2002 APRILIA RSV MILLE R
- Aprillia RSV Mille R Price £9,999 :
- 998cc Liquid cooled inline four 8V, 60 V-twin :
- Dry weight 183kg Insurance group 17 :
- Claimed power 120bhp @ 8,800rpm :
- Issue tested: October 2002
- Contact: Aprilia UK on 0161 475 1800
Rating in 2002 bike of the year? Fourth
The bike choice for many track day fiends, but can it really cut it as a ride it everyday type of machine? Some might say not, but they're the slow guys.
This is serious junkie action. When you have become desensitised to 900s and you can't get a buzz from a middleweight, you're on a slippery slope. Those bikes are recreational drugs for the non-committed who kid themselves they could stop if they wanted. When your 140bhp FireBlade seems too damn nice you're staring down the barrel of a tough choice. Go cold turkey from biking and try to get a bigger rush jumping off bridges without an elastic band or pull the trigger and get on a Mille.
For the uninitiated this is the most racer-like bike money can buy, right down to the feel of the thin grips and hard seat. The RSV R has been kicking arse in tests since it debuted in 2000. The revision the following year made it top twin and it has stayed there since. There is no bullshit with this bike. It's built to go fast and that means it's aggressive. You ride a Mille and there can be no softly softly catchee monkey. Get on and say 'I'd like to proceed straight to the intravenous injection of hard horsepower, please'.
The RSV doesn't even have that much on paper. Average output for the last few test bikes are 113bhp and 70lbs-ft of torque. The difference is in the 60-degree V-twin engine's close firing order that hammers the bike forwards with such ferocity that the more powerful SP-2 and 998s actually lose out on corner exist and rarely manage to gain much on a straight.
It isn't suitable for the undisciplined user, however. Every action and reaction, every squeeze of a lever, nudge on the bars and twist of the throttle is met with such instant response that it can intimidate less experienced riders. Those who know how to make the drugs work will find a new world of later braking, harder lean and earlier acceleration. No road bike has ever felt as at home on a circuit. The instant throttle response, sharp brakes and tall seat that make it cumbersome in town suddenly make compete sense when you're 50-degrees from vertical, hugging the apex like a comfort blanket and looking to open the throttle two inches earlier than the previous lap. The Mille combines an unrivalled ability to turn tight with fast steering, incredible brakes and the most intricate and intuitive feedback of any bike here.
On the downside it sounds like a tractor at low revs, seems to eat tyres and – unless you ride like a twat absolutely everywhere – it can be a real pain in town. This bike doesn't know how to trundle to the shops or calmly take you to work. It wants to guarantee you'll never be late by making you ride hard everywhere, all the time, whatever the journey.
On the other hand, someone others on the magazine wern't so thrilled....
“Between the 998 and the Mille the skin on my left toe was worn to nothing. Its miserable gear box combined with an even worse exhaust tone leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Fast as hell, but too many downers. The dash resembles a bad futuristic impression from the 1970's and it's far and away the ugliest bike of the lot. You catch my drift here? Not one of my favourites.”
Or how about....
“It seems like the faster you could ride on a track, the more you liked the Mille. Before the test I picked the bike up and rode it to the office which meant a combination of dual carriageway and town traffic. On the open road it's a laugh. In town it's a tragedy. I roasted my legs at the lights and got arm-pump and cramp from the clutch. It guzzles fuel like a thirsty camel and feels top heavy. I'll pass till I go 15 seconds a lap quicker and then maybe I'd start to appreciate it. Until then…”
If you are a real racer though...
“It's clear the Aprilia was designed as a race bike first and it feels like one. Cornering characteristics are more like a 600 bike than other 1000cc machines. It's nice to see a manufacturers finally giving a shit about getting the suspension right on road bikes, the Mille's standard settings are only rivalled by the R1's. The slipper clutch gives a great amount of feedback through the lever and in the end the rev limiter was the only thing that came between the Mille and me in full fang mode I ended up using more gears than on the 600's.”
The bike choice for many track day fiends, but can it really cut it as a ride it everyday type of machine? Some might say not, but they're the slow guys.
This is serious junkie action. When you have become desensitised to 900s and you can't get a buzz from a middleweight, you're on a slippery slope. Those bikes are recreational drugs for the non-committed who kid themselves they could stop if they wanted. When your 140bhp FireBlade seems too damn nice you're staring down the barrel of a tough choice. Go cold turkey from biking and try to get a bigger rush jumping off bridges without an elastic band or pull the trigger and get on a Mille.
For the uninitiated this is the most racer-like bike money can buy, right down to the feel of the thin grips and hard seat. The RSV R has been kicking arse in tests since it debuted in 2000. The revision the following year made it top twin and it has stayed there since. There is no bullshit with this bike. It's built to go fast and that means it's aggressive. You ride a Mille and there can be no softly softly catchee monkey. Get on and say 'I'd like to proceed straight to the intravenous injection of hard horsepower, please'.
The RSV doesn't even have that much on paper. Average output for the last few test bikes are 113bhp and 70lbs-ft of torque. The difference is in the 60-degree V-twin engine's close firing order that hammers the bike forwards with such ferocity that the more powerful SP-2 and 998s actually lose out on corner exist and rarely manage to gain much on a straight.
It isn't suitable for the undisciplined user, however. Every action and reaction, every squeeze of a lever, nudge on the bars and twist of the throttle is met with such instant response that it can intimidate less experienced riders. Those who know how to make the drugs work will find a new world of later braking, harder lean and earlier acceleration. No road bike has ever felt as at home on a circuit. The instant throttle response, sharp brakes and tall seat that make it cumbersome in town suddenly make compete sense when you're 50-degrees from vertical, hugging the apex like a comfort blanket and looking to open the throttle two inches earlier than the previous lap. The Mille combines an unrivalled ability to turn tight with fast steering, incredible brakes and the most intricate and intuitive feedback of any bike here.
On the downside it sounds like a tractor at low revs, seems to eat tyres and – unless you ride like a twat absolutely everywhere – it can be a real pain in town. This bike doesn't know how to trundle to the shops or calmly take you to work. It wants to guarantee you'll never be late by making you ride hard everywhere, all the time, whatever the journey.
On the other hand, someone others on the magazine wern't so thrilled....
“Between the 998 and the Mille the skin on my left toe was worn to nothing. Its miserable gear box combined with an even worse exhaust tone leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Fast as hell, but too many downers. The dash resembles a bad futuristic impression from the 1970's and it's far and away the ugliest bike of the lot. You catch my drift here? Not one of my favourites.”
Or how about....
“It seems like the faster you could ride on a track, the more you liked the Mille. Before the test I picked the bike up and rode it to the office which meant a combination of dual carriageway and town traffic. On the open road it's a laugh. In town it's a tragedy. I roasted my legs at the lights and got arm-pump and cramp from the clutch. It guzzles fuel like a thirsty camel and feels top heavy. I'll pass till I go 15 seconds a lap quicker and then maybe I'd start to appreciate it. Until then…”
If you are a real racer though...
“It's clear the Aprilia was designed as a race bike first and it feels like one. Cornering characteristics are more like a 600 bike than other 1000cc machines. It's nice to see a manufacturers finally giving a shit about getting the suspension right on road bikes, the Mille's standard settings are only rivalled by the R1's. The slipper clutch gives a great amount of feedback through the lever and in the end the rev limiter was the only thing that came between the Mille and me in full fang mode I ended up using more gears than on the 600's.”
The superbike scores
Engine
93%
Chassis
98%
Brakes
98%
Styling
96%
Overall
94%
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