An Aprilia RS125, model of 1998.

Aprilia is an Italian motorcycle company, owned by Piaggio as part of the worlds fourth largest motorcycle manufacturer. Download high resolution version (839x545, 166 KB) This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Download high resolution version (839x545, 166 KB) This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... A 125 cc motorcycle, the Italian-manufactured Cagiva Planet. ... Piaggio is a company based in Italy that produces automobiles, motorcycles and scooters, such as: Piaggio APE 3-wheel submicro pickups. ...

Aprilia started as a scooter manufacturer, but has more recently come to be known for its race-winning sportsbikes. It is most recently best known for its flagship 1000 cc V-Twin Superbike, the RSV Mille. A motor scooter is a motorcycle with a step-through frame in which the rider sits without straddling any part of the engine. ... Honda 90° V-twin A V-twin is a two cylinder internal combustion engine where the cylinders are arranged in a V configuration. ... Aprilia RSV Mille, (2004 on left, 2003 on right) The RSV Mille is a high performance V-twin powered motorcycle made by Aprilia with an approximately 1000 cc engine. ...

History

Aprilia was founded immediately after the Second World War by Cavaliere Alberto Beggio, as a bicycle production factory at Noale, Italy in the province of Venice. Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, and others Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total dead: 50 million Military dead: 8 million Civilian dead: 4 million Total dead: 12 million World War II... View of Venice to San Giorgio Maggiore island from St Marks Campanile. ...

Alberto’s son, Ivano Beggio, took over the helm of the company in 1968 and he constructed a 50 cc "motorcycle" with a dozen or so collaborators. The first production Aprilia mopeds were named Colibrì, Daniela and Packi. Aprilia later produced a motocross bike in 1970 called the Scarabeo. Produced until the end of the 1970s, the Scarabeo came in 50 and 125 cc versions. A company, owner and president of the largest motorcycle company in Europe, the others being the Italian companies Aprilia, Moto Guzzi and Laverda. ... A moped is a motorized two-wheeled vehicle subject to local speed regulations. ... A rider cornering during a motocross race in Australia Motocross is a form of motorcycle racing or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits and is widely considered the worlds most popular form of motorcycle racing. ...

In 1977 Ivan Alborghetti from Milan, Italy won the Italian 125 and 250 cc motorcross championships on Aprilias. In 1978 Alborghetti closed the season with two third places in individual races and sixth place in the World Championship.

In the 1980s Aprilia added enduro, trials and road bikes of between 50 and 600 cc. In 1981 Aprilia introduced the TL320 trials machine. In 1983 Aprilia launched to St 125 road bike. In 1984 Aprilia launched an improved model called STX, and an enduro, called the ET 50.

In 1985, Aprilia started outsourcing engines for some models to the Austrian company Rotax. In 1985 Aprilia launched a 125 STX and 350 STX. In 1986 Aprilia launched the AF1; a small sports model, and the Tuareg; a large tanked bike for African rallies. Aprilia rider Philippe Berlatier contended for the trials world championship reaching fifth place, and Loris Reggiani rode an Aprilia GP 250 with Rotax engine to sixth place in the road racing World Championship. Two seasons later, on August 30, 1987, at San Marino Grand Prix in Misano Loris Reggiani’s AF1 won the first World Speed Championship. Rotax is an Austrian engine manufacturer, founded in 1920 in Dresden, Germany. ... The San Marino Grand Prix is a Formula One championship race which has been run at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in the small town of Imola, near the Apennine mountains in Italy, since 1981. ...

In 1988, the first Aprilias were imported into the United States, starting with the TRX312M observed trials model. The following year, Aprilia introduced The Climber, the first "mass-production" liquid-cooled trials bike.

In 1990, Aprilia launched the Pegaso 600, a road bike derived from off-road mechanics.

In 1992, Aprilia rider Alessandro Gramigni won the World 125 Road Racing Championship title. Also in 1992, Tommy Ahvala won the World Trials Championship on an Aprilia Climber. Since then, Aprilia has 124 times won 125 and 250 cc class Grand Prix, 15 Road Racing World Championship titles, and 16 European speed titles. Many world champions started on Aprilia such as Biaggi, Capirossi, Gramigni, Locatelli, Sakata and Rossi. Max Biaggi (born June 26, 1971 in Rome, Italy) was a MotoGP racer who currently resides in Monaco. ... Loris Capirossi is an Italian motorcycle racer, who currently rides the factory Ducati MotoGP bike. ... Valentino Rossi (born February 16, 1979) is an Italian professional motorcycle racer and multiple MotoGP World Champion. ...

