It’s the new norm that a manufacturer will create a platform and then utilise the foundations to create a whole range of different machinery, from sportsbikes to adventure bikes, and just about everything in between. And Aprilia are absolutely no different; following on from their blisteringly good RS 660 supersport bike, and the naked Tuono 660, comes the Tuareg – an off-road, adventure styled machine using the same parallel twin motor.
It looks every bit an adventure bike with that long travel suspension, 21” and 19” wheels, coupled with the slender, long frame of an adventure machine. The frame has more anchor points than on the sportier 660 variants and now the engine has been rotated by 10 degrees too, in order to offer a little more agility at slower speeds.
They’ve played around with the engine internally too, as although it makes significantly less power than the RS version (21bhp, to be exact), at 78bhp it still makes over 6bhp more than its closest rival, Yamaha’s Tenere 700. Like most bikes in the class, the Tuareg has been engineered for a better feeling at the lower end of the rev range, offering up a greater amount of torque, with the peak figure of 70Nm appearing 2000rpm sooner than on its faired sibling. It also retains a whole host of Aprilia’s fabled electronics too.
So, is Aprilia’s Tuareg 660 as accomplished as the RS 660 and Tuono 660 that came before it? After riding it, we think so.
Firstly, it looks like a mean kit. Although the styling can be seen as a bit ‘marmite’, I quite like that retro vibe, which works even better as it’s combined with a really nice finish. The quality of the components match the price tag too, and jumping on, it’s got a sweet TFT dash that powers a raft of rider aids and riding modes, alongside an easy to use interface for switching between and changing settings. My only niggle is the placement of the full beam switch – it’s really easy to knock on by just riding along.
Saying that though, it’s a small price to pay when utilising that glorious 659cc motor. Sure, it’s seen some changes to make it more suited to adventure-style riding, but even so it retains that incredible character and V4-esque soundtrack too, which sets the Aprilia engine apart from its rivals. Even though it’s lost a bit of power at the top end, that extra push of torque lower down makes a massive difference on throttle pick up, no matter what gear you’re in. As far as engines go, it really is one of the sweetest examples in this capacity, although I did find that that the gearbox did feel a bit clunky and tough, compared to some of the more refined machines on the market. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not awful, but it really does miss having the quickshifter and autoblipper of the RS, which combine to make those gearchanges a much easier affair. Other than that? It really is incredible.
Although it sits quite high, due to its slim nature the Tuareg 660 isn’t a difficult bike to reach the floor on, and even with the long travel suspension. Despite the chassis adaptions and dual purpose rubber, it is still more than capable to tackle the tarmac. As with all the latest adventure bikes I’ve been lucky enough to sample, the chassis feels so planted that I forgot about the long travel suspension and 21” front wheel, which is a testament to the setup. Sure, you won’t be breaking any lap records on a track day, but the Tuareg feels not just well suited to riding fairly hard on the road, but also does so in serious comfort too.
Although we didn’t get a proper chance to try it on hardcore off-road sections, it feels like a bike that would be comfortable doing so, thanks to not just the suspension and chassis combination, but by how gentle the engine can be, especially when looked after by such a vast suite of electronics. Saying that though, if I was looking to do some serious stuff, I’d definitely stick some more off-road biased rubber onboard before I did.
Conclusion
Continuing the trend of creating incredible machines with the 660 platform, Aprilia have made a cracking bike out of the Tuareg 660. At £10,600, it’s a fair amount of money for a 660 twin but you do get a lot of bike for that, a lot of tech and as much of an engaging ride as you would expect from something with far more engine capacity. Aprilia have done its old Tuareg name proud.
