Customers can purchase an Ape Elektrik for Rs 2.59 lakh (ex-showroom) and subscribe to a Piaggio-approved battery pack for a monthly fee.

Piaggio has announced battery subscription plans for its Ape Elektrik 3-wheeler range.

Under the new “Battery Subscription Model”, customers can purchase an Ape Elektrik for Rs 2.59 lakh (ex-showroom) and subscribe to a Piaggio-approved battery pack for a monthly fee leased through the dealership.

According to the company, the vehicle chassis and powertrain are registered in the customer’s name, while the battery is provided at the dealership for a monthly rent. This also means that customers don’t have to worry about battery maintenance, lifespan or replacement costs.

The battery lease term is 1,20,000 km or 8 years for cargo vehicles and 1,50,000 km or 8 years for passenger vehicles. After reaching the designated mileage, the monthly rent is reduced to Rs 0. The subscription includes battery replacements at the same rental amount after the initial lease term. Customers can unsubscribe or sell the vehicle whenever they want.

Piaggio’s Battery Subscription model is available across 30 cities.

The Aprilia RS 457 employs a stiff aluminium dual-beam frame at the front, with a steel tubular subsection at the rear. Suspension duties are handled by 41 mm USD forks with 120 mm suspension travel and preload adjustability at the front and a monoshock with 130 mm wheel travel and preload adjustability at the rear.

Riding the Aprilia RS 457

The Aprilia RS 457 is powered by a 457cc parallel twin, liquid-cooled, DOHC four-valve engine that produces 47 BHP @ 9,400 rpm and 43.5 Nm @ 6,700 rpm. We got to experience the RS 457 at the Kari Motor Speedway racetrack in  Coimbatore, and the below observations are limited to just the track experience.

35 kW (~47 BHP) is the maximum peak power permissible for an A2 sports bike in Europe and Aprilia didn't shy away from tuning the motor to deliver exactly that - the best in the segment! Moreover, with a 69 mm x 61.1mm bore:stroke configuration, the motor has a longer stroke than other parallel twin rivals and this results in class-leading torque of 43.5 Nm. Heck, forget the competition, this motor produces more torque than the recently launched 452cc single-cylinder in the Royal Enfield Himalayan! Coupled with a slick 6-speed gearbox and a light slip & assist clutch, this powertrain is certainly one of the strong points of the Aprilia.

Releasing the clutch, the bike crawls forward at ~10 km/h without much hesitation or clutch modulation required. From 2,000 rpm upwards, the motor doesn't show much hesitation and pulls cleanly from 3,000 rpm onwards. Unlike the KTM motors, I am expecting this Aprilia to be a breeze to ride in traffic, with minimal clutch slip required to get a move on from speed breakers or traffic. This one won't stall without any accelerator input in first gear and picks up clean from low rpms in higher gears.

The torque is spread wide and comes in almost linearly from 3,000 rpm all the way to ~9,000 rpm. Although I haven't ridden the rivals, I think this Aprilia could be the easiest motorcycle to ride fast without a struggle. On the main straight at Kari, I saw speeds close to 150 km/h in 5th gear and nowhere close to the redline of the gear. Thanks to the wide powerband, there is no need to keep the engine on the boil either! Out in the real world, I think this will make for a great highway experience.

You can tour on this bike. There are luggage points provided to strap your bags. Aprilia provides a high windscreen, and USB charging options as accessories and also has a pannier kit available internationally, though we did not get confirmation if the pannier will be made available in India. Your upper body isn't too leaned forward like in an RC390, but the legs are compressed and will need some stretching in between during longer rides.

My main complaint with this motor is the top-end. Although the claimed peak power is produced at 9,400 rpm, I felt multiple times like I was near the limiter at 9,000 rpm itself, whereas the redline was well above 10,000 rpm. The power seems to drop very much before the redline and this derides the bike of the hooligan rush that some of the rivals are known for! On the flip side, this bike has a dual character that can do a bit of both - relaxed highway touring (whereas the KTMs are always eager to run away) and spirited runs.

The clutch action is extremely light and enjoyable and is well-supported by slick gearshifts. Aprilia could have provided adjustable levers as standard, but for my hand size, I had nothing to complain about. The bike comes with a ride-by-wire throttle and three riding modes.

Refinement & NVH

This new 457cc parallel-twin makes use of a  270-degree crank and that makes it sound much more interesting (and better IMHO) than its Japanese parallel-twin rivals - somewhat similar to the Royal Enfield 650 twins but without the bassy rumble. At higher revs, I think it sounds good to a passerby, but to the rider, it feels a bit thrashy as compared to a bassier note that I would have liked. That said, it is just a personal preference and not a negative note on the Aprilia.

The NVH package is good and the parallel-twin is way more refined than the KTM single. There is some buzz at higher rpms, but nothing to be concerned about or bad, and can almost be termed as "good vibes". 

Suspension and Handling

The Aprilia employs a stiff aluminium dual-beam frame at the front, with a steel tubular subsection at the rear. Suspension duties are handled by 41 mm USD forks with 120 mm suspension travel and preload adjustability at the front and a monoshock with 130 mm wheel travel and preload adjustability at the rear.