Also in the 1990s, Aprilia entered the scooter market starting in 1990 with Italy’s first all-plastic scooter, the Amico. In 1992, Aprilia introduced the Amico LK and the twin cylinder Pegaso 125, both with catalytic converters. In 1993 Aprilia launched a large diameter wheel scooter reusing the name Scarabeo with a four-stroke, four-valve engine. Later Aprilia launced additional scooters such as the Leonardo, the SR and the Gulliver, to name a few. A catalytic converter (colloquially, cat or catcon) is a device used to reduce the toxicity of emissions from an internal combustion engine. ...

Aprilia Moto 6.5 designed by Starck

In 1995, Aprilia commission Philippe Starck to design the Motò which was shown in New York’s Modern Art Museum. Also in 1995 Aprilia launched the two stroke RS 125 and RS 250 sports bikes. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x768, 206 KB) Summary 1997 Aprilia Moto 6. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x768, 206 KB) Summary 1997 Aprilia Moto 6. ... A book about Starck by Taschen Philippe Patrick Starck (born January 18, 1949) is a well-known French designer and probably the best known designer in the New Design style. ... General Electric GE90-115B fanblade, on display at MoMA. The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. ... The two-stroke cycle of an internal combustion engine differs from the more common four-stroke cycle by having only two strokes (linear movements of the piston) instead of four, although the same four operations (intake, compression, power, exhaust) still occur. ...

In 1998 Aprilia launched what is its current flagship model the RSV Mille, a 1000cc V-Twin Superbike, and the Falco, a 1000cc V-Twin sport tourer with emphasis on sport. Both bikes used a variation of a Rotax 1000cc engine. Aprilia RSV Mille, (2004 on left, 2003 on right) The RSV Mille is a high performance V-twin powered motorcycle made by Aprilia with an approximately 1000 cc engine. ... Honda 90° V-twin A V-twin is a two cylinder internal combustion engine where the cylinders are arranged in a V configuration. ... Sport touring refers to a style of motorcycle design, or a philosophy of riding. ...

In 1999 Aprilia entered World Superbike Championship racing with its RSV Mille, and during 2000, Aprilia acquired Moto-Guzzi and Laverda, both historic heritage Italian marques. Moto Guzzi is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer that was established in 1921in Mandello del Lario by the Como Lake at the foot of the alps in northern Italy. ... Laverda is a famous manufacturer of Combine Harvesters and has been doing for many years. ...

In 2000 Aprilia launched the 50cc DiTech (Direct Injection Technology) two stroke engine for scooters which provides high milage and low emissions, and also the RST Futura; true sport tourer, and the ETV 1000 Caponord; an "Adventure Touring Motorcycle" (also known by some as a "Trailie.") Both of these latter two motorcycles used a variation of the Rotax a 1000cc V-Twin. The RST1000 Futura is a V-twin powered motorcycle made by Aprilia for the purpose of Sport-touring. ...

In 2003, Aprilia launched the RSV Mille Tuono which was essentially an RSV Mille with motorcross-style high handlebars and only a small headlight fairing. Most of the major motorcycle magazines picked it for the best bike of the year.

As of 2004 Aprilia was acquired by Piaggio & C. SpA, to form the world’s fourth largest motorcycle group with 1.5 billion Euro in sales, an annual production capacity of over 600,000 vehicles, and a presence in 50 countries. With the acquisition by Piaggio, the newly nominated President of Aprilia is Roberto Colaninno (President of Piaggio & C.), and the Managing Director is Rocco Sabelli. The founder, Ivano Beggio, is the Honorary President. Piaggio is a company based in Italy that produces automobiles, motorcycles and scooters, such as: Piaggio APE 3-wheel submicro pickups. ...

