2006 Aprilia Tuono R Photo Gallery

2006 Aprilia Tuono R

The Italian Tuono showed itself to be a versatile and well-rounded sport machine. There's a whole lotta stuff going on in its busy design, most of it very appealing.

The Tuono's front brake was powerful, almost too much so.

The Tuono's engine ranked right up near the top in terms of both User-Friendliness and Open-Road Performance, exhibiting that distinct rat-a-tat-a-tat-a sound

The lion-hearted Aprilia was an able contender in this shootout.

The vestigial windscreen doesn't offer much in the way of wind protection.

The Tuono's master cylinder for the rear brake.

The banana-style aluminum swingarm, helps contribute to a shorter wheelbase of 55.5 inches.

Our testers also gave the Tuono high marks in our Instruments/Cockpit category, as what the rider sees from the seat is quite appealing.

We like how the billet handlebar clamp holds the tapered aluminum and gold-anodized 'bar, accented by red fork caps and blue damping adjusters framed in the nicely machined triple clamp.

The Tuono exhibited that distinct rat-a-tat-a-tat-a sound unique to the 'Priller motor through its stainless-steel 2-1-2 exhaust system

Overall, the Tuono impressed us with its well-polished character.

The Tuono R rushed to the top of our shootout scoresheet.

Brakes are another area the Tuono stood out, though we didn't all agree the dual 320mm discs and Brembo 4-piston, 4-pad radial-mount caliper setup was the best.

The Tuono's appearance drew mixed reviews and plenty of attention. 'While I like the hard lines and geometric shapes, I was left a little unsure about the big boxy headlight assembly,' critiques BC, our style maven.

Senor Duke turns the Tuono.

The Tuono exhibits a nicely balanced combination of agility with stability. A bike like this is tough to catch down a tight and twisty road.

Comin' at ya! The style of the Aprilia's nose fairing proved to be controversial in our style council. The Tuono's cornering prowess wasn't.

The Tuono is basically a stripped RSV1000 superbike. A tall handlebar and seat makes for a roomy layout suitable for riders of various sizes.

There you go Duke. Motorcycles have two wheels, so use both of them.

Mr. Duke cannot contain his enthusiasm for the Tuono by keeping it on a meager two wheels.

Chamberlain throws the Priller round the bend at Horsethief Mile.

'The Tuono is comfortable on the highway, cuts like a knife in the twisties and it just aggressive enough for track use,' praises our graphics wizard Brian Chamberlain. 'It's easily my bike of choice when the road throws a curve.'

The Tuono's 55.5-inch wheelbase was the shortest in our group, making it nimble in the corners; yet its least aggressive rake and trail numbers, along with a standard steering damper, provided a base of stability.

Brian Chamberlain tries to one-up Duke in the unspoken MCUSA wheelie-meister war, and the revvy V-Twin in the Tuono proves to be a willing accomplice.

'The Tuono doesn't feel like it has the torque of the Ducati but still manages to really get the power to the ground on corner exits and will easily wheelie out of the tighter corners,' says Chamberlain.