Tuono V4 1100 engine thoughts
Discussion
I an considering a Tuono V4 and before I travel to test ride I wanted to gather some thoughts on the engine power delivery and smoothness.
I had an Aprilia RS660, it was a great bike but I did not really like the power delivery and sound of the Twin engine, it had lots of low down torque but zero reward for revving it out, it just went a bit diesel turbo like at the top and ran out of puff. I swapped this for a 2012 GSXR 600 and that screams to 15,500 with a swelling reward for each extra rev you pile on and it sounds like a 90's F1 car.
I then added a V2S 2023 Multistrada 950 Ducati as a comfy cruiser for longer journeys but I find the engine a bit vibey being a V twin, I thought that it would not bother me as a longer distance bike but when I am on slower roads I still find it a bit chuggy and again, it goes flat over 9000. I added a link pipe and re-map which helped but still not perfect.
I wondered if the V4 Tuono is a smooth engine compared to the twins, I know with 175hp - 190hp I wont be able to rev it out much on the road but does it ride smoothly, less vibes than a twin and reward when you do open up the engine...if not I guess it will be something like an S1000R but liked the small fairing on the Tuono.
I will book a test ride but just an hour in the seat doesn't always tell you what it's like after the honeymoon period.
I had an Aprilia RS660, it was a great bike but I did not really like the power delivery and sound of the Twin engine, it had lots of low down torque but zero reward for revving it out, it just went a bit diesel turbo like at the top and ran out of puff. I swapped this for a 2012 GSXR 600 and that screams to 15,500 with a swelling reward for each extra rev you pile on and it sounds like a 90's F1 car.
I then added a V2S 2023 Multistrada 950 Ducati as a comfy cruiser for longer journeys but I find the engine a bit vibey being a V twin, I thought that it would not bother me as a longer distance bike but when I am on slower roads I still find it a bit chuggy and again, it goes flat over 9000. I added a link pipe and re-map which helped but still not perfect.
I wondered if the V4 Tuono is a smooth engine compared to the twins, I know with 175hp - 190hp I wont be able to rev it out much on the road but does it ride smoothly, less vibes than a twin and reward when you do open up the engine...if not I guess it will be something like an S1000R but liked the small fairing on the Tuono.
I will book a test ride but just an hour in the seat doesn't always tell you what it's like after the honeymoon period.
I’ll keep an eye on replies to this too. I still have my Tuono 660 which I enjoy. But I do fancy a couple more cylinders and the 1100 seems quite the machine. Probably too quick for me really.
For reasons I can’t explain, I quite fancy the Suzuki GSX S1000 naked. The most recent version.
Just a bit tamer than the V4 Aprilia
For reasons I can’t explain, I quite fancy the Suzuki GSX S1000 naked. The most recent version.
Just a bit tamer than the V4 Aprilia
The only negatives I’ve heard is that it can be chuggy right at the bottom but who rides it there anyway.
The other one I’ve heard from a few different people, all with big bike experience, is that the power delivery can be a bit scary at times in the way it piles on in a bit of a spikey way.
The other one I’ve heard from a few different people, all with big bike experience, is that the power delivery can be a bit scary at times in the way it piles on in a bit of a spikey way.
I moved from a 2010 RSV4 (so the 1000cc not 1100) down to the RS660. I know what you mean about the "dieselly" top end as I still manage to keep hitting the rev limiter as I cant distinguish the sound of the revs when pushing on.
Sounds obvious but you will find on the V4 that it has so much extra grunt compared to the 660 that you wont be using the top end of the rev range and will mostly be sat below 8k RPM. When you do get to use that band above 8k its so rewarding as you get that throaty V4 increasing howl but as you will be doing north of 120mph in 2nd/3rd , it will be rare you get to enjoy this unless you live in the north of Scotland ;-)
The V4 doesn't like being below 4k rpm so its not enjoyable when in town or slow roads and expect your legs and balls to be roasted in traffic as the rear headers cook you!
Sounds obvious but you will find on the V4 that it has so much extra grunt compared to the 660 that you wont be using the top end of the rev range and will mostly be sat below 8k RPM. When you do get to use that band above 8k its so rewarding as you get that throaty V4 increasing howl but as you will be doing north of 120mph in 2nd/3rd , it will be rare you get to enjoy this unless you live in the north of Scotland ;-)
The V4 doesn't like being below 4k rpm so its not enjoyable when in town or slow roads and expect your legs and balls to be roasted in traffic as the rear headers cook you!