While I can't comment on the ride quality of the suspension, this setup does translate to excellent handling out on the track without being too tiring or harsh! The bike leans into corners naturally and within a few laps, even an amateur like me could get some good lean angles confidently. Weight transfer felt natural and hard braking did not seem to induce any heavy nose dives.

Braking

Braking duties are handled by ByBRE, Brembo's budget brand, which has now become the mainstay of most bikes in the segment. The setup consists of a 320 mm disc with a radial-mounted 4-piston caliper up front and a 220 mm disc with a single-piston caliper at the rear. Dual-channel ABS comes standard. The rear channel can be switched off when required and the bike is also equipped with traction control and anti-rollover systems.

Overall, the setup is very good and performs the job efficiently. That said, I would have liked a better initial bite from the front brakes and the rear felt a bit spongy, especially at track speeds. I also felt the tyre to be stepping out while hard braking after the long straights, but after a discussion with the R&D, I realized I should have crosschecked if I was on one of the riding modes which disabled the rear ABS for the track. Either way, the rear unit could be improved for feel and feedback.

There are racing brake pads offered as accessories for the European market. Hopefully, the same will be made available here as well soon!

Closing thoughts

To summarize the track experience with very few words, this is a very easy-going and forgiving sports bike with excellent manners that helped an amateur hop on hesitatingly and within a few laps, end up doing this on the track:

Continue reading the discussion on the Aprilia RS 457 on our forum.

The overall ergonomics of the Aprilia RS 457 are of a sport tourer with the clip-on handlebars set above the steering triple plate ensuring that the lean is sporty, but not too uncomfortable for road usage.

Aprilia RS 457 Pros

• Mini-superbike looks with spot-on proportions and exciting colour schemes that grab attention
• Powerful 457cc twin-cylinder motor that produces a segment-best 47 BHP & 43.5 Nm is effortlessly fast and has a wide torque band with good rideability
• Easy-going nature with sport touring ergonomics, light clutch and positive gearshifts
• Excellent handling with a communicative and forgiving chassis, well-tuned and adjustable suspension setup and grippy tyres
• Touring potential with a 13L fuel tank, optional high windscreen, optional USB charging and provisions for strapping luggage
• Exudes quality - excellent paint finish, best-in-class 5" colour TFT instrumentation, aluminium dual-beam chassis and triple clamp upper plate, etc.
• Made in India. Pricing has been well-received and undercuts equivalent twin-cylinder rivals significantly

Aprilia RS 457 Cons

• Looks can be polarizing for a mature customer. No hint of subtlety with either the design or colour schemes
• Lacks the top-end rush of some rivals. Torque band is very wide and useable, but drops closer to redline
• Brakes could have better initial bite. Rear brake especially feels spongy, at least for track usage
• Lack of IMU/Cornering ABS. Few good-to-have features like USB charging, bi-directional quickshifter, TPMS, adjustable clutch and brake levers, etc. are offered only as accessories
• Aprilia's tiny dealer and service network is a concern

Read Team-BHP's detailed 2024 Aprilia RS 457 Review.

The airbag will be mounted on a two-wheeler’s frame. It will be capable of deploying in milliseconds.

To improve rider safety, Piaggio Group and Autoliv have joined hands to develop an airbag for two-wheelers. Autoliv is a Swedish-American company. It is an automotive safety supplier selling its products to multiple major car companies in the world.

The initial concept of the airbag has already been created by Autoliv. The brand has also conducted full-scale crash tests. Now with Piaggio Group onboard, the development will be carried out even further.

The airbag will be mounted on a two-wheeler’s frame. It will be capable of deploying in milliseconds.

Under its Saving More Lives vision, Autoliv is working on safety products specifically for protecting vulnerable road users. The company aims to save 1 lakh lives a year by 2030.

Source: Autocar

Piaggio, Honda, KTM and Yamaha form the founding members of the new consortium.

Piaggio - the Italian two-wheeler brand, is said to have set up a new consortium with Honda Motors, KTM AG and Yamaha Motors.

Dubbed the Swappable Batteries Motorcycle Consortium (SBMC), the project aims to encourage/boost the use of swappable battery technology and set up common technical specifications for the same. The consortium also aims to promote the increased use of light electric vehicles such as mopeds, motorbikes, scooters, tricycles and quadricycles.

According to a statement released, the consortium will also work on finding solutions to customer concerns regarding light electric vehicles. This includes range, charging time, infrastructure and costs.

Further, the four founding members of the consortium will also engage with various decision-makers, to help create an international set of technical standards for swappable battery systems and light electric vehicles.

The Ape HT range comes with a class-leading warranty of 5 years / 1.5 lakh km (whichever is earlier) for the Petrol cargo and 36 months / 1 lakh km (whichever is earlier) for the CNG passenger and cargo variants.

Piaggio has launched the Ape HT Range of 300cc 3-wheelers in India. The vehicles are available in both Petrol and CNG fuel options and in the cargo and passenger segments.

