Episode 79 of the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast is out with another “weekly” episode, for your two-wheeled listening pleasure.
In this episode, our recording schedule got a little out whack, so Jensen is flying solo on this one without Shahin. So, we switched things up a bit, and have a special interview straight from the Aprilia Tuareg 660 launch.
When I first met the Aprilia Tuareg 660, it didn’t make much of an impression. It was the 2019 EICMA show, and the bike was quietly on display in a glass box, covered with plants and vines.
The display was so nondescript, that thousands of attendees and hundreds of journalists passed by the Tuareg 660 without even noticing that it was there.
Nothing is subtle about the Tuareg 660 now though, as the middleweight adventure bike is riding the wave of success that has come with Aprilia’s previous two models from its 660cc platform.
Add into that notion how popular the middleweight ADV space has become recently, and we can begin to see why the Aprilia Tuareg 660 is one of the most anticipated motorcycles for the 2022 model year.
So to test its mettle, Aprilia brought us to the Italian island of Sardinia, where the winding mountain roads make for challenging and technical riding on the street.
And to get our feet dirty too, we tackled some rough gravel roads/trails, as well as an off-road circuit that Aprilia created with a good mix of sandy, rocky, wet, and bumpy conditions.
Is the Aprilia Tuareg 660 any good? Ask 31 riders and you will get a Baskin Robins of answers back in this highly personal two-wheeled space.
But, the Aprilia Tuareg 660 does seem to inhabit the Goldilocks zone of the middleweight ADV space that should impress many, and leave quite a few riders reaching for their wallets. Let me explain.
Buongiorno from the island of Sardinia, as this edition of “Gone Riding” sees us getting ready to ride the new Aprilia Tuareg 660.
The third of Aprilia’s 660cc parallel-twin lineup, the Tuareg 660 is the Italian brand’s middleweight ADV option, and it promises to be a potent offering for off-road riders.
I’m sitting in the airline lounge at JFK right now, waiting to hop across the pond to ride the new Aprilia Tuareg 660 in Italy, and I was thinking to myself how weird it is at this stage that we don’t have any proper photos of the Aprilia Tuareg 660.
Well, the minds in Noale must have been picking up what I was putting down, because there was a dump of high-resolution photos of the Tuareg 660 put on their press site today.
For $12,000, the 2022 Aprilia Tuareg 660 puts out 80hp from its parallel-twin engine, and tips the scales at 449 lbs at the curb.
Aprilia’s 660 platform is making quite a splash, with the RS 660 dominating the MotoAmerica twins cup field, and the Tuono 660 offering an affordable, yet potent, offering for street riders.
Now, the next installment of the 660cc parallel-twin platform is ready for two-wheeled enthusiasts, as the Aprilia Tuareg 660 is set for its international unveiling (we’ll be riding the middleweight dual-sport in Italy in a week’s time).
With that debut imminent, details about the bike are coming in, most notably its price tag, which for the US market will be a cool $11,999 MSRP (add $600 if you want the Indaco Tagelmust color option).
From day one, Aprilia has been coy about the Tuareg 660. While we knew from the get-go that the Aprilia’s 660cc parallel-twin motor would foster a whole range of motorcycles, our introduction to the Tuareg 660 started with obfuscation.
Our first glimpse of the Aprilia Tuareg 660 was behind a glass box full of fake plants, at the 2019 EICMA show, and while we could glean some info from that display, much about the new middleweight ADV bike remained a mystery.
Now it seems, Aprilia is willing to speak more about its latest creation – though there is still much we don’t know.
Later this year, we will see the Aprilia Tuareg 660 officially unveiled, but that hasn’t stopped the excitement of seeing this twin-cylinder adventure bike ahead of its proper debut.
Spotted on the road by spy photographers, we get out first real glimpse of the details onboard the Aprilia Tuareg 660, including a good look at the bike’s face – you can see all the shots on the British site Visordown.