It is hard to believe that it has been 10 years since the Aprilia RSV4 debuted, and yet after a decade of service, the V4-powered superbike is still at the pointy end of the game.
To celebrate that heritage, along with the three World Superbike Championship wins, the team at Noale envisioned one special machine, of which only 10 units would be produced. As such, say hello to the very potent Aprilia RSV4 X.
Now finally making deliveries to the 10 worthy souls who purchased the €40,000 machine, we get to see what a hand-built 222hp (165 kW) 1,078cc V4 engine can do in a 364 lbs (165 kg) dry weight chassis.
To get to that 26 lbs weight reduction, the Aprilia engineers have refined several components, including a carbon fiber fairings, lighter weight fuel tank, and titanium Akrapovic exhaust system.
Similarly, for the power increase, we see that the V4 engine has seen the inclusion of new intake camshafts, new valve return springs, caps, and bucket tappets, which allows for the use of shafts with more aggressive cam profiles.
Most interestingly, Aprilia has moved the neutral position in the gearbox to below 1st gear. The Italian brand calls this Aprilia No Neutral (ANN), and they say that it speeds up shifting between the first and second gears, and avoids the possibility of a false neutral. Swank!
Brembo nerds will also notice that the Aprilia RSV4 X is the first production bike to use the new Brembo GP4-MS calipers, which are mated to T-Drive discs and a 19×16 radial master cylinder from the same Italian brand.
The first to take delivery of this beast mode machine was Max Biaggi, who promptly took the creation to the Mugello circuit.
“Tackling the corners at Mugello astride the RSV4 X is always a fantastic thrill!” said Biaggi in the Aprilia press release. “On this bike, the sensations are exactly like those of a racing bike and, as soon as I got on it, I felt like I had never quit racing.”
Andrea Iannone is set to get his RSV4 X soon, along with the eight other lucky owners, who will get their bikes directly from the Aprilia Racing factory shop in Italy. We are surely envious.
Source: Aprilia
Comments