When you mention V4 motorcycles, there is a small but select group of legendary machines that come to mind. There are more, of course,but the most notable are Ducati’s road-going GP bike the Desmosedici RR, Honda’s line of STs and VFRs including the RC30 and RC45, as well as Yamaha’s VMax powerhouse. And in recent years, Aprilia’s RSV4.

A V4 engine is more compact than an inline four and that has advantages in the chassis built around it. It’s a primary reason why Honda continues to use it with much success in grand prix and why Aprilia, newbies to the big bike world only seven years ago, used it as the powerplant for their RSV4 superbike.

Aprilia didn’t hide the fact that this V4 engine was built for racing. What it did in its first year of World Superbike – many podiums and a race win – and by following it up with the world championship the following year is testament to how good this machine was for their first go at it.

On the road, the RSV4 superbike has been a sales success from day one and, as in every other manufacturers range, alongside it has been a nakedbike version of the turnkey racer – the Tuono.

It’s been 13 years since Aprilia stripped down the V-twin RSV1000 superbike and created the nakedbike Tuono. It took two years but in 2011 the RSV4 was the basis for the Tuono. With the same APRC electronics package as the superbike, 167hp on tap and weighing in at 185kg, it moved Aprilia to the head of the nakedbike class.

The 2013 upgrade to the Tuono that delivered more power, better electronics and race ABS was good, but there was a need for more as the competition – particularly from Europe with the BMW S1000R and KTM 1290 SuperDuke R – lifted its game.

Image: Tim Munro.

So Aprilia responded and here we are in 2015 with not only a boost in capacity for the Tuono to 1077cc and a styling update, but more power and torque, even better electronics, and revamped chassis set-up.

There are now two Tuonos in the line up: the Factory and RR. The RR is the base model pictured here, while the Factory has Öhlins fork, shock and steering damper, aluminium flanged brake discs, Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa rubber with a 200/55 on the rear. At four grand more than the Tuono RR you get a lot of value with the higher-spec components you get.

The aim of the capacity increase of the V4 was to give the Tuono a more useable engine on the road and move away from the need for revs that the superbike engine required to be at its best. The increase in cubes – as well as internal changes – have delivered more torque particularly at low rpm. And torque is what makes an engine more useable on the road more than anything else on the road.

The engine is bored out 3mm to give the extra capacity and its lifted power 4kW to 129kW with a much bigger chunk of power available below 8000rpm courtesy of the 10Nm boost in torque taking it to 121Nm.

The changes inside the engine see the upper half of the engine case now lighter and stronger while revised ventilation in the cases reduces pumping losses. The crank pin diameter is reduced and heavier, though the lighter Pankl conrods, running new shaped pistons, offset this deficit.

Image: Alex Gobert.

The APRC (Aprilia Performance Ride Control) is Aprilia’s electronics package that includes traction control, wheelie control, launch control and quick shift. The updates to the third generation of the WSBK-derived system include tyre circumference self-calibration and refinement of the traction and wheelie control actuation.

As the ECU is more powerful it means it can moderate functions for better operation. The traction system, as a result, gives a more uniform, unnoticeable action while the wheelie control now allows bigger wheelies in its sportiest of three settings. The traction control is adjustable to eight settings and can be turned off.

The engine maps now get an extra Race map to the Track and Sport modes that gives engine-braking control as part of its functions with less of it in Track mode and even less in Race. One aspect that doesn’t change is that no matter what mode you are in there is gut wrenching grunt on tap.

Sport mode has the softest power delivery and is most easy to moderate around town or in slow, tricky situations. Flick through the modes and things get increasingly exciting as more of the power comes more quickly to the right twistgrip via the fly-by-wire throttle.

The Tuono’s manners are noticeably better at low rpm, low road speed situations but where the engine really shines is its instant response from mid-range and revving out to the top end. It’s still got that superbike-like turn of speed but the punch it delivers is where it’ll be hard to be beat by any inline four and more linear and smooth in its delivery than a big-twin.

Image: Alex Gobert.

The Tuono now runs the leading 9MP motorcycle ABS system by Bosch. Weighing in a two kilograms, the Race ABS system has a rear wheel lift mitigation that keeps the rear wheel down on hard braking.

It’s adjustable to three levels of intervention, and if stoppies are your thing you can turn it off. Brakes are Brembo M432 Monoblocs, and it doesn’t have to be said that this is a strong point of the chassis package.

The changes in the chassis gives a shallower rake, longer fork offset, and a shorter trail to pull it all back. Along with a longer swingarm and the engine sitting lower in the frame, these changes have been aimed at giving the Tuono more stability at high speed, yet retaining its agility at low speed. And there’s no arguments there.

Suspension at both ends is by Sachs. The front end is a 43mm fork with separate functioning components – one leg controls compression, the other rebound. The shock has a piggyback reservoir and the base settings at both ends have been dialled in to suit the new chassis dimensions.

Handling is a strong point of the Tuono and unlike its pocket-sized superbike brother, the nakedbike is more planted and stable on rough road surfaces. It retains that racy nimbleness at lower speeds but the forgiving suspension set-up tracts over every bump without deviation, but it is still firm enough that you feel every contour of the road.

Image: Alex Gobert.

The new styled fairing cuts the air better and gives more protection. The new headlight shaves 1.5kg of weight while a new seat material, 15mm lower seat and new handlebar makes it more comfortable.

I wouldn’t call it comfortable in the company of a sports-tourer or the like, but it is an improvement from the previous model and still a sportsbike with a motocross handlebar at heart.

Aprilia has a bunch of accessories for the Tuono, and included in them are things like the Ohlins shock and damper that you get on the Factory. In addition there’s carbon bits, guards, racing pegs, stands and rims.

But the most impressive piece of kit, especially for tech heads, is the V4-MP (Multimedia Platform). It turns your phone into a tool that uses your phone’s GPS to tune the electronics to different parts of a racetrack, clock lap times and show you where you could be faster, supplies telemetry data like power and torque being delivered, rear wheel thrust and slip, G-forces and lean angles. It’s like having your own GP crew chief.

You get a lot of motorcycle in the V4 Tuono 1100. An exciting engine and dynamic chassis all harnessed by an electronics package that you can dial in to any mood or environment – or just turn it off and try and tame the beast.

On the road or on the track the Tuono delivers performance akin of a superbike, but in comfort, safety and simplicity. The only thing it’ll challenge you to do is keep your licence in the process.

Specifications

Engine type: Liquid-cooled, DOHC, 65° V4
Capacity: 1077cc
Bore x stroke: 81mm x 52.3 mm
Compression ratio: 13.5:1
Claimed power: 129kW @ 13,000rpm
Claimed torque: 121Nm @ 10,500rpm
Dry weight: 184kg
Seat height: 825mm
Wheelbase: 1450mm
Fuel tank capacity: 18.5L
Colours: Portimao Grey and Donington Blue
Price: $23,000 ride away
Detailed specs: www.aprilia.com.au