STe_rsv4 said:
The V4 doesn't like being below 4k rpm so its not enjoyable when in town or slow roads and expect your legs and balls to be roasted in traffic as the rear headers cook you!
My Tuono 1100 doesn't do the cooking thing.Fuelling below 4k is a bit rough, the only tricky bit is behaving in 20mph limits.
Otherwise it's an absolute gem of a motor, I think it's very smooth and bags of power/torque everywhere. I'm in love with mine.
milu said:
I’ll keep an eye on replies to this too. I still have my Tuono 660 which I enjoy. But I do fancy a couple more cylinders and the 1100 seems quite the machine. Probably too quick for me really.
For reasons I can’t explain, I quite fancy the Suzuki GSX S1000 naked. The most recent version.
Just a bit tamer than the V4 Aprilia
The GSXS 1000 naked was on my hit list before I bought the multistrada, the only things that put me off are: the electronics suite (traction etc) is very basis compared to others like the Tuono, It may be too similar to my GSXR and I should try something more different and the total lack of fairing might make it bad for long journeys. (My friend has the 750 and he said the wind is bad on dual carriageways and he is experimenting with small screens.For reasons I can’t explain, I quite fancy the Suzuki GSX S1000 naked. The most recent version.
Just a bit tamer than the V4 Aprilia
It is a cheap second hand buy though and that appeals.
The engine is also very responsive to tuning as it was tamed a lot for the naked, I believe it has something like 70% throttle locked when at 100% on the wrist so you get a lot more performance with the throttle locks off.
I've got a '22 RSV4, the engine is lovely, smooth and with a great midrange, not buzzy through the bars or pegs like an inline four might be. The quickshifter and blipper are very good too. It does 'chug' under 2.5k ish but compared to an LC4 it doesn't count as chugging to my mind! Top end isn't the most exciting, it doesn't die away but doesn't reach a crescendo either. I test rode a tuono when I was buying but can't really remember any big differences in the engines apart from there was a noticeable difference in power
Mate has the latest 1100 so we've swapped bikes a few times on runs out (me on my Gen3 SDR). Engine is lovely, makes a lovely noise with an Akra, silky smooth, but didn't wow me, it's not a brute like my SDR which I am comparing against. Still a lovely motor.
What I will say is being 6ft tall it felt a little cramped for my frame/legs, it made it feel a bit like riding a toy. Also, the clocks were pretty dated in this day and age, again it's subjective.
He's had a few issues with it though, sump leaking and now has no fuel gauge which apparently is a common issue, the sender fails, but the part hasn't been updated so will ultimately fail again (2 years old by the way just out of warranty) so he's not going to bother replacing it for it to fail again. His only other issue is the lack of dealers near him, most are a good 90 mins to 2 hours away.
What I will say is being 6ft tall it felt a little cramped for my frame/legs, it made it feel a bit like riding a toy. Also, the clocks were pretty dated in this day and age, again it's subjective.
He's had a few issues with it though, sump leaking and now has no fuel gauge which apparently is a common issue, the sender fails, but the part hasn't been updated so will ultimately fail again (2 years old by the way just out of warranty) so he's not going to bother replacing it for it to fail again. His only other issue is the lack of dealers near him, most are a good 90 mins to 2 hours away.
Freakuk said:
Mate has the latest 1100 so we've swapped bikes a few times on runs out (me on my Gen3 SDR). Engine is lovely, makes a lovely noise with an Akra, silky smooth, but didn't wow me, it's not a brute like my SDR which I am comparing against. Still a lovely motor.
What I will say is being 6ft tall it felt a little cramped for my frame/legs, it made it feel a bit like riding a toy. Also, the clocks were pretty dated in this day and age, again it's subjective.
He's had a few issues with it though, sump leaking and now has no fuel gauge which apparently is a common issue, the sender fails, but the part hasn't been updated so will ultimately fail again (2 years old by the way just out of warranty) so he's not going to bother replacing it for it to fail again. His only other issue is the lack of dealers near him, most are a good 90 mins to 2 hours away.
I was a little worried about things like common issues as the RS660 wasn't without it's faults. Nearest dealer to me is Brighton which is about 40 miles.What I will say is being 6ft tall it felt a little cramped for my frame/legs, it made it feel a bit like riding a toy. Also, the clocks were pretty dated in this day and age, again it's subjective.
