APRILIA DORSODURO 750 SPECIFICATIONS  

ENGINE
Engine type: 90-degree V-twin, liquid-cooled, four-stroke
Bore x stroke: 96 x 56.4mm
Displacement: 749.9cc
Compression ratio: 11:1
Transmission: Six-speed
Power (claimed): 123hp
Torque (claimed): 60 ft-lbs

CHASSIS
Frame type: Modular steel trellis secured to aluminum side plates
Front suspension: Fully-adjustable 43mm USD fork
Rear suspension: Fully-adjustable monoshock
Wheelbase: 1505mm
Wheels (front/rear): 3.50 x 17″ / 6.00 x 17″
Tyres (front/rear): 120/70-17″ / 180/55-17″
Brakes (front/rear): Twin 320mm floating wave disc, four-piston radial caliper/ Single 240mm disc

DIMENSIONS
Weight (claimed): Not given
Seat height: 870mm
Fuel capacity: 12 litres

PURCHASE DETAILS
Price: TBA
Colour options: TBA
Test bike from: Aprilia Australia – www.aprilia.com.au

I’ll have to start this particular test by admitting I got nowhere near the saddle time that I’d usually like to get when reviewing a bike due to a serious case of the flu, but despite that I can say that I was impressed with Aprilia’s Dorsoduro 750.

A Supermoto-styled road bike developed in collaboration with Aprilia Racing, the Dorsoduro combines technology from both road bikes and motard racing bikes, equalling a very versatile machine that has the ability to work strongly in a variety of riding situations.

The Dorso has a 750cc 90-degree V-twin engine that delivers a claimed 123 horsepower and 60 ft-lbs of torque, while a tri-map ride-by-wire engine management system adds to its high capabilities in many environments.

Chassis-wise, the Aprilia is unique and features a mixed trellis and aluminium frame that stems direct from experience learned in the high-paced world of Supermoto racing.

Technical standouts on the Dorsoduro include fully-adjustable suspension front and rear, powerful brakes with wave discs on both ends, with quality sprinkled throughout the bike just as you’d assume from an Italian manufacturer.

As mentioned above, the tri-map engine management system is a second generation unit that offers riders the option of Sport, Touring or Rain modes, which are changeable via the handlebar and feature very different power settings depending on your riding mood or the conditions.

At Aprilia I was immediately asked which mode I’d like to start in and I quickly responded Sport because I wanted to experience the full power of the thumping twin, although I must admit that having the option is a great bonus for this type of motorcycle – even if I did go on to spend the majority of my ride in Sport mode.

The motor isn’t massively powerful and works best in the lower stages of the rpm range, but the sound is simply sensational as the deep drone signifies you’re on a fat twin with the sound pounded out by big double under-seat exhausts.

Clicking up through the six-speed gearbox allows me to feel each stage of the torquey acceleration, but a touch of clutch is required on both up and down shifts if you’re to extract the smoothest shift in all gears.

The dash is easy on the eye and is completely digital in the speedo department along with the odometer and trip metres etc, while a sizeable tacho indicates up to 12,000rpm worth of revs if you’re going to ride it at its maximum.

Having the controls mounted on the handlebars is optimal for both the dash on the left-hand side, while the engine maps are adjustable via a red button on the throttle side of the handlebars.

They’re not your conventional indicator switches on the bike and take a little bit to adjust to, although if you were looking to be the same as everybody else then it’s doubtful that you’d be looking at a Dorso from the outset.

When seated on the Aprilia you’ll notice it’s tall and quite wide despite its motard nature, with a square seat and wide, tall, handlebars (featuring racing-style hand guards) very much replicating the SXV range in selected ways.

Although it’s a tall bike, the relation between the seat and the dirt bike-style footrests is quite compact, and it is possible to ride the bike on mid-length distances if you have to – just be aware that the seat is quite stiff.

In fact, I’d say the Dorsoduro is stuck somewhere between city slicing and country riding, not really being agile enough to cut through traffic as well as some of its motard-style opponents, but proving greatly efficient if you’re to take it out on the open road.

The handling is sharp in its turning prowess, but feels somewhat heavy at slow speed, and stability at a higher rate is a great strong point of the 750’s chassis ability.

Vibration is pretty noticeable when revving it hard, although tall gearing often allows you to lag the engine unless you’re really acceleration hard from one set of bends to the next.

In my limited testing time I find that the best sections of road for my riding style on the Dorsoduro include flowing third-gear turns that enable you to take full advantage of its stability and sharp handling at speed, but it does work pretty well in slower suburban areas, too.

Dunlop Qualifiers mounted on the bike work well for its overall ride, suiting its chassis and offering a quick-heating tyre that is quite good in dry or damp conditions, although stickier tyres would probably assist you I you were serious about high-lean tight cornering.

Perhaps my favourite thing about the Aprilia is its looks, funnily enough. If you were to picture and imagine exactly what this bike is capable of then it meets its design brief beautifully – you can almost sense its performance before you even fire it up for the first time.

The design is slim at the front and grows increasingly wider toward the rear, with off-road style side shrouds wrapping around the petrol tank in a similar many to Ducati’s Hypermotard.

Aprilia’s had great success so far with the Dorsoduro and after my short stint I can totally understand why. If you’re into these Supermoto weapons then the Dorso has many features to capture your attention, and then the capabilities to suck you right in if you were to take it on a test run.

Between the Hypermotard, KTM’s 690 Duke, and the Dorsoduro, you’ve got three very different machines that all slot into an edgy category that excels in the fun-factor of riding motorcycles.

While the Ducati is higher in capacity and the Kato is a more nimble option, Aprilia’s motard road runner fits smack-bang in between, doing a mighty good job of providing maximum versatility.