http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/8/2444/Motorcycle-Article/Aprilia-Shiver-vs-Ducati-Monster-696.aspx (http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/8/2444/Motorcycle-Article/Aprilia-Shiver-vs-Ducati-Monster-696.aspx)
I thought this was an interesting comparison, and a search of the message board did not reveal any duplicate posts.
Interesting. I have read others that praised the Monster. Funny how the opinions vary so greatly. I personally don't care for the shiver. I checked one out last summer.
good read, i like the summary at the beggining, sums up the monster nicely i think!
"the majority of riders who wish to keep their driving privileges need something a bit more practical."
i think the 696 looks much better, and at 484lbs id pass on the shiver
484lbs??? It would have to have a punchy engine to tow that weight around. Good read, but as always they don't give a good extended ownership view on the bikes as far as things like maintenance intervals, gas mileage, etc. Maybe the Duc is too "subdued" due to emissions standards??
95 hp vs. 65 hp. No comparison, in my opinion there would be only one possible option. Almost 50% more HP would certainly overcome 80 lbs of pork.
Quote from: corndog67 on April 10, 2009, 03:39:31 PM
95 hp vs. 65 hp.
Where'd you come up with that? The article says the Shiver has 75hp. Still, the extra weight has got to be somewhere... maybe it's all part of that "extra ground clearance" the article keeps talking about.
I never bought my bike thinking "oooh, it's gonna be fast"... It's certainly fast enough for me, and I know I have yet to develop the experience to take advantage of all the power and handling my bike has. And, I don't feel the need to ever get to that point. Part of me thinks that having a little fear of my bike could end up saving me someday. I bought my bike because I liked it, and I wanted it. If I liked or wanted an Aprilia, I would have bought one.
Motorcycle comparison articles are like a-holes... everyone has one. That's not actually how the quote goes, but I wanted to say it. Lot's of times articles are just biased opinions. Take the information, then decide for yourself.
I think you meant to say "Personal opinion is like an A-hole - everybody has one". Every motorcycle / automobile reviewer out there has their own opinion and agenda. They evaluate based on their own set of criteria that's important to them. It's just that they compared the 696 to a bigger, heavier, and more powerful Shiver 750. And if on track performance is the upmost impoartant thing, then the shiver will win every time.
Good read, nevertheless.
So, to all you 696 owners...is the comment regarding low ground clearance and how easy it is to scrape parts on the 696 accurate? The article made it seem as if it were so easy to do it was unexpected and could be an issue. I have a 620 currently but am considering a 696 at some point.
Quote from: Sassa on April 10, 2009, 05:21:34 PM
So, to all you 696 owners...is the comment regarding low ground clearance and how easy it is to scrape parts on the 696 accurate?
Ground clearance may be an issue. I was alarmed the first time my boot touched pavement. I think there may be some aftermarket rearsets available, but for some $$$.
Depends on your foot placement, tbh. I have big feet (size 13) and if i just ride the pegs with my arch, then it's not too far over before I can drag a toe. However, when I get on the balls of my feet i haven't dragged anything going as fast as I've dared to so far.
i was riding two up yesterday and moved my feet forward at one point for comfort... touched toes to ground in a couple right then left switchbacks... the ONLY time i've ever touched boots to ground on my 696 is when i do not have the balls of my feet on the pegs. i've NEVER touched even at a good lean with my balls of my feet on the peg. and i've never touched pegs. now i'm not a racer.. but here in germany the hills have some pretty curvey roads.
the 696 does not have a problem with peg position IMO, but if we ride like it's a SBK with your feet splayed out for braking shifting mid corner, you'll touch.
Raux, why are your balls near your feet? The part I don't really agree with is the brakes.....80 Less pounds and same brakes and same size front tire, but the Shiver brakes so much better and faster? What set of physics are they playing with? Magic ones?
Quote from: Sassa on April 10, 2009, 05:21:34 PM
So, to all you 696 owners...is the comment regarding low ground clearance and how easy it is to scrape parts on the 696 accurate? The article made it seem as if it were so easy to do it was unexpected and could be an issue. I have a 620 currently but am considering a 696 at some point.
I ground my shifter and brake pedals on my 696, that is getting down there pretty low though...it never became a problem and didn't happen very often.
Quote from: amcloud on April 11, 2009, 04:25:28 AM
I ground my shifter and brake pedals on my 696, that is getting down there pretty low though...it never became a problem and didn't happen very often.
hmmm how low were your knees? did you touch them also? and had you adjusted your pedals to be lower? seems that either your pedals were lower or you weren't off the bike enough unless you were dragging knees.
All the articles I read on the 696 before I purchased mine said it had 80 hp @ 9000 rpm. WTF this article says 62 hp @8400 rpm? Is that comparable???
Quote from: RBX QB on April 10, 2009, 04:00:22 PM
Where'd you come up with that? The article says the Shiver has 75hp. Still, the extra weight has got to be somewhere... maybe it's all part of that "extra ground clearance" the article keeps talking about.
I never bought my bike thinking "oooh, it's gonna be fast"... It's certainly fast enough for me, and I know I have yet to develop the experience to take advantage of all the power and handling my bike has. And, I don't feel the need to ever get to that point. Part of me thinks that having a little fear of my bike could end up saving me someday. I bought my bike because I liked it, and I wanted it. If I liked or wanted an Aprilia, I would have bought one.
