Aprilia Dorsoduro 1200 | Homegrown V-Twin

Like nearly all of Aprilia’s current motorcycle lineup, the Dorsoduro 1200 comes equipped with three engine modes (unfortunately, the U.S. model does not include the ABS and three-level traction control that come standard on the European version), consisting of Rain, Sport, and Touring settings for the ride-by-wire throttle. We found the Rain mode to pull back a bit too much power, making both the throttle response and acceleration a little too anemic, even considering if the pavement was wet. Touring mode provided linear throttle response, but only after throttle rotation reached 30 percent — we didn’t like the lag that was present up to that point. Sport mode provided the best throttle response, although it was noticeable how quickly the throttle plate movement changed over the course of the actual throttle’s rotation; the throttle plate movement seemed to be linear up until the quarter-throttle mark, where it suddenly opens up fairly aggressively in relation to throttle rotation, providing a good dose of acceleration. While the throttle response is nothing that could suddenly spin the rear tire out from underneath you, we discovered that it tended to make highway cruising a little too frantic, as the throttle would be right at the aggressive opening point, and bumps or a wind gust would often cause some unintended acceleration.

In fact, that acceleration is partly due to its accessibility from nearly any point in the Dorsoduro’s powerband. The 1197cc V-twin has an impressively wide and flat torque curve, and coupled with its fairly quick-revving nature, provides healthy acceleration at any twist of the throttle. Passing highway traffic is ridiculously easy, with the moderately tall gearing meaning you’re not screaming the engine to run at those speeds. Granted, the 114-horsepower peak is nothing to write home about, and quite frankly we were expecting a little more from such an oversquare engine; but again, outright top-end power was not in the Dorsoduro’s design brief, and the powerplant’s beefy torque curve easily provides more than adequate steam for its intended purpose.

Overall handling is reasonably agile, with the wide handlebar giving you plenty of leverage to flick the bike without much effort into a corner. Yet stability was thankfully present in spades without any steering damper, surely due to the steering geometry’s generous 114mm trail and surprisingly long 60-inch wheelbase. In fact, once banked into the corner, we found that the Aprilia needed a lot of lean angle to carve tight lines, which is definitely a byproduct of that long wheelbase. Thankfully, overall grip from the stock Dunlop Qualifier II rubber (a European Dunlop sport tire that is not related to the Dunlop Q2 found in the U.S.) was excellent at all lean angles, although wear rates were a bit on the high side.

Suspension action from the fully adjustable Sachs components front and rear was more than up to anything the Dorsoduro could dish out on the road, providing good wheel and chassis control despite offering more than six inches of travel on both ends. The 43mm inverted fork utilizes the latest trend of separating the rebound and compression damping circuits into one fork leg, with rebound on the left and compression on the right. We also like the easy accessibility of the rebound and compression damping adjusters (and spring preload) on the rear shock, which is offset to the right to provide clearance for the rear cylinder’s exhaust header.

The Aprilia can generate some serious speed down a canyon road, so the braking system is equipped to handle the task. Standard Brembo four-piston calipers may lack the flash of the increasingly common monobloc items found on other bikes, but combined with the 320mm discs, provide more than enough stopping power, with excellent feel and modulation. The Dorsoduro’s front Brembos tread that elusive fine line between aggressive response and power to provide superb stopping capability, without being overly responsive enough to overpower the front tire or suspension without provocation. Because of its more upright ergos and different weight distribution than a sportbike, the rear brake plays more of a role in stopping, and here the 240mm disc/single-piston caliper also provide excellent feel and modulation.