Photo / Supplied
Why do news publications often leave out scooters when it comes to comparing methods of commuting? Perhaps because the motor scooter is such an obvious winner when it comes to reducing the time spent getting to and from work – light, low, nimble, nifty, and easy to park.
They’re also a fair bit sportier now that the new Aprilia SR GT has joined the ranks of twist-and-go two wheelers on sale in New Zealand. There’s an identifiable slice of the DNA of Aprilia’s RS660 sportsbike to be felt through the handlebars of the SR and that equates to one thing – fun.
Aprilia encourages such comparisons with its full-wheeled motorcycles through the design and decoration of the SR GT. There’s a proper windshield and a motorcycle-like LED instrument screen fitted as standard, along with discs on both wheels – the front rotor petal shaped for increased cooling – and beefier suspension with longer wheel travel.
The base $7490 SR GT 200 already projects a sporty persona with its raked lines, black wheels, and tastefully chosen colourway, but the $7690 SR GT 200 Sport turns up visual impact almost to shock level with its red wheels and RS660-mimicking paint and graphics. It’s destined to become the easiest scooter to find in the motorcycle park.
It could be argued that the Sport’s imagery makes promises that the 174cc single-cylinder engine that powers both versions of the SR GT can’t keep. The two twist-and-go Aprilias revert to scooter norms when you eventually do the twist and find a modest amount of go in return instead of the rocket-like launch of an RSV4 or a Tuono. The 1100cc versions of the latter can deliver 130+ kilowatts. Learning that the motor of the SR GT produces just one tenth of that (13kW) is an “ah-ha” moment.
You realise instantly that this is an Aprilia that is completely commuter-focused. That’ll it will probably get to a top whack of around 120km/h, and cruise all day at 100km/h if asked to, but mostly it’s built to sip fuel in a highly refined and gentle fashion while filing all other commuting vehicles into its mirrors during round town use. There’s even a stop/start system to ensure that there’s less requirement to refuel the nine-litre fuel tank, due to all the red traffic lights that are encountered during cross-town commutes.
Yet these are definitely sporty scooters, OK? Move away from the ordinary scooter CVT powertrain and it’s the chassis of the SR GT that picks up the sporting cudgels and swings them for all they’re worth. With their tendency to move powertrain mass rearwards and select token suspension solutions to create extra underseat storage, scooters usually display a keenness for understeer combined with limited ability to absorb bumps and road imperfections. Not so the Aprilias. Their 14” front wheels feel fully hooked into the road surface (despite the trendy knobbled treads of the tyres), and the telescopic front fork and twin rear shock suspension has all it needs to fully control wheel movements over bumps. There’s 120mm of travel up front and 102mm at the rear – roughly 30 per cent more than most 200cc scoots, yet seat height remains an easily-scalable 799mm.
You can therefore lean the SR GT with total confidence in the knowledge that it will only get a little squirrely and unhinged once you start grinding the centre-stand into the road. The latter occurs at a lean angle that’s no where near MotoGP level, but it’s still impressive enough to encourage thoughts of a one-make scooter race series based around the SR GT.
Ditto the brakes, which are more motorcycle-like in their performance than those of most scooters. The front rotor is a generous 260mm in diameter, and offers reasonably powerful stopping power with the back-up of single-channel ABS. With the front fork tubes measuring 33mm in diameter and braced, there’s little opportunity for twisting when giving the front brake lever a decent squeeze, the Aprilia exhibiting exemplary emergency stopping stability. Both brakes got hammered during 20-minute sessions at a go-kart track yet neither exhibited any of the fade that comes with overheating. Both hand levers kept the same travel and pressure throughout the track sessions.
It’s this well-rounded chassis performance that is the Aprilia SR GT’s strongest calling card, and it enables the Sport version to live up to the eye-catching liveries that it shares with the high-performance motorcycles that wear the brand.
Keyword: Aprilia SR GT review: Lean burn