Aprilia SMV 750 DORSODURO 2015 — Specifications

When Aprilia decides to play in the serious supermoto arena, the Noale manufacturer doesn't mess around. The Aprilia SMV 750 Dorsoduro arrives with a compelling argument: it takes the 90° L-twin engine from the Shiver, 750 cc carved from solid, and reconfigures it to bite harder in the low and mid rev range. The result on paper is attractive. 92 horsepower at 8,750 rpm and 82.4 Nm available from just 4,500 rpm, all managed by electronic ride-by-wire throttle control. This is no entry-level mill — it's a high-compression V-twin at 11:1, with four valves per cylinder and a mapping specifically reworked to muscle up the power curve where supermoto bikes are really used, namely between red lights and tightening corners.

The positioning is clever. Between small-displacement singles like the Yamaha XT660-X, too light for riders who want character, and the heavyweights like the Ducati Hypermotard or the old KTM 950 SM that pack more muscle but also more kilos, the Dorsoduro slots into the vacant space with a certain logic. It weighs 186 kg dry, 212 kg fully fuelled for just a 12-litre tank, which says something about its orientation. This is not a tourer. The 870 mm seat height rules out shorter riders, and the absence of passenger footpegs as standard confirms the philosophy: this toy is ridden alone, folded in half through the corners.

The finish is what truly sets this machine apart from many competitors at an equivalent price point. The steel tubular trellis frame bolted to aluminium plates is visible, showcased, almost exhibited as an aesthetic statement. The 43 mm upside-down fork, with 160 mm of travel, sits alongside radially mounted Brembo calipers gripping two 320 mm discs up front. The whole package breathes track-ready preparation without being exclusively track-bound. The wheels, the underseat exhausts, the red cylinder head covers reminiscent of certain Italian race machines — all of it composes a silhouette that doesn't go unnoticed in a car park.

What can be held against it is the 12-litre tank. For a machine whose mapping encourages working the engine hard, range will be limited. The 870 mm seat height will also close the door on a portion of the potential audience. This is not a bike for beginners, nor for those still undecided between tarmac and trail. The chain drive through a 6-speed gearbox and the claimed top speed of 200 km/h serve as reminders that this is a machine conceived for riding fast on open roads, with all the compromises that entails.

For those wondering what the price of an Aprilia SMV 750 Dorsoduro in France is, the answer is €7,999 on the catalogue for the model year examined here. This is consistent with the level of equipment on offer, slightly below the large-displacement segment leaders, and clearly above the singles. This pricing reflects exactly where Aprilia wants to position this machine: serious, grown-up, yet accessible to those who know what they're doing. The target audience is an experienced rider — urban or demanding daily road user — who wants a characterful motorcycle without managing an extra 100 kg every time they turn around in a car park.