Tuareg 660 Aprilia?

[AZJW]

Content moved here for opinions for @hANNAbONE regarding the Tuareg 660 Aprilia.

 

 

hANNAbONE

I had a new 2012 Super Tenere' back in August of '12. Loved it - Albeit, it was marginally slow and heavy, nut it ate almost 40K miles in 6 years of my ownership.

It was a very good sled.

 

The T7 is an interesting bike. I stayed with Yamaha when I ultimately traded my loved Super10 for a new 2018 MT09. Absolute gas of a bike but very 1 dimensional. No bags, space was a premium and suspension sucked big time. But what a triple mill that thing had.

 

Sold it and bought the used '14 FJR. All good things and it is my forever bike. The T7 would be a fun light scoot.

 

So I've been reading about the newish Tuareg 660 Aprilia....for $2000 more cash it has tubeless tires & Cruise, and color screen & ride modes/electronics package. It has deff got my attention.

 

Thoughts.??

[hANNAbONE]

Thanks to AZJW in moving this question to the masses....Thank you

[Redneckj]

I would suggest trying to ride both bikes and decide for yourself.  

 

My 2 cents-----YAMAHA RELIABILITY.  

[Hibobb]

Tuareg 660 Aprilia just sounds expensive....

Yamaha Dealer network a big plus.

Magazine reviews like both.

[TimmyTheHog]

Tbh, for the value of what you get, Aprilia offers more for that little extra.

 

coming from Italian bike background, I do admit, they have their attitude and they do tend to be a bit of drama queen. But once you get used to it, they are not too bad.

 

However, the main & the only reason why I stayed away from Aprilia is the dealer network. Getting parts & expert opinion were def challenging a lot of time.

 

well, I did have to learn lots because lack of dealer when dealing with Italian bikes...lol

[Ray Ride4life]

Ik the Netherlands we call Ducati Stukgatie, which mean it will break and it is correct because the last 2 bikes i saw being picked up by a tow truck where Ducati's.

[Alf Meister]

There are many raving reviews of the Tuareg 660 on YT, its a bit of a bargain with all the standard kit, sounds great (apparently), feels more powerful than a T7 and there are some bargain deals (in the UK) at the mo with discounts of £1700 to be had. And yet they don’t appear to be selling well. The current economic situation obviously is not helping, but my guess is there aren’t many dealers and many people are very hesitant about buying them due to their perceived reliability and parts availability etc. 

 

By all accounts they are very good bikes to ride, I have not ridden one and am happy with my T7WR.  

Edited December 3, 2022 by Alf Meister

[Tenerider]

I really dislike its look. They attempted an 80s styling and succeeded somehow: They took every ugly design aspect from the 80s and skipped the good ones.

 

Specs look good, some people (including Ryan F9) really praise them, but the look is a no go for me.

[DT675]

5 hours ago, Tenerider said:

I really dislike its look. They attempted an 80s styling and succeeded somehow: They took every ugly design aspect from the 80s and skipped the good ones.

 

Specs look good, some people (including Ryan F9) really praise them, but the look is a no go for me.

I agree.  The front end is ugly.  I watched a bunch of reviews and saw a pattern of some common issues that would deter me.  Can't remember what most of them were but I know the seat was one.  There was a few others.  Good engine but not as good torque down low like the T7.  

I don't know why so many people put so much stock in F9, I can't stand him.  Lots of opinions, not always real good facts...  

OP test ride them both! The answer should be obvious afterwards!

[Hibobb]

3 hours ago, DT675 said:

I don't know why so many people put so much stock in F9, I can't stand him.

At first, I thought he was a geek.... but in time I got used to him and now find things pretty entertaining.

As far as front end looks.... all water cooled bikes look like  whales feeding on krill.

 

Edit:

Also see The Doomsday Machine" Star Trek, Season 2; Episode 6

Edited December 3, 2022 by Hibobb

[DT675]

On 12/3/2022 at 10:10 AM, Hibobb said:

At first, I thought he was a geek.... but in time I got used to him and now find things pretty entertaining.