He's had a few issues with it though, sump leaking and now has no fuel gauge which apparently is a common issue, the sender fails, but the part hasn't been updated so will ultimately fail again (2 years old by the way just out of warranty) so he's not going to bother replacing it for it to fail again. His only other issue is the lack of dealers near him, most are a good 90 mins to 2 hours away.
I am 6ft and quite long in the leg so that is a consideration.
I have stayed away from the SDR due to also hearing reliability issues and also the big thumper engine again, I understand it is one of the best bug thumpers but still a bug thumper.
Freakuk said:
Mate has the latest 1100 so we've swapped bikes a few times on runs out (me on my Gen3 SDR). Engine is lovely, makes a lovely noise with an Akra, silky smooth, but didn't wow me, it's not a brute like my SDR which I am comparing against. Still a lovely motor.
Very much chalk and cheese in terms of motors aren't they - the 1100 is definitely more like a traditional high-RPM performer.The guy I bought my Tuono off has bought a Superduke gen 4 to replace it for something completely different.
Krikkit said:
Freakuk said:
Mate has the latest 1100 so we've swapped bikes a few times on runs out (me on my Gen3 SDR). Engine is lovely, makes a lovely noise with an Akra, silky smooth, but didn't wow me, it's not a brute like my SDR which I am comparing against. Still a lovely motor.
Very much chalk and cheese in terms of motors aren't they - the 1100 is definitely more like a traditional high-RPM performer.The guy I bought my Tuono off has bought a Superduke gen 4 to replace it for something completely different.
Caddyshack said:
Freakuk said:
Mate has the latest 1100 so we've swapped bikes a few times on runs out (me on my Gen3 SDR). Engine is lovely, makes a lovely noise with an Akra, silky smooth, but didn't wow me, it's not a brute like my SDR which I am comparing against. Still a lovely motor.
What I will say is being 6ft tall it felt a little cramped for my frame/legs, it made it feel a bit like riding a toy. Also, the clocks were pretty dated in this day and age, again it's subjective.
He's had a few issues with it though, sump leaking and now has no fuel gauge which apparently is a common issue, the sender fails, but the part hasn't been updated so will ultimately fail again (2 years old by the way just out of warranty) so he's not going to bother replacing it for it to fail again. His only other issue is the lack of dealers near him, most are a good 90 mins to 2 hours away.
I was a little worried about things like common issues as the RS660 wasn't without it's faults. Nearest dealer to me is Brighton which is about 40 miles.What I will say is being 6ft tall it felt a little cramped for my frame/legs, it made it feel a bit like riding a toy. Also, the clocks were pretty dated in this day and age, again it's subjective.
He's had a few issues with it though, sump leaking and now has no fuel gauge which apparently is a common issue, the sender fails, but the part hasn't been updated so will ultimately fail again (2 years old by the way just out of warranty) so he's not going to bother replacing it for it to fail again. His only other issue is the lack of dealers near him, most are a good 90 mins to 2 hours away.
I am 6ft and quite long in the leg so that is a consideration.
I have stayed away from the SDR due to also hearing reliability issues and also the big thumper engine again, I understand it is one of the best bug thumpers but still a bug thumper.
I've not ridden a Gen4 (Gen3.5 if you like) yet so I don't know if it's a leap forward or just an improvement.
Freakuk said:
I'm not trying to sway you, I've pretty much only ridden twins my whole biking like (nearly 30 years now)
I think that’s the key thing here.Last year I looked at swapping my Tuono V4 for an SDR. I had a canny test ride on it but it left me feeling a little underwhelmed. Not because it’s a poor bike, not because it doesn’t have a great engine, not because inferior to the V4, it purely because it’s different to what I like and am used to.
It’s a conversation I had with the salesman at the time and various other people since. It seems as though you’re either a Superduke type of person or a V4 Aprilia type of person. Both absolutely stonking bikes, just in different flavours.
From your comments on your 660, and I have a 660 Tuono in the garage as well, It sounds as though you’d also be a ‘Tuono guy’ as well rather than a ‘SDR guy’.
FWIW. I’m 6’-2” and my Tuono Factory is probably the most comfortable bike I’ve owned. I can do full day rides on it in total comfort.
Yes they have their niggles, mine has had the fuel sender thingy problem, it’s had the oil weep problem and a couple of other issues. All dealt with without quibble by the dealer and nothing which would stop me from going out and buying another V4 Tuono tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after.
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