Watch: 2022 Aprilia Tuareg 660 Tested
We've got the scoop on the newest middleweight Adventure Bike from Italy.
Perhaps one of the most intriguing offers in the growing middleweight adventure class is the new Aprilia Tuareg 660. With its compact chassis, high-performance twin-cylinder 660cc engine, long-travel and fully-adjustable KYB suspension, dirt-friendly 21”/18” wheels, modern rider aids that are customizable and defeatable, plus an array of amenities for touring comfort, Italy’s latest middleweight ADV appears ready to take the category by storm.
Featuring 80 horsepower, 52 ft-lbs of torque, 9.5 inches of suspension travel and a wet weight of 449 pounds with a healthy assortment of standard options, Aprilia seems to have nailed many of the specs dirt-loving adventure travelers are looking for — and this from a brand best known for building sport bikes?
As we all know, how a bike performs in the real world — not on paper — is what matters most. After testing the new Tuareg, we got an understanding of its capabilities on a range of terrain. In this video, we give a rundown of its performance on dirt, mud, asphalt, and more. We also put in some highway miles to explore its long-haul comfort and fuel range.
Is the new Tuareg the real deal or just a paper tiger? A serious off-road tool or dressed up street bike? Did Aprilia deliver that Goldilocks zone machine we’ve been waiting for? We have answers to all your burning questions and more on this highly-anticipated new adventure bike from Italy.
Thanks for checking out the video and leave us your thoughts and questions in the comments below. For those of you who don’t mind a little reading, you can also check out our full review article of the 2022 Aprilia Tuareg 660 here.
Photography by Alberto Cervetti
Author: Rob Dabney
Rob Dabney started a lifelong obsession with motorcycles at the age of 15 when he purchased his first bike – a 1982 Honda MB5. Through his 20’s and 30’s he competed in off-road desert races, including the Baja 250, 500 and 1000. Eventually, his proclivity for exploration led him to dual sport and adventure riding. Rob’s never-ending quest to discover what’s around the next bend has taken him on Adventures in Latin America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and throughout the American West. As a moto journalist, he enjoys inspiring others to seek adventure across horizons both near and far.Related Stories
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Aprilia seems to be bringing some great bikes out. Now they need to beef up their dealer network.
Looks great on paper and video. Too bad it’s irrelevant unobtanium for those of us in flyover US.
You can see if they have an Aprilia dealer near you here:
https://www.aprilia.com/us_EN/dealer-locator/?f=all
I already did. Nearest to me is 700 miles away. To put that in perspective, a 700 mile radius around the Aprilia factory in Scorze, Italy puts one in London, Copenhagen, Warsaw, Bucharest, Tunis, Zaragoza.
Can you share where you live? This will be valuable feedback for Aprilia and their dealer expansion efforts.
Hmmm. I must have fat-fingered something the last time I looked. I checked the dealer locator page again just now and see a dealership 250 miles away. I alternately searched the Web about the place, and it seems to be in business. While not preferred, that distance is a viable proposition. Disregard my initial grousing! Thanks for the replies.
Central New Mexico. The closest dealer is in El Paso according to Goggle, though the dealer page on Aprilia’s US website is 404. beyond that, there are dealers in neighboring states. So minimum distance is at least 5 hours away.
Looks like the link from Aprilia dealer search was malformed. Here’s the dealer link in El Paso:
https://www.motoelpaso.com/sales
I still have no second thoughts about my pre order. Thanks for more great work, Rob… ADV Pulse FTW!
Thanks Stewart. Means a lot! Let us know how you like it once you pick it up!
Tempting. Sure checks a lot of boxes, I do wish it was made in Japan.
Nice review Rob. Looking forward to the obvious comparo to the Yamaha T7. It appears Aprilia nailed it in this category and hopefully (finally) inspires other mfgs. to jump in.
Thank you! It will be interesting to test them side by side. Hoping you’re right. I think Triumph should be next up with their 660 platform. They just need to give the Tiger 660 Sport a ‘Rally’ chassis. And it would be nice to see a Kawasaki Versys-X 650 with some real off-road suspension.
Indeed. I’m betting Triumph will do that soon as well and having Kaw, Suz and Honda come out with their own ‘T7’ versions would be awesome! The upcoming KTM/Husky 490/501 ADV should be sweet too!
There are definitely rumors of a Transalp coming. I’d be surprised if we see anything dirt-focused from Suzuki, but you never know. Yes, that new KTM 490 Adventure might start up a whole new war. I’m hoping that bike is has an ‘R’ next to it. We can only hope!
Hands down the most valuable and comprehensive review thus far. I’ll be looking to you Rob. For the side by side with T7. Any clue when that might be realisticly?
I have been giving this bike a serious investigation after discovering that a dealership is an acceptable distance away. It checks an awful lot of my boxes. My remaining questions are about service intervals and reliability. I am assuming the intervals will be the same as for the Tuono 660. I can live with them.
Reliability is a total unknown to me. I have never had an Aprilia, nor known anyone who has. While the engine has been on other models, the rest is a first year scenario. That frankly has me spooked. I intend to use my next adv ride exactly for that purpose. I will be solo in some quite remote places.
Until I looked this bike over, I was assuming my next adv would be a T700, which I have not really warmed up to. It’s a budget bike with budget everything. By the time I got suspension, wheels and other bits up to snuff it would cost more and weigh more than the Tuareg with almost no equivalent software, not to mention things like cruise control. But I know it would be dead nuts reliable and has a vast third party space to work in.
Decisions, decisions. Thanks for making my decisions more difficult, Rob. 🙂
Just confirmed maintenance intervals with Aprilia. Looks like it takes an oil change every 6,200 miles and valve checks are every 12,400 miles.
If they just had a denser dealer network and a better reputation about delivery time of spare parts!
My Aprilia dealer is just about as far as my Husqvarna dealer was 1.5 hs… That did not stop me from getting a 701 SMC and will not keep me from ordering this very exciting Tuareg! I can’t wait for it to arrive in the USA. I just my 790R just to get this bike, super excited about it, specially to have a moto brand that I never owned before… Will give Aprilia my best shot! 🙂
Let us know how you like it once it arrives!
That rear end is clearly a design error. A bike in that category needs to be able to carry some travel luggage, without the need to pay for accessories. A rack should be present from the factory, if I dont nerd it I still can remove it. Otherwise very nice!
When will this bike arrive? Can’t wait to see one!
You lost me at “Piaggio”.
Rob, could you please find out what is the total electrical system output, in watts? Folks who would generally want to run aux lights and heated hear need that data. Thanks.
I got an answer from AF1 Racing. Total Electrical System output is rated 360 watts. Not much, thats about what my 1990’s DR650 put out.