Aprilia is nearing the reveal date for its upcoming return to the adventure motorcycle class with the mid-size Tuareg, the third spin-off from the firm’s 660cc middleweight platform.
Following on from the faired sporty RS 660 and the most recent Tuono 660, the Tuareg 660 revives a name not seen since 1994 having been a mainstay on the dunes of the Paris-Dakar Rally since the 1980s.
Aprilia dropped an ‘easter egg’ of a teaser during the EICMA show in 2019 by hiding an early prototype amid shrubbery on the stand, so covert that it wasn’t until a few days in that it was even noticed.
Since then spy shots reveal it has clearly taken inspiration from its likely biggest rival, the Yamaha Tenere 700, with a bluff front-end and upright light frame, while the nose that takes inspiration from Aprilia’s family face as debuted on the RS 660.
While the sporting edge of the 660 platform will be retained in the final version, Aprilia insists Tuareg will remain a spiritual successor to the original with its rough and tough all-terrain abilities.
“It will be very off-road oriented, which is why it will also have 21-inch front and 18-inch rear wheels,” Cristian Romeo Barelli told Motociclismo.
“There was a lot of work to have a low weight. The 660 platform was born with sporting and fun contents. Even the Tuareg will follow that imprint.”
“It will be a 2022 model but it will be available as early as the end of 2021.”
