BMW S1000RR vs RSV4 1100 Factory | Head To Head

Welcome along guys, welcome back to the Japanese garden for another one of our comparison series I guess we're going to call it. Today we're comparing a couple of absolute incredible machines. Bikes I absolutely love, bikes I've not been able to wait to get on to ride. So we've just spent the afternoon thrashing around the countryside all within legal speed limits. We never once went over the legal limit. And it is about 31 degrees today so it's extremely warm. A little bit hot but I feel like I've arrived as well because obviously I've now got the Sporting the LCR t-shirt. So there you go, welcome to the club. Welcome to the club, officially in the club. I feel honoured. You should be, you should be. We're happy to have you mate, happy to have you. Well thanks for inviting me, another great really enjoyable afternoon. I mean I've never ridden the RSV4 and I've owned a BMW S1000RR, previous model, so it's really interesting to try out the latest model. And obviously with those wheels on as well it feels... It's a big change to the old model as well isn't it? They've done a lot to it, the whole bike's revised. You can definitely feel the DNA from the old bike without a doubt. So as before, let's go through some top trumps. So we did top trumps with the Triumphs, top trumps with the Triumphs, I think that worked rather well. So we've done a similar thing with these two beauties. So I've actually got... I've got yours mate. If you're sitting next to that bike you've got to answer those questions, it's the rules. So the RSV4 power of this machine, 217 horsepower, that's going to take some beating. It is going to take some beating, I mean it's just laughable figures aren't they? It's so funny. 207 for the BMW. Pull over up here and then let's have a swap back the other way on the same bits of road, it'll probably be quite good. I'm itching to try that. Let's have a go on this. It feels wider. It feels wider. Does it? Yeah, oh god it does doesn't it? It's weird. It's skinny isn't it? It feels bigger here doesn't it? Oh, oh, oh doesn't it sound nice? Come on Johnny. Oh it's got a nice little pop. God the BMW though then, on the power, I just literally let it rip through the gears. This is electric smooth. The BMW's electric isn't it? Whereas that is, that's raucous isn't it? Throttle response doesn't feel as smooth, it's like nothing and then five grand it hits. There's nothing, nothing, then it comes in. Weight of the bike's always a big, always contentious figure. I've given both here, so we've got both here. So because this has got a bigger tank, so I thought we'd better do this properly. Because it's got a bigger tank, we'll take that into account. So wet, Aprilia claim 199 kilos wet on the RSV4. Dry, 177 kilos. Yeah, so quite, you know, it may be, they always say these things are heavy but that is actually pretty, pretty reasonable isn't it? It's not a lot in it to be honest. So wet weight for the BMW, 193 and a half kilograms. And that's the M Sport one, that's the one with the carbon wheels. Yeah, that's a good point actually. So if you went for the standard BMW S1000RR. I think it's just a couple of kilos in it, that's it. It's very, very close. What's the weight saving the wheels, do you know roughly? It's about two, another two and a half kilos I think on the M Sport, yeah. Okay, and then the dry, dry weight of the BMW is 173.3. 173, okay. So, and that's 177. 177, so they're, they're really close. There are Maccy D's between them, aren't they? But interestingly, I think when you ride the two, the Aprilia feels heavier, doesn't it? I know it is a bit heavier but it feels more than... That's because of the wheels. That's because of the gyroscopic effect of that weight of the wheels. Because it's really quite noticeable and that's not to imply that the Aprilia feels heavy. Yeah, yeah. But it does feel a bit slower to turn and you have to sort of heat it over a little bit, don't you? That's the beauty, I mean I've had carbon wheels on a lot of my bikes and that is the, the difference. Because it's that gyroscopic effect, once that's spinning, that weight of the outside of the wheel is like 10 times the weight of the static weight. So, it makes a huge difference and you can really feel it, can't you? Right, let's have a little play on here. Oh yes, please. Woohoo, she wheelies! Oh, it's, it's, it's lovely in the twisties. It's so controllable. It's almost telepathic, this thing. I've got to say, the Aprilia, look, the throttle response is so nice. I know we've said it before but, you know, this, the last couple