Aprilia effectively splitting it in half to make a parallel twin – Aprilia ’ s mid-weight , platform aspirations have finally been realised . A middleweight sports bike ( RS660 ), a naked sports ( Tuono 660 ) and now the Tuareg have all been released around the same motor . The parallel twin ’ s 659cc motor ’ s crank has a 270 ° firing order to give the feel and sound of a V-twin . In keeping with its adventure aspirations , the Tuareg ’ s RS660-based motor has been retuned for more bottom end and midrange rather than a screaming top-end . Peak torque is 70Nm at 6500rpm , some 2000rpm lower than on the sporty RS660 . Top end power is a claimed 80hp if the engine is rev ’ d out to 9250rpm . As well as the torque-tuning , the oil capacity has been reduced from 2.6 to 2.3 litres to give a shallower sump , increasing ground clearance . Apparently there ’ s an oil temp sensor , with engine safety power reduction in case of overheating ( reduces throttle and power to allow the motor
to shed heat ). Service intervals come in at 10,000km . Keen adventure riders will be happy to know the air filter is easy to get at from the top of the fuel tank - making filter swaps simple on those long dusty gravel rides in the Summer . Fuel is specifically 95 octane , but with the ride-by-wire throttle and catalytic convertersaving exhaust sensor , I find it hard to believe you couldn ’ t put 91 in the bike if you got caught short at a rural fuel station – this isn ’ t a city bike after all – but you ’ d definitely want to be avoiding large throttle openings at low revs to avoid any piston-killing pinking / detonation . Using some 91 until you can top up with 95 again is a reality of life in non-urban New Zealand . Aprilia NZ ’ s tech guru says it ’ s 95 only ... but you wear the big-boy pants , so you take your own chances .
ELECTRONICS This is one of the Tuareg ’ s killer sales features .
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