A2 license holders have a new fully-faired, sporty motorcycle thanks to the launch of the much anticipated Aprilia RS 457.
Spotted undergoing final testing alongside the V100-based Moto Guzzi Stelvio - another Piaggio Group product - the final version is now here for the world to see. As expected, its styling closely follows that of the bigger, more expensive RS660. There are differences, but you have to be looking closely to spot them.
Further echoing the RS 660, the RS 457 (whose name was previously expected to be RS 440) features an aluminium frame that uses the engine’s crankcase as a stressed member of the chassis. This sets the Aprilia apart from rivals such as the Yamaha R3, Kawasaki Ninja 400 and Honda CBR 500R, all of which use steel frames.
To that frame is mounted a 41mm fork providing 120mm of travel, while at the rear, the monoshock gives 130mm of travel. Up front, braking is dealt with via a single 320mm disc squeezed by a four-piston calliper, with a single-piston calliper at the rear married to a 220mm rotor. You get two-channel ABS which is switchable, working on either both wheels or only the front.
While we’re poking around the bottom of the bike, we’re looking at 17-inch wheels at both ends, wrapped in 110/70 tyres at the front and 150/60 at the rear.
Powering all this is - as per the RS 457’s aforementioned main rivals - a liquid-cooled parallel twin. It produces 47bhp, the limit for A2-category bikes, and breathes out of a neat two-into-one, underbelly-mounted exhaust. The RS 457 should feel brisk enough despite the modest power output, weighing 159kg dry, or 175kg with fluids.
On the tech front, there’s a ride-by-wire throttle to give a trio of riding modes and three levels of traction control, plus the option to turn it off entirely. A quickshifter is available as an accessory, although we don’t know how much for just yet.
Aprilia RS 457 price and availability confirmed
Aprilia has now revealed the pricing of the new RS 457, and it will be landing in UK dealers with a sticker price of £6,500 including VAT. Compared to the competition (which is fairly sparse in the UK), that puts the little Aprilia at the upper end of the A2 sportsbike pricing chart. The KTM RC390 comes in quite a bit cheaper at £5,899, while the Yamaha R3 comes in slightly more than the Italian challenger at £6,505. The little Kawasaki Ninja 400 (the parallel twin not the screaming inline four-cylinder) is also close to the price of the Aprilia, coming in at £6,099 for the base model.
Bikes are available for pre-order in the UK from now, with all the details available on the Aprilia UK official website.
