THE world's biggest scooter, Gilera's 839cc V-twin GP800, is to be turned into an Aprilia next year.
Our sources have revealed that despite holding the 'world's biggest scooter' title ever since its introduction four years ago the Gilera hasn't made many waves, thanks in part to a lack of recognition for the Gilera brand. So the company is hoping to reboot the bike as an Aprilia thanks to an RSV4-style facelift and Aprilia branding throughout.
In America, the firm has already set the trend, rebranding the 500cc, three-wheeled Gilera Fuoco as the Piaggio MP3 500. By repositioning the GP800 as an Aprilia the firm will capitalise on the fact it already shares the engine and automatic transmission with the Aprilia Mana. Whether the Aprilia version will be sold alongside the existing Gilera GP800 or supercede it entirely is unknown at the moment.
What we do know is that the styling will be altered, with the addition of a triple-headlight nose to mimic that of the RSV4 superbike instead of the rather bland stacked-light design of the existing Gilera.
We're expecting the bike to be launched next month at the EICMA show in Milan, where it will hope to steal some of the thunder from BMW's new maxi-scooter.
