APRILIA TUONO 660 (2021 - on) Review

Overall rating

The Aprilia Tuono 660 may seem steep at just under £10k when compared to something like the Yamaha MT-07 (£6899), but its attitude and performance make it more of a real rival to KTM’s 890 Duke. And with the Austrian naked costing £9649, the Tuono 660 suddenly makes a little more sense.

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It’s not much cheaper than its sporty RS660 brother (just £449), but it does put the emphasis on acceleration and has a slightly comfier riding position. But most of all, it is easy to enjoy and more than capable in almost any scenario. Looks great, too! 

The Tuono is instantly intuitive and easy and one of those bikes that you can enjoy from the moment the road opens up. It’s light, responsive and easy to have a lot of fun on. This is a motorcycle that is accessible to everyone: from younger riders, who will enjoy a very light, intuitive and extremely easy-to-ride bike, to the geek who will appreciate the extremely simple yet fine chassis set-up together with the well-calibrated suspension system.

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Ride quality & brakes

You can really chuck it into corners - there's a natural balance and attitude. This ease of use boosts confidence and the Aprilia Tuono 660 can be ridden hard and fast through winding country roads. This precision and performance reminds me of its sporty sibling, the RS660, which is hardly surprising as the pair share the same chassis. Pick a line and dive at the apex, winding on the throttle as soon as you dare.

But if you do need to change tack quickly, the high and wide bars make steering input almost instant and drama-free. The riding position is a little more spacious and upright than on the RS660 and all day in the saddle causes very few aches and pains.

Although the Tuono uses the same Kayaba suspension as the RS660 (albeit with unique settings), it does have its own dedicated yokes, changing the fork offset to tweak the handling and stability.

Engine

The handling may be nimble, but it’s the engine that's the real icing on the cake. The Aprilia Tuono 660 drives cleanly from low revs, although there is a slight dip between 5000 and 6000rpm. And while the Tuono uses the same engine as its sporty sibling, it has been tamed slightly; down to 94bhp instead of the RS' 99bhp.

This allows the Tuono to be restricted to 47bhp and meet A2 licence laws. But it’s barely noticeable and actually feels a little livelier thanks to lower final drive gearing, which puts the emphasis on response and acceleration rather than eking out the last few mph of top speed.

• Related: Exploring Aprilia's new 660 twin
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There are five riding modes, too and the 'Dynamic' setting is just that. It gives instant throttle response and makes the engine more lively as the revs rise. On the other hand, the 'Commute' option keeps everything smooth and predictable, which is exactly what you want when picking a route through city streets or through rows of cars.

Reliability & build quality

Being a brand-new motorcycle, it's difficult to assess long-term reliability. That said, when we tested the Aprilia RS660 at its launch in late 2020, the pre-production models did have a few starting problems and engine warning lights flashing.

Aprilia assured us at the time that they were minor software glitches and, riding the production version on UK roads, there were no obvious problems. Some have criticised the finish in certain areas, though, which could potentially also translate to the Tuono.

Value vs rivals

Costing £9700 at its 2021 launch, the Aprilia Tuono 660 is just £449 cheaper than it's fully-faired RS sibling. It also doesn't get a quickshifter or cornering ABS as standard.

This asking price also puts it in direct competition with KTM's parallel-twin 890 Duke, which is £51 cheaper at £9649 and produces a more impressive claimed 114bhp - some 20 more than the Tuono. At almost £10,000 it's also likely to be too expensive for many younger riders considering taking their A2 licence test.

Equipment

To help keep the Tuono in check, you also get traction control, wheelie control, cruise control and engine braking systems. The colour TFT instruments and LED headlights are also taken straight from the RS660. And, while our test bike was fitted with a quickshifter and cornering ABS, these do not come as standard on the middleweight Tuono.

Away from the electronic gizmos, the small windshield also works quite well and deflects windblast as high as the shoulders. That said, some may argue this is not really a naked at all...

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Aprilia Tuono 660 accessories

Aprilia have always done things in style and the Tuono 660 is no different. It comes in three striking colour options: black/red, grey/red or 'acid gold' with black. All have red wheels and black fork legs.

There are also loads of bolt-on accessories available, including soft luggage and a carbon Akrapovič exhaust that unusually replaces the well-hidden, belly-mounted standard silencer with a much more prominent pipe in a conventional position on the right hand side.