Aprilia Caponord

This is one of the best all around bikes I have ever ridden, the harder you ride it the more you'll love it!! This bike is lots of fun on a rolling dirt road threw the country side or putting a few hundred highway miles on a fall afternoon. It tends to get a little thirsty when you start reving over 5000rpm but that's were its the happiest. Limited and expensive performance parts and support.

Euro sex appeal and Japanese-like controls and reliability. A great big bike with good manners. Had my Aprilia Caponord 2002 for about a year now- got it with over 25K on the meter- and it runs well. Too bad it is discontinued.

I bought a 2002 Caponord as my "touring" bike. I take rather extended business trips so I added the Aprilia aluminum top box and panniers. I also added hyperpro fork springs and shock spring, Leo Vince slip-ons and a Tune Boy (which came with the bike but didn't have a proper fuel map downloaded. Once the fuel mapping was sorted, I get 40-42 mpg down the highway. The fork springs vastly improve the front end feel, which is originally soft. I also have a Tuono, and the Capo engine is nowhere the performance of the Tuono's, but it really doesn't have to be. It doesn't make massive low end torque, but will power wheelie quite easily. The 'nord handles very well and is quite quick after a few simple mods. I do need to do something about the seat, however.

The Aprilia Caponord is very very versatile, from rush hour traffic at 5mph to a couple of track days and long long trips in freezing and snowy conditions, to just general comuting. Its always fun. No pub car park envy but can make fun of sports bikes on the twisties. I now only want other bikes in addition to this one not instead of.

Generally a great bike to ride, handles well etc, servicing costs can be high if valves need checking!I love the bike!

EFI software worth updating.

Keep battery charged using an Optimate or similar, this is a big engine and will drain the battery on a cold winters morning.

Wish list Lets have some solid alloy wheels, those spokes are a real pain to clean!!!

Be very careful when demounting on soft ground, sand etc. You'll have to plan it carefully to avoid the side stand from sinking in and the bike going over.

Excellent value for money compared to other bikes of its kind. Goes like a train! great on long distance runs (780 miles in one go) over all types of ground. Comfy riding position and great for seeing through busy traffic.

Good range on a full tank if you don't cane it.

Overall I think this is a really good bike and are now about 2-3 grand cheaper than a near rival. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a large trailie tourer!

The Aprilia Caponord is a very good offroad bike for almost any type of riding. It has enough power for sporty riding. It is excellent for touring two-up. It is great for commuting (I've done it for 2 years). Riding on gravel roads is also great fun. The bike is top-heavy and I find a little uncomfortable riding on loose sand. I've owned 8 bikes (Japanese, European and American) and Capo is by far the best of them.

The Aprilia Caponord offroad bike in stock trim is a compromise of sportability, long-travel suspension, and touring plushness. It's marketed as a jack of all trades, that with a bit of tweaking, can meet the needs of its owner. It's fit and finish is beautiful- and it's the perfect Italian exotic for the person who isn't interested in something high-maintenance and low function.

I've found there's two ways to approach the Capo- proaction, and reaction. Some people proactively make the modifications they feel are necessary, and others hope that the manufacturer can read their minds. If something happens to be wrong, some people simply get it fixed, and others wait for warranty fulfillment.

I'm not knocking those who do- but here's my take:

The bike had an MSRP of $10,999 (I paid less, courtesy of some rebates). In my goofy opinion, that left me with plenty of loot to perform any custom modifications I feel are necessary to tailor the bike to my needs... ...and STILL be less expensive than say, a stock GS. In some areas (most noticeably, the UK), I've heard of some parts delays in warranty fulfillmemnt, but the Capo uses a lot of parts common to other brands. You can also use aftermarket parts. That said, I've not had any warranty claims so far.

It also comes down to what you are wanting a bike to be.

The Capo isn't as good a tourer as my GL1800, but it's close- and half the price.

The Capo isn't as good a sportbike as I might have purchased- but for where I live (and off the track), it's pretty frickin' sporty, aye?

The Capo can hold a ton of crud in it's storage boxes- and ergonomically, fits this 6'1" 225-pounder like it was hand-tailored to fit me. Heck, I've grown quite fond of the American sidestand in some of the crazy high-wind storms I've had the bike out in, and I don't even notice lifting it off of it anymore.

Again- jack of all trades, on a budget. Catch-your-eye-and-hold-it styling, on a budget. "What the hell is that?" on a budget. Italian exotica in a reliable, affordable, and easy to maintain package.

Do just about everything most anyone might want competently.

Now, if you don't like performing service on your bike- maybe not the best call if there isn't a dealer nearby. If you expect miracles from the purchase of a new bike- well, I don't think there's a brand that would suffice. In 25+ years of motorcycling, I've yet to see demonstrable perfection from any of the manufacturers we carry- but then, I don't see any earth-shatttering examples of super-shoddy design, either.

I see motorcycles, that have always required a modicum of owner investment beyond the initial purchase- an investment of time, money, labor, and sweat. In short, motorcycles have always favored the enthusiast over the part-time poser.

This is an enthusiast's bike, just ripe for modification if you want it to be more of anything in any direction.

Or, you can simply turn up the rear shock a bit, throw a leg over it, get to know how and where the motor likes to be, and hit the road in it's stock trim. Sweeeeeet. This bike is a BARGAIN!!!

Last Spring I started thinking about buying a bike again. Living in the Desert Southwest with all the desert trails and marginal roads it

seemed to make sense to go with the Adventure Tourer style. I

started reading everything I could get my hands on about the

Aprilia Caponord, Triumph Tiger & and the BMW. I had experience with other

air-cooled BMWs (mostly good), but none with either the Aprilia or

Triumph. There was something about the looks that made me gravitate

towards the Aprilia, however. Last June my wife and I were in Tucson

for a business meeting so I stopped by Renaissance Cycles. They had

the Caponord I had been reading about. Unfortunately since I

didn't have my license I couldn't take it for a test ride.

