KTM is working on a new V4 … and that of Aprilia !
KTM wants to integrate MotoGP in 2017 with an RC16 powered by a new V4. At the factory, the old V4 (from 2005) tells us its story, while on the road the testers of the orange brand are surprised during the test… of the Tuono Aprilia !
It was last August, in an interview with our German colleagues from Speedweek, that the president of KTM, Stephan Pierer, had announced his desire to tackle the premier class in 2017 by means of a new V4 engine (read)…
Site readers – who, as everyone knows, have a little more RAM than others – remember, however, that the Orange brand had already turned in, with an engine of the same type, as an engine manufacturer for the Roberts team..
But this adventure had been "brief and turbulent", as described by the engine n ° 5/05 exhibited on the third floor of the reception building of the Mattighofen plant, author (!) of an on the rich official KTM blog.
"You are probably wondering why I can speak", quite rightly remarks the old racing engine:"it’s simply because KTM builds motorcycles that have a soul and a strong voice, and the pleasure we deliver is very real". Sacred character that this V4 !
Developed by then head of the R&D department, Wolfgang Felber, and designed by an engineer from Formula 1 (Kurt Trieb, who worked for Porsche and BMW in particular), it was the first Katoche machine to be equipped with "plain bearings, cam / follower and valve bearings mounted in radial position".
Reminder of the pneumatic valves, titanium connecting rods, dry clutch, special treatment of the cylinders, state-of-the-art cassette and clutch gearbox, distribution by cascade of pinions, lubrication by several pumps … All this fittings should have enabled it to spit 230 horses to compete with Honda, Yamaha, Ducati, Kawasaki and Suzuki engines … of the time !
A chassis was also being studied, but in July 2003 the engine was the only survivor of the GP1 project launched a year earlier. Fitted in the cycle part of the Proton KR in place of the Roberts V5, the 75 ° KTM V4 made its first outing in late summer 2004 with Nobuatsu Aoki.
Listed in with Shane "Shakey" Byrne, the Austrian craft admits it would have "preferred the sophisticated electronics from TAG Mclaren or Magneti Marelli, but had to settle for a less expensive injection system from England. It affected my character and suddenly our performance".
Classified out of points until the eighth GP disputed at – 15th on the occasion of this first visit to the Intercontinental Circus in California ten years ago -, the engine only participated in two other races before having to throw in the towel just before the peaceful tour.
"I have no regrets, because my experiences were very important and ultimately benefited the following KTM projects", assures the n ° 5/05."Whenever KTM has celebrated Moto3 victories or even world titles in recent years, I have shared the happiness of the team".
It is very likely that the engineers working at this very moment – and in the utmost secrecy – on the new Grand Prix V4 have revisited the work carried out by their colleagues a decade ago. But that’s not their only source of inspiration…
According to the pictures published on the site of the English insurer Bennets – self-proclaimed n ° 1 in the motorcycle sector across the Channel with 200,000 bikers insured – the men of Mattighofen also closely study the productions of the competition !
The golden fairing, the rigid hose and the front lights visible on the first photo, as well as the radiators, the star crankcase, the ridged exhaust and the saddle on the second, leave no doubt about the bike ridden by the tester who clearly knows that he rides for KTM !
You don’t have to be an expert in Aprilia models to recognize the Tuono V4 under the funny Austrian camouflage … "No other motorcycle was tested during this test session", assures the paparazzi present on the spot,"but the roads on which the bike was spotted are famous for handling tests". Case to follow: stay connected !
Related articles
-
Suzuki GSF 600 Bandit endurance test Uli, pull up the car The bandit no longer runs. Anyone still claim that motorcycles have no soul: Our long-term test…
-
Aprilia RSV mille endurance test
Aprilia RSV mille endurance test Aprilia freshness It was expected like the first ray of sunshine after a gray winter and wafted over the Alps like a…
-
Sporty – Aprilia unveils the production RS 660 and the Tuono 660 concept – Pre-owned APRILIA
Aprilia unveils the production RS 660 and the Tuono 660 concept Aprilia does double duty at home with the final version of its RS 660, a highly…
-
News – New Aprilia Dorsoduro 1200 and Moto Guzzi V7 Racer – Pre-owned APRILIA MOTO GUZZI
New Aprilia Dorsoduro 1200 and Moto Guzzi V7 Racer The Piaggio group did not wait for the Cologne show to present two of its new 2011 models: the Aprilia…
-
New products – Aprilia plunges into exclusivity – Pre-owned APRILIA
Comparison test MV Agusta F3 800 and Suzuki GSX-R 750 Middle class super sports car from MV Agusta and Suzuki in the test A veritable middle class has…
-
Aprilia RS 250 test A question of timing Fast street bikes with two-stroke engines? There’s only little Aprilia left. And that too must be retired in…
-
Market reports – First half of 2013: Piaggio’s market report – Pre-owned APRILIA MOTO GUZZI PIAGGIO
First half of 2013: Piaggio’s market report Piaggio and Vespa have just completed the first half of 2013 with a decline of -7.5% and have a total of…
-
Interview Valentina Barletta (Aprilia, Moto Guzzi): the good progress of European manufacturers is a key indicator With 1,185 and 802 registrations,…
-
Laurent Videmont (Aprilia, Moto Guzzi): the V7 results are encouraging With 1332 and 748 registrations, Aprilia and Moto Guzzi posted declines of -27.9%…
-
Eicma Milan – R18 – 2: BMW makes two concepts with one stone … – Pre-owned BMW
Endurance final test balance MZ 1000 S To be or not to be The world had to wait a long time for the sporty 1000 from Saxony. The first long-term test of…