ven. 9 nov. 12 07:39
When the first shots of a prototype Aprilia Caponord 1200 emerged from the company’s dealer meeting back in February, we were greated with a fairly hideous mashup of a Dorsoduro 1200 and an RSV4. The production version you see here has better resolved that combination, creating a bike that should be both comfy and hilariously fun, even if it’ll never be a looker.
And we do mean a faired Dorsoduro. Dorsoduro frame, Dorsoduro swingarm, Dorso motor, Dorso suspension, Dorso brakes. What changes beyond that fairing is a new, larger seat and tail unit, low-mount pipe, taller handlebars, larger bash guards. Oh, and a much larger tank.
That similarity to the Dorsoduro 1200 is no bad thing. That bike is fast, fun and awesome, but lacking a fairing and fitted with a small, supermoto-style seat, it’s not terribly comfy. The Caponord fixes that, basically adding distance to the motorcycle described above.
The big question here is going to be weight. The Dorso is already a relatively ponderous 492lbs (wet), so adding all that stuff to it is going to have an impact. How much? Hopefully not more than 25lbs or so. You wont’ feel that, and the Dorsoduro does a good job of hiding it’s fat, but it is going to look bad on paper when official specs are released at Monday’s EICMA show.
That 1197cc liquid-cooled v-twin? It makes 130bhp and 85lb/ft, turing the Dorsoduro into a wheelie monster. Aprilia doesn’t have a problem with making its bikes fast, so it should keep that tune here. Also expect the now de rigeur Piaggio electronic package: ride-by-wire with switchable maps, traction control and ABS.
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