of years manufacturers have really sorted out the throttle response. This is also brilliant. You pick it up mid, mid, mid corner, you pick it up and it's right there, it's beautiful. Well, the big one, I suppose, the, uh, the price, the price. So, this factory version, all the goodies, Ohlins, Acra, carbon wings. It's obviously expensive. I'm trying to justify it already. This will set you back 22, well, 22,400. Is it really? It's a lot of money, it's a lot of money. It's a lot of money and it's not even a shockable price these days because bikes are so expensive. Yeah, yeah, I mean, that is a lot of money. It is a lot of money, yeah, yeah. And they obviously do the non-factory version. Yeah, the non-factory So, and that is without the forged wheels, yeah, no Acra, no wings, yeah, no carbon at all, no Ohlins is the big one. No Ohlins, your, your, your suspension on that one, yeah. But, I mean, £15,999, you've got that soundtrack, you've, you've still got that motor, yeah. Well, you won't quite have the soundtrack. Yeah, you have to pay extra for the soundtrack. But they do, I mean, So, BMW price then against your £22,400 for the M Sport version, which is top of the line. I think in fairness, there's no extras missing at all. £19,995 for the M Sport version. If you go for the Sport, yeah, which is the model down without the carbon wheels, then you're at £16,995. So, just £17,000. So, it's £3,000 for the wheels and the paint job. That's really what you're paying for. Yeah, and I think you get an adjustable swinging arm pivot and some other, and the seat, and our lovely seat, which we'll come on to, that's, that's, that's what you get with the M Sport. And I think we've got to mention it, it's list price. Yeah, absolutely. It's list price for both, and when you're talking about spending this much money, yes, you know, there's always an element of flexibility. Well, Wheels Motorcycles, who very kindly lent us the RSV4, they're doing the 2019 version of this, which is identical, apart from the paint and, and the still got Olins, but hasn't got the electronic Olins. They're doing those for £16,500, and they were £21,000 last year. £60,000. I almost don't want to publicise this because I'm quite, it's limited stock, obviously, and I'm fairly tempted to actually get one because it's such a bike. It is. £16,500. It's phenomenal. Nought to 60, well, not nought to 60, we'll do a rolling one, but first gear to 60. I hope this has got anti-wheelie turned on. Yeah, it's got all that. I hope this has as well. Yes. Oh, hang on, some of this is anti-wheelie too, yeah, yeah. Well, hang on then. It's just doing what's owed. Three, two, one, go. Sorry, I had a bit of a head start there. Woo-hoo! Both flipping fast. Being a bit criticised, in our Triumph video, we never really came to a conclusion, and what do you prefer, and it was like, well, I wasn't sure. So what we've done, I've done a list of nine or so criterias, yeah, and then we're going to score them. So we're going to come up with a winner on points, and what will be interesting to see... So we'll both individually score each criteria and then see where we are. Exactly, and it'll be interesting to see if the points are the same as what the bike's best. Our emotional sense. Exactly, yeah. And what we really think. Exactly. So, first one on the list is performance of each of the bikes. I mean, they're both ridiculously fast. I mean, when I say performance, I'm not just talking speed, I'm talking handling, you know, the whole package. All of it. From a score of one to ten, that's what we're doing. Okay, all right. So, want me to start with the Aprilia then? Alphabetical order. Yeah, yeah, that's a good idea. Let's start with the Aprilia. So, performance of the Aprilia, I would say, on a score of one to ten, ten being perfect, I would say it's very high. I'm going to say it's an eight. An eight. Yeah. And the reason that it's not a ten for me is because it needs a little bit of finessing. Yes. And if you're a bit too aggressive with it, you don't get the best out of it, I don't think. And therefore, so I'm scoring it down for that because it's down to the rider what you can get out of that bike. Agreed. The BMW is faster but because it's easier. And that doesn't, you know, that doesn't mean it's better, it just means it's faster because it's easier. It may not be as rewarding or all of that, but just as a performance score being the easiest, the fastest bike for a set of twisties, an eight for that. I think you'll, I think I'm going to go eight as well. Are you? Yeah. And I will try, I'll go first next time, so I