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[ST] Well I test rode...



...an Aprilia Futura yesterday.  Ever since they came out I've found them
strangely attractive (eh?) so I finally decided to take one out for a spin.
I don't think Aprilia has sold many Futuras here in Sweden.  I have yet to
see one on the roads, there is only one used model available in the whole
country and the bike I rode yesterday was a year old demonstrator and it had
only done 40 km!!

As soon as I enquired about the bike the salesman was extremely keen and
took the bike down from its rotating pedestal and wheeled it out into the
sunshine.  I asked how long I could take it out (usual response from
Stockholm dealers, if you can even get a test ride, is 20 mins to half an
hour max) and the salesman said "keep it for a few hours so that you can
really get a feel for it"!!  He started the bike up and I was instantly
disappointed.  The noise is pathetic and not at all in keeping with the
sound a 1000cc twin should make.

Anyway climbing aboard I found the seat comfortable but firm and the
cut-outs in the tank make the bike feel a lot narrower than my RS.  The seat
and tank force you to sit quite upright which feels good but there is then a
fair stretch to the bars.  Obviously all Italians must have arms like a
gorilla.  Anyway the bike pulled away cleanly and I was off.  I decided to
be reasonably scientific in my riding so I did my daily commute (round trip
of 120km) which includes twisties, motorway and town riding.

Motor:
The bike was not run-in but despite this and in the interests of science I
thought "f*ck it" and thrashed the tits off it anyway.  My initial
impression was "bloody hell don't twins vibrate a lot".  The motor is
definitely torquey, but it does not have as much oomph as the Sprint.  At
motorway speeds the vibration became much less noticeable and only intruded
again when rolling on the throttle to perform overtakes.

I think Triumph build one of the best bike engines there is and the 3
cylinder configuration is excellent for bikes.  Plenty of torque without the
vibration of a twin and decent power without the buzzy thrashiness of a
four.

Gearbox:
Despite being only 40km old when I started riding it the gearbox on the
Futura was so much nicer than that on my 14000km old RS.  Light and precise
and no clunking sound when changing up or down.  Triumph may make good
motors, but they've got a thing or two to learn about making gearboxes.
Furthermore the action of the hydraulic clutch on the Futura was so much
nicer than that of the wire jobbie on the Sprint.

Handling:
Felt extremely stable, if not a little on the firm side, but the bike was
effectively brand new so would no doubt soften up a bit with time.  Cornered
like it was on rails, but initial turn-in was not quite as quick as my RS.
I didn't throw it around too much as the tyres were not even scrubbed in!
However, given time to get used to it I'd say I'd be just as quick on the
Futura as I am on the RS (i.e. dog slow).

Brakes:
Again they probably weren't even bedded in properly, but they felt extremely
positive and powerful and easily as good as the Sprint stoppers, giving more
feedback and better initial bite.

Comfort:
Much better wind protection and once I got used to the extra stretch to the
bars I really started to enjoy the more upright riding position.  I'd say
the seat is also a better proposition for all-day riding than that on the
Sprint.  Pillion comfort looks better too with the under seat exhaust
allowing the pillion pegs to be mounted quite low and the pillion seat looks
wide and well padded.

Practicalities and other stuff:
Nice instrument cluster on the Futura that glows blue in the dark...very
sexy!!  There's also a digital display showing engine temp, air temp and the
amount of fuel left in the tank in litres, which I thought was very good.
However I still love my RS instruments.  I think a digital speedo is just so
much better than an analogue one.  A quick glance down and you can see
exactly what speed you're doing.

Storage space is virtually non existent on the Futura.  Taking the seat off
revealed a battery and some fuses and a small recess which contained the
toolkit.  If I wanted to fit my intercom it looked like it could only go
where the toolkit is and the toolkit would have to be left at home.  I
suppose that's the price to be paid for under seat exhausts.

The pannier mounting kit on the Aprilia is excellent.  Just a couple of
small additional brackets on the registration plate holder and the rear foot
pegs, which are barely visible.  Much better than the horrible scaffolding
which the ST mounting kit consists of.  In addition the Futura panniers are
about half the price of those for the ST.

Conclusion:
I liked it, although I'm not sure I liked it enough to take a massive hit in
depreciation by selling my RS after only a year.  Furthermore I can't see
the Futura being easy to sell in a couple of years time either, given their
apparent lack of popularity here in Sweden.  Still if I can piece a good
deal together, who knows, I'm in no rush.

Andy
__________________________________________
Andy Cunningham
Stockholm, Sweden
955i Sprint RS (01)

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