Racing

Despite being a relatively small company by global motorcycling standards, Aprilia is very active in motorcycle racing. It contests many formulae, including the FIM 125 cc World Championship, the FIM 250cc World Championship, the now-defunct FIM 500cc World Championship, and from 2002-2004 the FIM MotoGP World Championship. Start of a Motocross race Motorcycle Racing A Motor Cross Bike A Speedway Bike There are a variety of sports involving racing motorcycles. ... FIM can refer to: the currency code for Markka Field ion microscope Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... FIM can refer to: the currency code for Markka Field ion microscope Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... FIM can refer to: the currency code for Markka Field ion microscope Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... FIM can refer to: the currency code for Markka Field ion microscope Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Aprilia Racing saw varying successes. They were extremely successful in the smaller displacement categories, winning numerous races & championships in the 125 cc Grand Prix and 250 cc Grand Prix classes. However, their 500 cc Grand Prix bike was less competitive, and their MotoGP effort - dubbed the RS3 - was technically advanced but difficult to ride and performed poorly in the championship. The RS3 did, however, feature many advanced technologies either not seen or only being seen now in other MotoGP bikes - technologies including throttle by schweinhund and pneumatic valve actuation systems. Grand Prix motorcycle racing refers to the premier category of motorcycle road racing, currently divided into three engine displacement classes: 125cc, 250cc and MotoGP (up to 990cc). ... Grand Prix motorcycle racing refers to the premier category of motorcycle road racing, currently divided into three engine displacement classes: 125cc, 250cc and MotoGP (up to 990cc). ... Grand Prix motorcycle racing refers to the premier category of motorcycle road racing, currently divided into three engine displacement classes: 125cc, 250cc and MotoGP (up to 990cc). ... RS3 or RS-3 may be: Aprilia RS3, in Grand Prix motorcycle racing ALCO RS-3, diesel locomotive MLW RS-3, diesel locomotive This page expands a three-character combination which might be any or all of an abbreviation, an acronym, an initialism, a word in English, or a word...

Aprilia also feature in the off-road racing world, with their 450cc V-Twin motocrosser producing respectable results (including race wins) in both off-road (Motocross) and on-road (Supermoto) categories. A rider cornering during a motocross race in Australia Motocross is a form of motorcycle racing or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits and is widely considered the worlds most popular form of motorcycle racing. ... A Supermoto rider hits the road Supermoto (also called Supermotard due to its strong foothold in France) is a cross-over of motocross and road racing. ...

The company is also notable for choosing somewhat unpopular engine configurations. For example, they progressed with development of a V-Twin 500 cc Grand Prix bike when other teams were moving to V-Four configurations for what some believed was better & more usable power outputs. Aprilia continued this trend, taking advantage of lighter minimum weights with the introduction of their RS3 MotoGP bike - featuring three cylinders in an Inline triple layout, the bike had the least number of cylinders on the Grand Prix paddock. Yamaha had gone ahead with an inline four layout, whilst Suzuki and Ducati went for (differently-designed) V-Four layouts. Honda took the idea even further, producing the championship-winning RC211V, powered by a V5 cylinder engine. Yamaha Motor Corporation (ヤマハ発動機株式会社) is a motorized vehicle-producing company, initially part of the Yamaha Corporation. ... Suzuki Motor Corporation (スズキ株式会社) TYO: 7269 is a Japanese manufacturing company producing a range of small automobiles (especially Keicars), a full range of motorcycles, outboard motors, and a variety of other small combustion-powered engine products. ... Ducati Motor Holding is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer. ... For other uses, see Honda (disambiguation). ... V5 may refer to: Cortical area V5 The V5 interface An engine in V configuration with 5 cylinders, e. ...

External links

• Aprilia
• Forum for aprilia enthusiasts
• Aprilia's and other Italian Motorcycles (Wheels Of Italy)

See also

• List of Italian companies

Aprilia is also an industrial town in southern Latium, between Rome and Latina. This is a list of companies from Italy. ... Latium (Lazio in Italian) is a region of central Italy, bordered by Tuscany, Umbria, Abruzzo, Marche, Molise, Campania and the Tyrrhenian Sea. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC (mythical), early 1st millennium BC (archaeological) Region Latium Area  - City Proper  1285 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,553,873 almost 4,300,000 1. ... Latina may refer to one of the following: The female gender of the noun Latino in reference to Latin-American immigrants and their descendants. ...