The Ape HT Range includes:

Petrol cargo - Ape Xtra HT

CNG cargo - Ape Xtra HT LDX and Ape Xtra HT LDX+

CNG passenger - Ape Auto HT DX, Ape Auto HT DXL and Ape Auto+ HT.

The Ape HT range is powered by a new 300cc, BS6-complaint, water-cooled engine which has been developed by Piaggio indigenously. It produces 11.7 BHP and 24 Nm for the petrol version and 11.2-11.3 BHP and 22.4-22.5 Nm for the CNG version. It is mated to a 5-speed gearbox. The vehicles are equipped with a new aluminium clutch which has a life of 30,000 km.

Piaggio is the only player to offer a petrol variant in the 3-wheeler cargo segment. Piaggio is also planning to introduce a passenger variant, Ape Auto HT petrol in the coming months.

The cargo range is available in 3 variants, with 5.0 ft, 5.5 ft and 6.0 ft deck length options for varied load requirements and usages.

The Ape HT range comes with a class-leading warranty of 5 years / 1.5 lakh km (whichever is earlier) for the Petrol cargo and 36 months / 1 lakh km (whichever is earlier) for the CNG passenger and cargo variants. Piaggio is also providing an AMC package with 6 free periodic maintenance services.

Prices:

Ape Xtra  HT Petrol (Cargo) – Rs. 2,24,942

Ape Xtra HT CNG (Cargo) – Rs. 2,45,642

Ape Auto DX HT CNG (Passenger) - Rs. 2,55,980

The all-new Piaggio One electric scooter will have its global debut at the upcoming Beijing Motor Show on 28 May.

Piaggio has unveiled its all-new One electric scooter. The official unveil of the electric scooter took place on the social media platform TIK TOK, revealing that Piaggio will be targeting the younger audience for its new electric scooter offering.

The new Piaggio One electric scooter is also said to come with a host of features and technology. These include a digital instrument cluster, LED lights all around, a keyless start system, spacious under-seat storage, low seat for additional comfort, robust pull-out footpegs and a wide footboard, among a few others.

Piaggio did not reveal the technical specifications of the electric scooter. It is expected to be announced during its global debut on 28 May, at the 2021 Beijing Motor Show.

However, the company did mention that the Piaggio One will be offered in multiple versions, with varying power and range figures. The Piaggio One electric scooter will also come with a removable lithium-ion battery pack, offering ease of charging.

The company also confirmed that the new One electric scooter will go on sale in the European markets from June this year. Piaggio also mentioned that the electric scooter is targeted towards global emissions-free mobility, meaning that the new model could be introduced in other international markets at a slightly later stage as well.

Piaggio now has more than 725 dealerships and 1,100 touchpoints across India.

Piaggio has achieved a new milestone of setting up 100 dealerships across India in just 100 days. Now, the company has more than 725 dealerships and 1,100 touchpoints across India.

Piaggio has increased its reach in the 3-wheeler and 2-wheeler segment and has expanded further in the CV segment by opening up electric experience centres. The company has the largest network in the 3-wheeler space in India and aims to increase its reach further in various parts of the country.

Piaggio recorded over 90% growth in the 2-wheeler segment in Q1 of 2021. Last month, the bike maker opened bookings for the Aprilia SXR 125 maxi-scooter.

Aprilia also plans to introduce the SXR 125 and a limited edition Vespa.

Diego Graffi, Chairman and MD, Piaggio India, has stated that the company will be launching the updated Aprilia SR series of scooters during the upcoming festive season.

So, what can we expect in the new SR series?

According to the media report, the SR range could get an updated instrument console offering Bluetooth connectivity and an average fuel efficiency display. While it is unclear if the scooters will receive mechanical updates, it is believed that an engine start / stop system could be introduced this time around.

Aprilia also plans to introduce the SXR 125 and a limited edition Vespa as part of the Italian brand's 75th anniversary celebrations.

Meanwhile, Aprilia is also gearing up to launch the SXR 125 in India. The maxi-scooter is essentially a 125cc version of the SXR 160 that was launched in December last year.

Source: Financial Express

The Ape Electrik FX range includes the e-City FX e-rickshaw and e-Xtra FX for cargo applications.

Piaggio has launched the Ape Electrik FX range of electric 3-wheelers for cargo and passenger segments in India. The e-City FX is priced at Rs. 2.84 lakh, while the e-Xtra FX costs Rs. 3.12 lakh (ex-showroom, India excluding Kerala).

The e-City FX comes with a 48-volt, 7.5 kWh lithium-ion battery that powers an electric motor that has an output of 7.3 BHP and 29 Nm. The battery offers a maximum range of 110 km on a single charge. The e-rickshaw can reach a top speed of 45 km/h.

The e-Xtra FX comes with an 8 kWh lithium-ion battery that powers an electric motor that has an output of 12.8 BHP and 45 Nm. The cargo version has a maximum range of 90 km on a single charge and it has a similar top speed as the e-City. The e-Xtra FX comes with a 6 ft. loading bed with a payload capacity of 506 kg.