any Ducati' some rather
excellent riders have said, and they may not be wrong ...
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One
mod worth doing is to change the sidestand. The one supplied as
standard with European bikes is very short and sits rather upright
when supporting the bike, so it's all a bit in danger of falling
over. Handy when oiling the chain but there's no other benefit.
The
2004 RSV loses out on the shiny gold bits and the carbon fibre
panels but the less gaudy look does have a certain understated
appeal. 
APRILIA
RSV 1000 R 2004
APRILIA
RSV 1000 R FACTORY 2004