Motorcycle comparison articles are like a-holes... everyone has one. That's not actually how the quote goes, but I wanted to say it. Lot's of times articles are just biased opinions. Take the information, then decide for yourself.
Twice in the replies section, people mentioned 95hp. I'm not sure of what the real power is. I know the BMW 800 advertises 90 or 95 hp, so I would assume the Priller is close.
Also check this out, although Popular Mechanics isn't the best motorcycle propaganda out there, they claim 95 also.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/automotive_news/4296457.html (http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/automotive_news/4296457.html)
Also:
http://fromthehandlebars.com/news/2009/mar/23/2008-aprilia-750-shiver-molto-buono/ (http://fromthehandlebars.com/news/2009/mar/23/2008-aprilia-750-shiver-molto-buono/)
Some of you guys are very biased towards Ducati, if the Shiver came with a wheelbarrow full of money, you still wouldn't like it. I'm a little more open minded, I'll ride anything with wheels on it. In fact, I seriously considered an Aprilia Tuono, but I couldn't come up with a source for parts this side of Texas. So I bought a Duc.
If it was up to me, the one with the most power, how comfortable I felt, documented reliability from previous owners, all weigh in. I am not brand loyal. Whatever I think is the best bike at the time is the one I get. I bought the S4 because it's got pretty good power, it isn't the fastest on the block, but it will get there with most of them, it turns pretty well, it was cheaper than the S4R and S4RS, and it was in good shape. And it's fun to ride. I'd ride one of those Chinese SV650 knockoffs if they were worth a shit.
According to the Aprilia site
http://www.aprilia.com/en-US/Model/27/SHIVER+750/Overview.aspx (http://www.aprilia.com/en-US/Model/27/SHIVER+750/Overview.aspx)
"Maximum power of 95 HP at 9000 revs"
Dry weight = 417 pounds
And according to the Ducati site
http://www.ducati.com/od/ducatinorthamerica/en/bikes/model.jhtml?model=2521 (http://www.ducati.com/od/ducatinorthamerica/en/bikes/model.jhtml?model=2521)
"78.8 hp - 58.8 kW @ 9000 RPM"
Dry Weight = 355 pounds
So the Shiver overpowers the Duc by 16 hp but also has to lug around an additional 62 pounds.
Duc = 4.5 pounds per hp
Shiver = 4.4 pounds per hp
So while the Shiver appears to be a lot quicker than the Duc in raw power, my feeling is the bikes are pretty similar in acceleration due to the additional weight.
Power* 58.8 kW - 80 CV @ 9000 giri/min
Torque* 7.0kgm - 50.6lb-ft @ 7750 rpm
where's the rev limiter set at? cause 9000 rpm... i don't think i've ever hit that. hmmm is that with the DP ECU and higher revs?
no, I believe the DP ecu's rev limiter kicks in at 10.5k. I could have sworn that the limiter is set to about 8.5k until the full 1,200 miles is complete, then it moves to 9 or 9.5k.
Quote from: z0mb1e_DUC on April 13, 2009, 05:29:11 AM
no, I believe the DP ecu's rev limiter kicks in at 10.5k. I could have sworn that the limiter is set to about 8.5k until the full 1,200 miles is complete, then it moves to 9 or 9.5k.
well i've hit something... i see the light and then a bit later the bike loses power. but i wasn't reading the revs, trying to avoid getting run over by a truck entering the autobahn. so i may have hit that high.
well i care mostly about looks. i mean as long as its still a good bike, which the 696 is most definitely is. so on that point i like the 696 much better. mostly because i think the aprilla looks like ass. but hey thats my opinion. i know a lot of people who don't like the looks of a 696...
when i purchased my bike i wanted a good naked bike that looked awsome. i looked at all the naked bikes from aprilla, mv agusta, ducati, buell, and triumph. i was looking for a bike right under the $10,000 price tag, as i was buying it outright. the only two bikes that i fell in love with was the ducati monster and the triumph street triple based on looks alone. i also liked the buell lighting, but i liked the ducati and the triumph a little bit more. so i had it narrowed down between those two. i went and test rode both and i felt a lot more comfortable on the ducati, so i bought it...
so my point is even if the aprilla is a little bit better bike, it rode a little better, and even if it was a little more comfortable i still wouldn't get it because i think it looks like sh*t. and its not like i bought a sorry ass bike either...
Aprilia makes great bikes, and I would definitely own one, but try finding a dealer.
After looking at the other Aprilia bikes I'd like to see a comparison of the Aprilia Dorsoduro 750 and the Hypermotard 1100. Basically the same HP but the Aprilia is $9,600 versus $12,000.
Hmmm [evil]
Quote from: tbird245 on April 13, 2009, 01:43:47 PM
Aprilia makes great bikes, and I would definitely own one, but try finding a dealer.
Something else to consider is availability/cost of spare parts and maintenance costs.
Quote from: mrplease on April 13, 2009, 09:39:56 AM
the only two bikes that i fell in love with was the ducati monster and the triumph street triple based on looks alone. i also liked the buell lighting, but i liked the ducati and the triumph a little bit more. so i had it narrowed down between those two.
+1
Quote from: tbird245 on April 13, 2009, 01:43:47 PM
Aprilia makes great bikes, and I would definitely own one, but try finding a dealer.
+1 again, but then, a month after the Duc purchase i found a dealer in Grand Rapids, Mi
still love the Duc though
my dealer sells both. Like the Monster better. Seacoast started as an Aprilla dealer, then bought Naults franchise.