Ridden: Aprilia Shiver 900

Everyone loves Aprilias. Our long term SR 150 is amongst the most popular vehicles in the evo India fleet. Why you ask? Because each of the Aprilias, including the scooters get a garnishing of power, agility and excitement, precisely defining the ‘Thrill of Riding’. Obviously, the same genes run through the bloodline of its superbike range including the Tuono V4, RSV4-RF and even the mental Dorsoduro 1200. But now we have another player from Noale that seems to have found a new pair of chromosomes. We have already sampled the Dorsoduro 900, which is based on the same platform but the Shiver gets a new handlebar, suspension, body panels and most importantly, one more tooth in the rear sprocket. Should you spend Rs 11.99 lakh on it?

The 896cc, V-twin motor is a stroked out version of the Shiver 750’s motor with subtle changes. The Shiver 750 is obviously the 900’s predecessor, which never made it to our shores. When it comes to the 900, we are not sure if the product brief the engineers received was about a cruiser or a naked though. We suspect, it’s the latter. Weighing 218kg, the Shiver is heavier by the segment benchmark – the Street Triple RS by over 30kg. Not just that, crank the engine and the purposefully built pipes give out a thumping sound, reminding you of British twins! And the exhaust pipes have a design feature too; they do not leave carbon footprints on the rider’s clothing unlike on the Shiver 750, thanks to their ‘sealed shut’ design. The riding position is comfortable for long journeys but not really aggressive like you’d want on a typical mountain sheep kind of bike. The well-cushioned seat gets you a lot of space to move around as well.

Riding dynamics confound the senses of the ‘touring’ brief as the Shiver gets very short first and second gear ratios, while the third cog allows you to go all the way from 30kmph to 175kmph. The fuelling is precise and even with the throttle wide open, the Shiver surges ahead without making any fuss, even in Sport mode. There are minimal vibrations too. Being a heavyweight, it’s not really easy to tip into corners but holding the line isn’t an issue at all. Thanks to a rake angle of 25.9 degrees and a long-ish wheelbase, straight line stability is excellent, with the motorcycle instilling confidence even at speeds above 150kmph. Inspite of its weight, the Shiver is an excellent bike for someone upgrading to a superbike as it offers a very relaxed, extremely easy-to-live-with kind of package.

The Shiver 900 holds its own if you consider it as a cruiser in a funky, naked packaging. Although it doesn’t belong to the same genetic pool as its Aprilia siblings or cater to ‘The Thrill of Riding’ aficionados, it is a great product for a country like ours, where biking equates to touring, and that, this ‘Aprilia’ baby manages to do in style.