The Goodwood Test – Aprillia RSV4 RF

Heritage

Aprilia is the youngest and most aggressive of the major Italian bike manufacturers. The firm from Noale, near Venice, was founded to produce bicycles, and made its name in motocross racing in the Seventies. Its reputation grew in the Nineties following road-racing success with young stars including Valentino Rossi and Max Biaggi, who won 125 and 250cc world titles. In recent years the now Piaggio-owned firm has shone in World Superbikes, winning three of the last six championships through Biaggi (with two) and French ace Sylvain Guintoli.

Those victories have been won by the RSV4, a 999cc V4 that was launched in 2009 with an outstanding level of technology and performance, and has since been repeatedly refined. There’s no holding back with the RSV4: it has always been built for circuit speed, with all other considerations secondary. The current RSV4 RF flagship – the F stands for Factory, Aprilia’s traditional designation for its highest spec models – is right up there with the planet’s fastest and raciest super-sports bikes.

Design

If you wanted to sum up the RSV4 RF in a few words, “focused” or “compact” would be a good start. It’s streamlined and physically tiny. The dohc, V4 powerplant holds its cylinders at a 65-degree angle, and puts the RSV4 into motorcycling’s elite 200bhp club by producing a claimed maximum of 201bhp at 13,000rpm. The current unit’s key updates were forged on the track, including large-diameter inlet valves, lightweight camshafts and connecting rods, and CNC-machined combustion chambers.

In Aprilia tradition the chassis is based on a stiff, twin-spar aluminium frame, with racy steering geometry for agility, and a long swing-arm for stability and traction. State-of-the-art electronics incorporates adjustable anti-wheelie and traction control, governed by Bosch’s sophisticated lean-angle sensor. The RF features premium Öhlins suspension and lightweight forged aluminium wheels. Some markets also get a lower spec RSV4 R but for the UK it’s full-Factory only.

Performance

The RF is breathtakingly rapid: good for roughly 190mph, and right up there scrapping with the likes of BMW’s S1000RR and Ducati’s 1299 Panigale as the quickest thing on two wheels. It accelerates with a glorious V4 bark, revs building smoothly and the bike charging forward with thrilling violence as its rider flicks through the sweet six-speed box with the quick-shifter, which loses a point by not working on down-changes, like those of some rivals.

Handling is sublime although the quick-steering Aprilia requires its suspension setting-up properly to give of its best. The Brembo brake system, which incorporates Race ABS, works superbly. But even this top-spec RSV4 doesn’t match the S1000RR and Panigale with the option of semi-active suspension. As with the lack of cornering ABS, that’s because Aprilia haven’t yet found the system to benefit the all-important lap times.

Passion

The RSV4 has never sold in the big numbers that its style, performance and racetrack success have merited, which means you can add exclusivity to its long list of attributes. Admittedly, the RF’s take-no-prisoners character won’t suit every rider. On public roads it can feel cramped and firm; and there are no rider-friendly options for heated grips or cruise control, as with some rivals. But Aprilia’s hardcore attitude has resulted in the RF being a stunningly fast and track-focused machine that is hugely rewarding to ride hard.

And there are plenty of neat features to make it feel special. The RF is a gorgeous looking machine, enhanced by striking “Superpole” graphics. That V4 motor growls menacingly and has a wonderfully long-legged feel. For track use, an accessory GPS-enabled telemetry system connects the Aprilia to a smartphone. This allows downloading of data after riding, plus fine-tuning of traction control and anti-wheelie settings for individual corners. That’s seriously cool technology that even MotoGP racebikes haven’t had for long.

Price tag of our bike: £18,236