[JSaarinen]

Did a Sunday morning ride with my friends to Bidadi, at the outskirts of Bengaluru. Enjoying the highway prowess and refinement of the Aprilia, and post the first service the engine also feels more eager. Keeping company was another two brilliant motorcycles, the Yamaha R3 and the KTM Duke 390.





Regards,
JS

[VW2010]

How are the parts and service cost for the Aprilia?

Trying to get a perspective as I own a KTM and this is the cheapest bike to own and maintain so far.

[JSaarinen]

Originally Posted by VW2010

How are the parts and service cost for the Aprilia?

The first service of my RS457 done at Avant Garde motors in Bengaluru costed me ₹3937/-. Please find the bill attached below. Some of the costs can be reduced if you can do washing, polishing and chain lubing and adjustment by yourself and not as a part of service.

Thanks,
JS

[Boringrider]

Took a test ride of the RS and had a revelation. Engine is ferocious and refined. I couldn't even make it out of second gear. The startup sound and the exhaust note when you ride really gives you the big bike feel. Post 5k rpm, the exhaust and the bike, both go ballistic. Also, the looks are on another level. So, is the pricing lol.

Sadly, it is not for me. With my dimensions, 6'3 and slightly heavy set, I couldn't find a decent riding position. I was able to ride but it would mean wrist pain guaranteed. And there went my dreams of supersport riding. All the Aprilia's, R1s, Fireblades, Panigales, ZX10Rs and what not are a strict no-no for me. I can lose weight but not height. However, all hope is not lost. This engine on the Tuono sparks a ray of hope. It will be a nice Italian weapon. Man, the Italians know how to design their automobiles, in reference to the RS, not necessarily the Tuono.

[JSaarinen]

Bit the bullet and got a PPF done for the RS457. Mirrors, fuel cap, visor and seats were removed. The PPF installation work took about 5 hours to complete. It was done at Splash auto services in Bangalore and at a reasonable cost. They've given a 5 year warranty for the PPF.

[JSaarinen]

Some more weekend morning rides with fellow owners. Loving the agility and the engine response on the backroads. Entering back to the city in peak traffic, I can also appreciate the heat management. I feel the heat is masked better than my Gen1 KTM 390 Duke. Never did it get uncomfortable in choc-a-bloc traffic nor did the temperature warning flash which used to happen in my older 390. Hope you guys enjoy the snaps.

Karadi Gavi Betta

Thimmapana Betta
Regards,
JS

[SR1602]

Hey everyone. My schedule has been super packed and probably will be for the foreseeable future. So I'll try to put in some periodic bi-monthly updates here. I haven't done as much riding as I expected off late due to health problems and an insurance claim for a damaged rim that took about 3 weeks to replace. So I hit a somewhat deep pothole at a speed that wasn't exactly ideal. I initially thought I had definitely hit the catcon based on how loud the "thud" was. But when I stopped to check at the next signal, there was absolutely nothing, not even a scratch on the lowest part of the fairing. Seeing this, I thanked my luck and dismissed it. About a week later when I came to check the bike in the middle of my viral fever, I noticed that there was indeed a very visible blemish on the rear rim.



The insurance guys initially refused because the rim damage is apparently not covered in my package. My condition was so bad at that time, that I didn't even feel like arguing with him and just thought I'd go ahead and pay the 11k with labour that Aprilia was charging, out of pocket. Luckily the insurance agent himself called back and said that we'll make an exception in this case. This whole process took about 22 days. Then I had to again take the wheel for balancing separately because I found that they don't give balanced rims from the factory for replacements. The guy at the wheel shop was really worried that I was adding 75g of wheel weights but I confirmed from the showroom that up to 96g is allowed before they declare the rim as defective.



I was very intrigued by how they've shaped the swingarm in order for it to stay clear of the catcon.

Additionally, I also completed my 2nd service a little earlier (at 4896km) as I have a proper long ride planned for the last week of december. I thought it best if I give it for servicing at least 3 weeks in advance to be on the safer side. The one recurring problem that I had since about 3800km was really squeaky and messed up front brakes. I kept attributing it to dust and debris going into the callipers but alarmingly I found out during the service that the brakes were almost entirely gone. While I have an aggressive riding style, the service manager still insisted that ideally, 6000km is what you should aim for unless you are taking the bike to the track daily. The rear pads had about 1000km more but I changed them as well since I have a 1900km trip planned next.



Total service cost was the same 4000ish as before with another 5000 for both the pads (4600-400 cost split)

I did mention what has been going well with the bike before so here are a few negatives that really stood out to me:

1. The infamous left-lean issue: Yup this is a thing. If you leave the handlebars, the bike does veer to the left when you let the handlebars go unless you apply a tiny amount of counterweight to the right. I am not able to understand why this happens as I have checked the wheel balancing and cone-set condition multiple times. This only happens when the RPM drops below a certain level and it's pretty much there on all bikes. I did get used to applying a slight counterweight to the right side and I honestly don't feel the bike has any handling issues because it is exceptionally good at turning. I'm not sure what to make of this, a lot of other owners are not at all happy with it.

2. Cleaning the bike: Can't really blame anyone for this. The front mudguard is pretty short and this bike hurls slush and much all the way up to the instrument console and into each tiny crevice on the way. The entire radiator area also gets covered because of this. I didn't expect this to be easy to clean but the potential it has for getting dirty is insanely high.

3. Clutch lever vibration: This is again pretty common across all bikes. The clutch lever shakes like crazy but only in the 500 RPM range between 3500 and 4000. This is irritating because this is where you'll be mostly during relaxed commutes.

Apart from that I have been lucky enough to not be affected by the battery drain and rectifier unit defects that a lot of my friends had to go through (*touchwood*) and there's a new problem of some weird rattling noise coming from inside the head unit that another few friends are facing. We'll know the results of that soon. Here are few pictures over the past few months:





Pondicherry ride with an old classmate from college who recently moved to Chennai. We both had red R15 v2s when we were in college










Rode to Yelagiri with a couple of guys from the owner's group. RS did really well on the hills despite the braking problems. If that wasn't the case, the bike would've been a total hoot to ride.



Random selfie because we both were looking good.



Post-service shine.

Need all your best wishes and blessings for my upcoming trip. I have never ridden beyond 750km as the total distance so I am really stoked and also really scared at the same time

[JSaarinen]

Took the Aprilia RS457 for a track session at Aruani Grid, Bangalore. The track is a tight and twisty karting track but it is wide enough to pick various lines. A friend of mine joined too in his KTM 390 Duke. The RS457 proved it's mettle on the track. The tyres are super grippy and confidence inspiring at lean, I could take off the chicken strips within a few laps on the track.



I never faced the infamous brake fade, probably because we never hit high speeds on the track. There are no feelers on the footpegs so they never ground even at high lean. One strange feeling I had was due to the lack of a heel plate, so anchoring the foot during corners took a bit of getting used to as you would feel the swingarm movement.

https://youtu.be/bdVbCUlFl50?si=OhODgSBzkR8bJ1Ce

We shot some videos by swapping camera between the Duke and the RS457, mostly following each other to understand where we were making mistakes. We both are not among the faster riders on track, so pardon the mistakes and the pace! 😊
The low end torque of the RS457 meant I could keep a gear higher in corners where the Duke had to go to a lower gear and still drive out of the corners impressively. Overall, it's a brilliant bike on track, more capable than my abilities.

Can't wait to take it to a proper track like Kari motor speedway or MMRT to experience it's full potential.
Thanks,
JS