As far as front end looks.... all water cooled bikes look like  whales feeding on krill.

 

Edit:

Also see The Doomsday Machine" Star Trek, Season 2; Episode 6

 

Entertaining?  Yes, I agree he makes quality videos that are entertaining.

[Firebolter]

aprilia's are well made and in the US if you own an aprilia, AF1 is the dealer of choice. I have owned 3 over the years and all were well made and highly reliable. Of course they don't use the Rotax motor anymore-That rotax Liter V2 lump was a torque monster and awesome all around engine. Never had any more of an issue with aprilia parts than any other bike honestly.

Edited December 5, 2022 by Firebolter

[Tenerider]

35 minutes ago, Firebolter said:

aprilia's are well made and in the US if you own an aprilia, AF1 is the dealer of choice. I have owned 3 over the years and all were well made and highly reliable. Of course they don't use the Rotax motor anymore-That rotax Liter V2 lump was a torque monster and awesome all around engine. Never had any more of an issue with aprilia parts than any other bike honestly.

Although I don't like the Tuareg, the Tuono REALLY turns me on. Great colour scheme, fantastic design.

[AZJW]

@hANNAbONE. I just ran across this comparison.  ( Not saying I agree with their assessment)...

 

 

[hANNAbONE]

yes yes..thank you - I have watched this one and many many others.

[PNGL]

For me, with where I ride and the fact that I'm often alone, reliability is everything. I often end up on the top or side of a mountain where I haven't had cell service for the last several miles. I don't want to be in a situation like that when my bike decides to throw an Italian tantrum. Furthermore, the motor in the Tuareg is a retuned version of the RS660 motor and, as forum browsing quickly reveals, it's not been shown to be overly reliable in street-bike form. I'll stick with my T7.

Edited December 19, 2022 by PNGL

[hANNAbONE]

Yes, PNGL : the one thing that holds me back would be the Yamaha availability and the lack of dealers via the Aprilia line.

 

Albeit : I have a dealer in Louisville just 1.5 hours southwest of me - so not a total loss.

 

I need to square away the sale of the FJR first anyway - and trying to sell it and not give it away via a winter fire sale will give me time to read up and visit both models.

 

(*BTW - the Honda TransAlp does nothing for me, but maybe it too is a contender..?*)

 

I wouldn't even consider the Suzuki or Kawasaki, nor the Norden 901.

 

The Triumph may have some merit - we will hafta see.

 

Thanks for your input.

[quakeman3]

I owned a 2009 Dorsaduro 750 and the starter went on it 2 weeks after having it...It took 3 months for a new starter then did it again one day after the dealer installed the new one.

I took a huge financial loss on the bike and lost the entire summer where a bike sat in my garage. You kind of get a taste in your mouth after going through that and I won't subject myself to missing another summer..Im ok with the T7

Edited December 19, 2022 by quakeman3
added more info

[Guest]

I stumbled on this mildly aging thread and found it interesting because I was considering purchasing a used (2 month old) Touareg a guy was selling nearby last summer.  He said he waited 3 months for it, rode it for 2 months then listed it for sale (financial reasons). While test riding it at first the bike was amazing! The power, the dash, comfortable seat and the stock exhaust sound was very impressive.  But, it didn’t take long for me to feel the heat on my right foot from the exhaust and I could feel the engine cut out randomly during deceleration which I read about as an issue.  I was nervous about parts and servicing also.  There are two dealers both an hour and a half away and I quickly noticed they both had 5-6 Touaregs in the showroom for sale  (T7 were sold before landing at the dealership!) So, I took it as a sign the bikes weren’t selling very well.  I consulted with my uncle about Aprillia’s reliability and he relayed some horror story of his buddies Tuonos’ front brake locking on a hard corner for no apparent reason resulting in a crash.  I decided to skip the Aprilia for reliability concerns…. Luckily I found a T7 available within days! And I never looked back …

(photo of bike I road tested)

[Windblown]

On 12/18/2022 at 6:27 PM, AZJW said:

@hANNAbONE. I just ran across this comparison.  ( Not saying I agree with their assessment)...