It wasn't until late August when we were negotiating a very fun

road

in my VW diesel that I realized it would be much more fun on a bike.

The next week I got my permit, allowing me to ride solo during

daylight. I called Steve up at Renaissance and he still had the bike

so I made an appointment the Saturday of Labor Day weekend to test

it. Saturday AM I'm on a bike for the first time in 5 years. I

requested taking the bike out the back way on residential streets so

I would be spared the embarrassment of dumping it on a busy street.

Out back I tested the low speed handling and it was great. The bike

handles like a great big dirt bike on the street. I tested the

throttle response and brakes and they were all great.

An hour later I'm heading west on I-10 on the Caponord. I tried

to

vary the speed as much as I could on the 250 mile ride back to Yuma.

One thing I immediately noticed was the blast of heat from the

Caponord radiator. Of course the air temp at he time was 102. An

hour and a half later it was 116 on the instrument panel and stayed

there from Gila Bend to Yuma (100 miles). Fortunately I had a

gatorback water holder on the outside of my black leather jacket and

I went through 2 liters of water in 3 hours.

My initial impression of the bike was extremely comfortable riding

position, smooth engine, not too tall (I'm 5'11 with 31 inch

inseam-

my wife at same height and 36 inch inseam can sit flat footed on the

bike), excellent wind protection, great brakes and great handling

once the bike is moving.

I spent a few days riding around two-up around Yuma and the bike is

very comfortable for both rider and passenger. In order to get my

full license I had to ride the bike through the rider course at the

DMV. In the tests of turning, stopping and maneuverability the bike

was easy to take thru the course. The lady there told me it was the

first time she had ever seen anyone get through it without losing any

points. I don't think many big bikes could have physically

negotiated the u-turn and the cone weave.

All the time I'm riding the bike I'm noticing it's

getting smoother

and more powerful. Out on nice black top roads the combination of

power, handling and brakes makes the Caponord a very enjoyable bike

to ride. It doesn't have the ultra-low-end grunt of a heavy

flywheel, long-stroke twin, but it pulls like a Mack truck through

the gears at anything above 3000 RPM (keeping within break-in limits).

Our first ride in city traffic was fine. However never having owned

a water cooled bike I was a bit concerned when the water temp hit

209, but it never went above and would quickly cool back down to 180

once moving over 30 MPH. Last night we went for a 50 mile ride up AZ

95, then across Yuma Proving Grounds to Martinez Lake. Speeds were

50-75 MPH and the bike was happy in 6th at all these speeds. Big

dips in the road gave me a real roller coaster sensation in my

stomach, but no surprises in the suspension.

Maybe I've been reading too many posts or it was the first time

we've

ridden the bike when the air temp was below 100, but when we got to

the Lake I was experiencing the throttle problems mentioned elsewhere

in the posts. In 1st gear the throttle acted like it was only closed

or 15 percent or more open. This made for a very jerky ride. I

think it may have to do with the fuel I filled up on. I tried a new

station and used the 87 octane. Next tank I'll try my old

station

and hi octane. Another thing I noticed is that the back brake is

difficult or impossible to lock up. At high speeds this is good, but

I prefer a little stronger brake action at slow speeds. It could be

that I'm used to the linked brakes on the Guzzis. Overall

I'm

impressed with the stopping power of the Caponord.

Another thing I noticed was how this thing will haul! Having 1000

miles I ran it up to 8000 in 3rd gear. The engine pulls smoothly and

powerfully up to 8000 at which point I could feel some throbbing

vibration from the otherwise glassy smooth engine. Another thing I

noticed is that the headlights are excellent for lighting up the

highway and the sides of the road. In fact I was constantly being

flashed by oncoming traffic because they thought I had high beams

on. I'm going to check the aim tonight.

As far as off-road riding the Capo you won't see me at the

Imperial

Dunes on it. I thought 30 years ago that my 300 lb Suzuki 250 dirt

bike was too heavy and I must say adding 75 horses, 200 lbs plus the

weight of the passenger doesn't change the laws of physics.

There

are a lot of interesting hard-packed roads in AZ that the Capo will

work on, but sand, and deep loose gravel are not its strong

suits-at

least 2-up. Moreover I agree with several posters that there are

just too many vulnerable and expensive components on the bike to risk

all out thrashing in the rocks. If I want a dirt bike, I'll buy

one

a little more appropriate.

Observations:

Handling: Excellent steering, brakes, suspension. Seat, handlebar,

footpeg relationship excellent for me.

Fairing:Superb wind protection from both the screen and the side

panels. In 100 plus heat the blast of air from the radiator is

uncomfortable at speeds below 30 mph.

Brakes:Front excellent, rear a little week-I think it's the

design

of the master cylinder because components are first-rate.

Switches and Instruments:Levers and controls are quality and easy

too use and adjust. I'd prefer a separate trip meter that I

could

easily reset at gas top ups to gage my fuel level. I'm just not

use

to the electronic gas gage and as others have said it takes about 4.4

gallons to top off when the light comes on. Last Saturday the bike

was in the sun in 110 temp for about 15 minutes. The entire LED

surface became black and grainy-no miles, no temp, no nothing.

Five

minutes after I parked it in my garage everything was back to

normal. Might want to put a cover over it when parked out in hi heat

and intense sun.

Seat:Very comfortable with room to move around for both rider and

passenger. Longest trip so far 250 miles with no complaints. One

thing that's really neat is that you can adjust rear spring

preload

while riding!

I like the looks of the bike and feel it will be a great ride for

years to come.