Aprilia’s MotoGP Racer

Fans of motorcycle racing know that Aprilia has launched a massive, three-pointed racing program that will see the company's 1,000cc V-4-powered bikes competing in the FIM Superstock 1000, FIM World Superbike and the MotoGP world championships. The head of this huge operation is Chief Project Engineer Romano Albesiano who has made it known that the three bikes are powered by engines that share a common crankcase.

In fact, Aprilia’s 2015 MotoGP machine is just the ultimate evolution of the CRT racers that the company developed back in 2012 and were successfully ridden by Randy de Puniet and Aleix Espargaro until the CRTs were retired by Dorna at the end of 2013. The present engine is a development to the 81mm bore limits of the RSV4 unit, with pneumatic valves. Horsepower is at least 230, and the chassis, derived from the CRT machine, is still under development.

Albesiano confirmed that Aprilia chose to race MotoGP in 2015 (instead of 2016) to avoid being cut off from the evolution that is constantly taking place in the series. As such, Aprilia is ready to take some hard beatings while the team accumulates solid experience on the battlefield. This gathered experience will be poured into the new 2016 MotoGP machine, which will be the real thing.

Aprilia’s 2016 MotoGP machine will be a much more compact and streamlined bike, and it will feature a specific V-4 engine that is more compact and will have a broader vee angle. We don’t know the official number, but I would guess it will be something on the order of 75 degrees, which would be 10 degrees more open than the present unit. This will achieve a higher level of primary balance that will not need any power-robbing balance shaft, while still being more compact than the (almost) perfectly balanced 90-degree V-4. It should also be noted that the new engine will be broader and harder to shoehorn into the compact and duly balanced chassis.

Of the two factory MotoGP riders, Alvaro Bautista has the most positive attitude after the early tests. Marco Melandri says he feels that the front end does not talk enough to the rider. As for Aprilia’s renewed adventure in the FIM Superbike World Championship, the team got off to a very positive start with Leon Haslam, who won Race 2 of the season opener in Phillip Island, Australia. The RSV4 remains a top contender in the hands of Haslam, the experienced Honda refugee. Of note, Albesiano confirmed that even with the new electronics and ECU, Aprilia has been able to keep power at the previous levels. In the FIM Superstock 1000 class, Aprilia has two young Italian riders: Kevin Calia and Lorenzo Savadori.