 

 

 

Interesting comparison.   What stuck me about it was that there descriptions of each bikes characteristics  and features seemed fairly spot on with what I know of both.  Id' say a perspective buyer could get fairly balanced insight into each bike watching the video. 

 

Their "pick" in the end appears to simply be the result of a different viewpoint in the value of the  various traits. I can respect that.  The core differences that require decision making to choose from when it comes to operation and the riding experience is:  

 

1) What do you you want more? A grunty tire spinning bottom end that drops off up top,  or a soft bottom end with a 7k+rpm rush?

 

2)  Do you want an electronic suite to modify how the bike works to suite your mood, or do you want the consistency of simplicity?  

 

Full disclosure:  I already own a fire breathing electronically loaded class leading mid-weight go anywhere bike that loves to be revved. Variety is the spice of life they say....

 

A T700 is Classic Rock, the 660 is Punk Rock, the 790/890 is Heavy Metal Rock.  

Edited March 1, 2023 by Windblown

[chadio]

Ian (Big Rock Moto) goes in depth with his Tuareg review.  The headlight is strange - looking, but so is the one on the T7 in my opinion.   Other than that,  bike looks great, and reviews well.

 

FWIW - Owned a Ducati Monster 750 from 1996 to 2002.   Made in Italy.  Fabulous.  Only problem in all those years, was corroded connection of the starter and ground attachment (not the battery end).  My Italian bike ownership experience was a good one,  lots of good times on the bike,  Borla mufflers went 'BOOM BOOM BOOM'  ....  what a sound...  ear heroin...

 

 

[pvflyer]

On 12/3/2022 at 1:03 AM, Tenerider said:

I really dislike its look. They attempted an 80s styling and succeeded somehow: They took every ugly design aspect from the 80s and skipped the good ones.

 

Specs look good, some people (including Ryan F9) really praise them, but the look is a no go for me.

 

I like the Aprilia features ( specially the wheels and suspension )but the looks of it, I pass.

If you like to customize your bike, the T7 is the perfect canvas. 

[RIDER GUIDER]

On 12/3/2022 at 8:13 AM, AZJW said:

Content moved here for opinions for @hANNAbONE regarding the Tuareg 660 Aprilia.

 

 

hANNAbONE

I had a new 2012 Super Tenere' back in August of '12. Loved it - Albeit, it was marginally slow and heavy, nut it ate almost 40K miles in 6 years of my ownership.

It was a very good sled.

 

The T7 is an interesting bike. I stayed with Yamaha when I ultimately traded my loved Super10 for a new 2018 MT09. Absolute gas of a bike but very 1 dimensional. No bags, space was a premium and suspension sucked big time. But what a triple mill that thing had.

 

Sold it and bought the used '14 FJR. All good things and it is my forever bike. The T7 would be a fun light scoot.

 

So I've been reading about the newish Tuareg 660 Aprilia....for $2000 more cash it has tubeless tires & Cruise, and color screen & ride modes/electronics package. It has deff got my attention.

 

Thoughts.??

Did you make a decision yet?  Check out Hippo-Drones  https://www.youtube.com/@HippoDrones  on YouTube ... he loves his Tuareg.  It's the only other bike I'd go for at the moment, I do also fancy a Desert X too but I just can't see me swapping my T7.  I've owned all sorts of bikes and ridden a Shet load more having worked in the bike industry for a lot of years, and the Tenere 700 has some magic dust sprinkled on it, I still can't wait to get out on it whenever the opportunity arises, even if I'm riding to work!  There are some great reviews of the Tuareg though and it has some tech added which might appeal to some.