i admit i was a little anxious. after all, i do like to ride with my dear wife on the pillion. well, not always, have to drive nicely with her on the back, and a little excitement every now and then can’t be wrong. đ
anyway, after the first 10 minutes on the mille kris declared that she hated the bike, and the bike would go or … tough one. đ on the way back home i stopped by the nearest aprilia dealer to see whether they had any futuras.
the futura is aprilia’s sports touring bike; it has the same engine as the mille, (according to the brochure) the only difference is the modified efi mapping, for more torque from low revs and less top end. similar frame, similar brakes, more comfort for passenger and driver.
to be honest, i don’t really like the bike’s looks. too many edges, and – well, aprilia took a beating in the motorcycle press for the rear anyway, so i don’t think i need to comment on that part here.
made an appointment for a test drive with the futura next day. nearly cancelled because the weather was pretty awful saturday morning, but in the afternoon it got better, so we went for a ride anyway.
well, what can i say. first of all the bike feels a lot more … substancial? everything is bigger, heavier, longer than on the mille. i imagine that the fact that you really sit very much upright helps a lot on longer tours, on the other hand you give away a lot of control over the bike. it feels a bit odd. after the mille, anyway.
fire up the engine, and this first impression gets even stronger. the bike is totally plugged up, sound like the mille’s respectable, but slightly dull, accountant brother. even kris noticed that this was definitely not the way a twin engine should sound.
the test ride was fairly short. with the high handlebars the bike felt more like a bus. i don’t know what exactly the guys did to the engine, but it was less powerful from low revs, only to feel strained at higher revs. ok, i did not go too high, the bike was completely new, but it was definitely not what it am used to from the mille.
same goes for the brakes, here i guess the smaller rotors and the rubber brake hoses are responsible for the missing edge.
luckily, kris declared that the futura was not that much more comfortable and that she would not feel better on that bike. ;-)she really loves me that much: just goes and says that a ‘real’ tourer is not better than the ‘supersports’ mille, so that i can keep her without feeling guilty. ;-))))
ok, there is one tradeoff: i have to drive really carfully with her on the back … but i can always have some fun alone, can’t i?
thanks, krisz!