don't just copy you. You're following my lead. This BMW though, I've got to say, it's so civilised. It's very, very plush, it's very nice. Yeah, does it look good, the BMW? Yeah, it does. It looks really nice, especially in that, those M Sport colours, it's especially nice, don't they? And the dash is a lot better on the BMW as well. It's quite small, the apprentice dash, isn't it? I do like those new BMW dashes. Put it in the sports mode, Greg, just hit the down button and go down, down into the sports. Yeah, go down and down again, down one more, that's it. And that gives you lean angles and stuff as well, which is quite cool. Yeah, I think the BMW, I'm going to give it a nine. Are you? Yeah, I mean, I don't think, well, it could even be a 10. Really? I mean, what would be, I can't think of a bike which is better, so should that mean it's a 10 or is there always room for something to be better? Yeah. I don't know, I may give it a 10. Really? I'm going to give it a 10, I'm going to give it a 10. I think it's so fast, it's so easy, it's so accessible, the performance is so accessible on that, so I'm giving it a 10. Okay. I'm going to stick with an eight for the BMW as well, yeah, but for different reasons. So I agree with the fact that it's extremely easy to ride fast and it's obviously extremely fast on a performance, which is the criteria they're scoring, but for me it's just a little bit lacking at the bottom. There's a bit of a build and I think, you know, I think you have to give it more beans than I was expecting, yeah, and I think part of the reason for that is it's a straight four and I think you don't get that instantaneous shove that you get in a twin and so I'm an eight and I think, yeah. But I think for a straight four, that has got so much torque. I don't disagree. Yeah, I know, but it's not a perfect score, I think you're being a little bit optimistic. Yeah. It's really good, an eight out of 10, they're good scores. Yeah. You know, I'll give a pooch max here one out of 10. I'm going to go nine. No, I'm not going to leave it at 10. That's a good point, that's a good point, I get your point. Well, I'm going to go into dynamic suspension now, I'm going to play with my suspension, if I can remember how to do it, and mode, yeah, dynamic throttle response and I'm also going to go dynamic suspension. Hang on, I can't remember how to do it now. I think it all just happens, it all just happens when you change the throttle response and the suspensions, all changes at the same time, unlike the other BMWs where you've got to do it separately. The beauty of the BMW is the electronic suspension going from the road mode to the dynamic, there's such a big difference, you can really notice that there's a real dramatic change between dynamic and road, really noticeable. Quality of the bikes, I've tried to come up with things which aren't, you know, so this could this could be applied to all different bikes, not just these, so quality, sort of build quality, the finish, how plastic they are. So I think the Aprilia quality, I'm going to give it a nine. Because I think it feels extremely well screwed together, it's got carbon on there, it feels premium everywhere, I think it really does, I really like the build quality. Yeah, the BMW, I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with it and it seems well built, but it does feel a little bit cheapy, plasticky, there's some things that you tap that I don't like, I'm not in love with the frame, so I'm going to go, and I think we have to, if you don't mind everybody, I think we've got to consider that these are both £20,000 plus bikes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and so the quality is respective of the money you're paying. Exactly, I think I'm going to give the BMW, I'm going to go six and a half actually, which I know is really quite a low score and I'm really sorry. It's a tough crowd, it's a tough crowd. I don't want this to be the end of your channel. It's nice working with the BMW Motorrad while it lasted. I've got a caveat, it's not because nothing's broken on it and it all works, but it's a little bit cheapy, there's no carbon, there's nothing, with the exception of the wheels, there's nothing special there. I agree, there's not one piece of plastic on this bike, everything is carbon, every piece of trim is carbon, yeah, it's another good couple of grand more expensive, but if we're just going on quality, the quality appears higher, so I'm going to give the RSV4 I'm going to go the same as you, I'm going to give it a nine because... It's almost perfection. It's almost