We knew Aprilia were working on something, so when the press release for the new RSV4 and RSV4 Factory landed in the 44Teeth inbox all of a sudden, it didn?t come as a massive surprise. But when I opened it up and saw that it was only a page and a half long, I was a little disappointed. I was expecting to read about a few tweaks to the suspension, perhaps, and a couple of new colour schemes. Oh, how wrong I was. This isn’t just a makeover; this is a serious overhaul.

It’s difficult to know where to begin with this one, because Aprilia have worked on nearly every aspect of their superbike, so let?s start with the first thing you?ll notice first; the aesthetics. The new styling, they?re telling us, has been inspired by the little RS 660 that was launched at the back end of last year, with the shapes and angles modelled after hours in the wind tunnel. It seems a little peculiar, to me, to model your flagship sportsbike on something that?s half the price and that?s aimed at new riders, but I?m sure there is method behind the madness. And the RS 660 is a decent looking bike, to be fair.
Before we move away from the subject of aerodynamics (and aesthetics, to some degree), you?ll notice that the winglets are no longer bolted onto the side of the fairing. Instead, they are built into the twin walled fairings. This is said to improve stability at high speeds as well as improve engine cooling, as it rams fresh air onto the side of the engine. I also think it lo...