Why I bought the Aprilia RS457 without a test ride; Upgraded from R15

The first time I rode the RS457 was when bringing mine home from the showroom.

BHPian kai recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello to all the readers and members of Team-BHP, this being my first article on the forum, I’ve decided to share a part of my life with you.

Winding the clock back to 2018, we hadn’t heard about COVID, life was much simpler, I was in the final year of my university life and my love for sports motorcycles peaked.

September, 2018

Back in the day, there were not as many options for fared sports motorcycles in the 150-200cc segment as there are today. By the time I decided I wanted a Yamaha and nothing else, a month had already elapsed. I became utterly impatient. To add more fuel to my fire, I would see hoardings, banners, advertisements and whatnot of the newly launched Yamaha R15 version 3. The first proper face-lifted version of the older generation R15 version 2.

And it was a lot more than just a mere facelift. I am not going to rant about the spec-sheet figures here, but for all the enthusiasts that would know, the non-ABS version of the YZF R15 version 3 (2018) had 19.6 bhp and 14.7nm of torque had the highest performance figures to date among any R15 ever. I had enough, I did not take a test-ride of the bike even though it was available and I left it on my luck. (Absolutely not recommended)

A couple of weeks later, I went into my local Yamaha dealership (Aquad Yamaha, Kolkata) to enquire about the motorcycle and they said it was readily available and they could deliver it the same day of payment. I was smiling ear to ear hearing that.

The very next day, I went and got myself my first brand-new motorcycle for only 1.51 Lakh on-road, the price back then unlike now, justified itself. I named him KAI. I was only a very new rider back then, having got my two-wheeler license four months prior.

I’ve happily covered over 45 thousand kilometres. Most of which has been on highways and touring.

As I did not stay in India for much long after the purchase not for once did the thought of selling the motorcycle come to my mind, not even today, every-time I’d come back home I’d get all excited to take KAI out for a spin and it would make me happy instantly.

Key points in looking after Kai over the years

Choosing the correct grade of engine oil. By default, the R15 comes with 10w40 grade engine oil, which unless required should not be changed. My observations of changing the engine oil grade factored on the weather and climate I’d be travelling in. Personally, it helped a lot over the years.

Choosing the correct tyres, remember folks, wider isn’t always better. It originally came with MRF zapper tyres, which were absolutely shocking, to say the least. Finding the correct balance between two tyres is of utmost importance. Right now I am running on a combination of 150/60 R17 Michelin Road 5 on the rear, perhaps the best tyre I’ve ever used and 100/80 R17 Maxxis M6311, this was a gamble I took but so far it has worked wonders for me.

Always filling with the highest octane fuel, RON91+ this has helped me not only to get a higher mileage but it has such a subtle yet noticeable difference in performance. If you have a fuel-injected combustion system, please use high-octane fuel.

Periodic servicing from an authorised service centre, for its entire life Kai has never seen a local service centre for any issues whatsoever. I’ve always preferred the Yamaha servicing quality and it has never let me down.

The only major mishap that I’ve had with Kai happened last year in August, while I was on my way home from a friend's house, my chain snapped while I was downshifting. The whole motorcycle ceased right in the middle of the road, with the chain sprocket bent, the chain tangled and the clutch stuck.

It was completely my fault for downshifting too rapidly and I could only blame myself. Thankfully the RSA helped me a lot in getting it to the service centre. I had to change my clutch plates, clutch wire the whole chain sprocket. Dented my pocket quite a bit but that’s all that I have suffered on this motorcycle and it has been utterly reliable throughout everything else.

Choosing the Aprilia RS457

Moving to 2023, I was itching for an upgrade, this time a lot wiser, and a lot more patient. I wanted to explore more options as I could stretch my budget a lot more. As were my preferences 5 years ago, it was no different though, it had to be a faired sports motorcycle.

I narrowed down my options as I wanted a twin-cylinder motorcycle this time, no questions asked. The two Ninjas are the 300/400 and the biblically priced R3.

I did a test ride on the Ninja 400, which I loved, it is such a no-nonsense motorcycle, nothing fancy, nothing too electrical, just raw, rugged dependable machinery. I was almost certain I’d buy this motorcycle, I was already in talks with the Kawasaki showroom in Kolkata and they gave me an estimated waiting period of 20 days.

The glooming clouds of an Aprilia motorcycle in the Indian market finally decided to rain. Then came the big reveal and price drop of the Aprilia, and boy-oh-boy it looked gorgeous. The Italians and their styling never fail to impress. I immediately decided to hold my bucks and stepped a foot back asking Kawasaki to not bring the vehicle immediately. I had already paid an advance to them. A week or two passed by and I’d occasionally get calls from the Kawasaki dealership regarding my purchase. I would just fend them off sighting some financial crisis. Until one day I called them up asking to cancel the purchase as I would not be going ahead with it.

I was in deep waters by now. Held my nerves for a month more, contemplating if I was doing the right thing or not. On December 15th 2023 came my day, Aprilia opened their online bookings and I was right onto it. Paid INR 10k and got it booked. I received a mail from Aprilia confirming the same.

That was it. At least for the next 4 months. I heard nothing from the official Aprilia team or my local Vespa/Aprilia dealership. On the 20th of April, I finally got a call saying, the showroom had my vehicle and upon payment, I could get it within the next couple of days. Tragedy struck as I was outside India when I received this call. I managed to get back in the country by 24th April and visit the showroom the very next day.

After all the paperwork and payments, I decided to take delivery of my motorcycle on the 13th of May 2024. (A special day for me). The dealership obliged my request. I got to know I was the first owner of the RS 457 in Kolkata. On the day of delivery, I was almost in tears, the gamble I took six months ago paid off. Looking at that beautiful Italian motorcycle in all its glory. To name it right, I call her Snõ.

Point to remember, I had not test-ridden this motorcycle either. I am glad I did not, the moment I sat on it to ride it back home, I don’t think I’ve felt any happier. The sound, the refinement, the road presence. It had everything. Yet to get its first service done. I’ve covered approximately 400 km so far within the city.

I’ll keep the ownership review for another article.

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