perfection, yeah, it's almost perfection and I'm not, I think you've been a little bit harsh on the BMW, but I do agree there's plastic, I mean all the trim around the fairing's plastic, you know, it is a bit of plastic. And it's not the fact that it's plastic, but it doesn't even feel particularly great. No, and it can move, you know, I agree, so I'm going to give it, I'm going to give it an eight. Okay. I'm going to give it an eight. Still close. I think this feels like it's got more mid-range, perhaps when you're not at full throttle, so sort of more power mid-throttle. I think the point is on the Aprilia, John, I think you can't be heavy-handed with it, you have to sort of caress it a little bit and think about what you're doing, and then you get the most out of it. I think if you just crack the throttle, I think it might just be, yeah, the electronics just stop it happening and it gets a little bit tied up in knots, doesn't it? Yeah, you could be right, a more of a fine, a fine refined machine which requires gentle inputs. Yeah, I think so. Whereas the BMW is sort of, it's so piss-take easy to ride. Treat it like a lady is what you're saying, be fine, light inputs. The BMW is bloody good though. I've got to say, you could definitely never buy the BMW and be disappointed because when you're out with your mates on a long ride or on a Sunday, you could ride all day and you'd get off and stop when everyone wants to stop and feel totally fresh. Which one is more desirable? It's you first this time, isn't it? Now, I think desirability, it's got to be the RC4, hasn't it? It's Italian, it's sexy, it sounds incredible, it's a V4. You're going to get girls throwing the knickers at you on that one. So I'm going to give desirability, it's right up there. I'm going to give it a nine. So I think desirability is a 10. You're giving 10? It'd be brilliant. I think the noise, the look, when you ride it, people turn their heads and they look and you can just see people were a little bit intrigued and a little bit in awe. I think you could park it anywhere and it's the bike people are going to have a look at and it's fascinating. So it's highly desirable. Fascinating. I think it is. I just can't stop looking at it when we park up. Yeah, when wheels dropped it off just and they wheeled it out of the van, it was like a moment, wasn't it? It was a definite build of excitement, wasn't it, as it came out. I couldn't wait to get on it and I just felt like a school kid at Christmas almost. It was fantastic. Yeah, I know what you mean. It's very desirable. It is, it is. The BMW, it's not as desirable as the RC4 but it is, it looks lovely, you know, especially in the M Sport colours. I think in those M Sport colours, it does look a lot nicer. I love what they've done on the front end. I love the new headlights. I agree, I think it looks amazing. I really like the subframe colour on it. I don't even know what it is, but it looks really nice. Yeah. And I think the M Sport colours particularly, it's still desirable. And, you know, the guy that dropped off the Aprilia from wheels was really impressed with it. And, you know, I felt good about it as well. Yeah, yeah, exactly. I'm not going to give it a 9, but I'm going to go an 8. I'm going to go an 8 on desirability. Yeah, okay. I think I will join you on an 8. Are you still in road mode? Are you in dynamic now? I'm now in road still. I haven't changed it, but that's okay. It's very, very comfortable. I think this is a harder bike to ride, fast. Yeah, I think you're probably right. But I think what you've got to remember is if you bought one and you owned it, you ride around some of its idiosyncrasies. And I think once you've mastered the Aprilia, I think it'll be glorious. So glorious. And it's not that quirky, is it? It's just not as easy as the BMW, because the BMW is so easy. I think that is why, isn't it? The BMW is just so easy. And they're coming on quite nicely. On to looks. So the looks, you go first on this one, because I did first last time. I think the Aprilia, I think it looks great. I think my only criticism of the looks are they haven't really changed it much in 10 years. And I know it's got the wings and it's been enhanced, but largely it's the same. It's all development, isn't it? It's all development. It's still an extremely good looking bike. It's lacking LED front ends, which I think we do talk about when we're riding it. And it's quite noticeable. It looks a little bit datey because of that, because they just look yellowy, the lights, don't they? When it's behind you, it's not there. But I think looks overall, the back end on it, even though it's old, still amazing, even without any... It's got a full size plate, no tail tidy, the wings, the carbon. It's a nine and a half for me. It looks good. The colours look great as well, don't they? Nine and a half. BMW. Romping away. I know, we're back to Aprilia for you, I beg your pardon. So looks, I agree with what you said. You know, it does need an update, but it's only the lights that need updating. And it's silly, you know, you think LED, you know, it's nothing, is it? Who cares really what they're like? And you can get LED bulbs, if it really bothers you, you can get LED bulbs in there. But it's no big thing, really. So I think looks, it's a nine. It's a nine for me on the looks. BMW. Double R. I think it's a great looking bike as well. And actually, when I followed you on the road, it looks amazing from, you know, the side, the back, and in the mirrors when I was leading, it looks great. What score did I give for the nine and a half? I think it's, I'm going to go nine. But I think, you know, it's not quite as good looking, but it's still very good looking. They've done a great job with updating it, haven't they? I love the front of it. You know, it looks Italian. That front end looks amazing. It looks Italian. I don't know why they didn't do it in the first place. I never was a big lover of the asymmetrical front lights on the other one. And the back end was too long on the old one. I think the back end of this looks great. I love the fact they've ditched the main rear light and you've got the integrated rear lights and the indicators. It looks good. Echoing everything you've said, basically. And I'm going to go nine as well. Does look nice and pretty in the back, though. Really tiny back end. It hasn't even got a tail tidy on it. It doesn't look too bad. Lovely back end, that nine. Really nice. It's been around years, isn't it, that back end? But it still looks good today. Look at the back of the bike on my back end. Yeah, you look lovely. Comfort, comfort. So this is getting all very practical now. It is, yeah. So comfort, is it me first this time? Yeah, so comfort on the RSV4. It's not bad. It's not as good as the BMW. But it's OK. I could part with it. It's better than we thought it would be. It's better than you think it would be, yeah. Especially being quite tall. When you're 6'1", I'm 6'2". You know, it's a compact bike, without a doubt. But even still, you've got a bit more weight on your wrists on that. But it's still acceptable. It's not too much weight on your wrist. And the seat on the Aprilia is way more comfortable. I think because it's the M Sport seat, it's a lot thinner because it's meant for the track. I agree. That seat does not work for me on the road at all on the BMW. It's very hard. Yeah, and it's just the wrong shape. It's designed for you to just keep hanging off the bike side to side, which again, on the track is fantastic. But on the road, it doesn't make any sense. And within 15 minutes, I was not happy about it. As long as that, I don't think it was that one. Not the first thing you've simply got on it. Yeah, so for comfort on that, you know, I'm good. For a sports bike, so this is comfort for a sports bike. You know, it's no gold wing, you know. So I'm going to give it a seven and a half. I'm going to give it a seven and a half. Yeah, I think I'm going to join you. I think seven and a half. Yeah, it's better than I thought it would be. You know, it's still not something you'd want to ride around town on delivering pizzas on for very long. But it's totally fine. The seat is good. The seat is very comfortable for me personally. The pegs aren't that high in relative terms. On both of them. Yeah, they room me, you know, just feel it's pretty good. Yeah, so BMW? I'm going to give it a nine. I'm going to give it a nine on comfort. For a sports bike. Yeah, exactly. And this has got to be for us. Yeah, exactly. You're not going to say a gold wings or ten, you know. For a sports bike, it's all relative, isn't it? And for a sports bike, it is really comfortable. The pegs are a nice height. The old bike, the pegs were much higher. I think the pegs were another two inches higher, maybe more on the old bike. How do they sound? Aprilia sounds incredible. I think it's amazing. Everyone that's into bikes must have heard an Aprilia V4. Should I just put a ten, ten for both of us? No, no, no, sorry. Yes, yeah, it's ten, it's ten. It's the best sounding bike, I think, bar none. It's incredible. And I actually think that, again, I don't want to offend any Ducati V4 riders, but I think the V4 is a disappointing sound. Yeah, yeah. Because I was hoping it would sound something a bit like the Aprilia. Yeah. That sounds incredible. Nice, you love it. I do, I've got to say. I think I prefer the handling of that straight away. Do you? I prefer it, yeah. I just get more feedback from it. Interesting. With a lot of BMWs, they're just a little bit disconnected for me. Yeah, yeah. It's early days because I've only ridden, well, I've hardly ridden a BMW, and the Aprilia have only been on for, what, 20 minutes. Have another go and do the same thing up and down. Yeah, I'll do the same on the BMW. Do the same on the BMW. And I'm not criticising the BMW, but I just think, you know, that personal preference. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, you get to sort of four and a half, five grand on that and it's... It just pulls, it suddenly wakes up, doesn't it? It's lovely. I don't know if that's something to do with the valve, because they've got like the standard Acura and it's got the valve in here, isn't it? So whether the valve opens and then it comes alive... I think so. Certainly volume-wise, it comes alive and the valve opens. What does it sound like as a ride-by? Oh, it sounds lovely. Yeah, it sounds absolutely beautiful when you come past. There's no, there's certainly already, there's a clear winner on sound. We can say, we can agree on that much for sure. Sound for the BMW and stock. This is stock, both stock because that comes with the Epreneur. That's just how we're testing them, stock. It's low, isn't it? It's got a nice little pop as you come down on the blipper. It's not your hip, is it? That's my hip coming out. It's got a nice little pop, but yeah, it's very, very quiet. Too quiet. A little bit hard because you need to put a pipe on it and then it will sound like, it sounds like a nice, flashy V4. It's got a nice bit of induction roar. A bit of induction roar, but it's a lot quieter than the Triumph Street Triple RS. It's a lot quieter than that. So it's too quiet. And when you're really on them over 50 mile an hour, you can't hear it at all. And actually, if you didn't have the dashboard, I would struggle to know what actually was going on. Yeah, it's a shame because it's too quiet. It's going to mark it down quite a lot because it is so quiet. You can't really give it. Having said that, there's no rough noises. It's very refined. So it's not like some quiet bikes, you can hear too much. And I think it's pretty unpleasant. So I'm going to go five because it's not the script. I'm going to go six. Yeah, I'm going to go six. She's sound nice. God, does it ever. OK, a couple more to go. Equipment, equipment levels. Yeah, a bit of a boring one. Times the BMW might call a bit more back on the equipment. So starting with the double R, I mean, what do you say? You've got the fuel gauge. It's got all of those roads. There's nothing. There's nothing missing. I can't think of anything else you'd want on it that hasn't got. I agree. So what you score, but it's got to be good to get. Yeah, I'm going to give it. I'm going to give it a 10. I think I'm going to give it a 10 because it's got every creature comfort you could ever want. The quick shifter and the blipper on a BMW is superior to the Aprilia. The Aprilia is fantastic up, but I struggled a little bit. Yeah, it's beautiful. It's got everything. The dash is amazing. It's got every creature comfort. It's very easy to use. Changing the mode is very easy on the fly. You know, I'm not even used to the bike and it's just so easy. Yeah, brilliant. For the RSV4 equipment, it's not bad. You know, it's not. It's got cruise control, which is the beef. It didn't have cruise control. Yeah, I wouldn't be happy. I do love cruise control. I do as well, particularly on a sports bike more than ever, because you need to give your right wrist a break. You do. And it's really nice, isn't it? Just put it on for a few minutes. Just move things around. I think the equipment levels on the Aprilia are still pretty good. It's pretty good. Yeah, it's pretty good. It's not wobbly. It's the fuel gauge. Yeah. With a bike which has such a small reserve on it. Yeah. You know, you've got to do the trip. If you forget to do the trip, you know, it's just a bit of a ball ache. But it's got the cruise. I'm going to score it a 8. Yeah. I'm going to score it an 8. I'm going to join you as well, because it's very, very good as well. It is. And don't forget, it does come with the Akrapovic. Ah, yeah, that's true actually. So, which I think as a stock item. I'm going to go 8.5. Are you? Yeah, just for that, we have to go that. But you know, that's a lot of money. I know it's more money in the first place, but that's a lot of money that you don't have to fork out after you've bought it. And it's loud enough. That's a very good point. Yeah, that's a very good point. Yeah, this is much easier to ride because that throttle isn't as sensitive. So, it can be a little bit more, you know what I mean? You don't have to be quite as fine, quite as, finesse it quite so much. The last one, value. Value for money. It's difficult because they're both so expensive, aren't they? So, value for money. I think you go first on this one. No, I will. So, I think, I personally think the price of bikes now, and I think partly because it's fairly self-evident from looking on the camera, I'm quite old now. But I think the price of bikes now, in my mind, is getting quite serious. You know, I was buying litre sports bikes, which doesn't seem that long ago, for like under nine. And now we're talking about 20, 22 and a half. So, it's serious amounts of money. The question is, which is the better value of the two, or are they good value at all? Just value overall. Value overall. So, I think it's hard to justify spending that much money on a bike, full stop. And you don't need to spend that much money on a bike, I don't think. And it's all very well having the latest and greatest, but if you're doing track days, then you might start getting paranoid you're going to crash it. And on the road, you don't need the performance of these or the exotica of these really, because you're not touching the sides of what they're capable of. But I think that the Aprilia is slightly better value because it comes with what I would say are traditionally more expensive components, like the Ohlins, like the carbon fibre trim. You know, it's got that sort of panache. Whereas I think the BMW, for me, I don't think it's such good value. And I think the base sport model, so not the base model, the sport model, I think that's pretty good value. Yeah, yeah. I think the M Sport, for me, is getting a little bit too fruity on the price. Yeah, it's the trouble, isn't it? It's all these, like the carbon wheels, you know, the price of carbon wheels, it's not too bad. If you think three grand extra when you've got carbon, they're only about two and a half grand for carbon wheels to buy. So, I get all of that. Yeah, but you're right. I mean, this has got the styling, the Brembos, that's got BMW, Gallup, they work fantastically. They actually work better than these on this particular bike. I think this bike may not have been running the brakes very well. There's a lot of lever movement. But you've got to caveat that because I've got those brakes on my bike and they are absolutely amazing. So, I think that that's probably... I think it's this bike. I've ridden other ones and they've been spot on. But the brakes on that are amazing. They're amazing, they're really good. For me personally, if I was spending £20,000, they just don't look very nice, do they? No. They just don't. And that's all part of the value experience, I think. I agree to that, you're right. So, let's score it. So, Aprilia on value, I'm going to say given what you get and given that it's hugely desirable and compare it to the likes of... I know we're doing a comparison between the two, but if you think about Italian bikes, other brands, they're expensive. MB Agusta, Ducati. Yeah, £27,000 for that Brutale. Exactly, I think the value for money of the Aprilia is... I'm going to go eight and a half. And I think for the BMW M Sport trim, I'm going to go seven because I think it's a lot of money. It's good, good scores. I'm tempted just to follow suit there, but I think the RSV4, I think you're right what you've got on it for the price. It's another two and a half grand more, almost than that. You've got the Ohlins. Which is not an insignificant sum. Yeah, it is a lot of money. But they're both hugely expensive, so therefore, which one do you think represents slightly better? I think as well... Sorry, John, to cut you off on how you're scoring. No, no. But one has to consider future values, depreciation as well. And I think with that desirability, I think that's all part of the value proposition. Well, that's certainly how I think about it. I don't want to lead the witness. No, I'm going to go eight on the RSV4. And I'm going to go seven with you on that one. Yeah, okay. So the question is, are you mathematically capable to add them all up? Certainly not. I'm passing it over to you. Greg is a mathematician, by the way. I'd just like to add that. He is... That's part of your job. You are a mathematician. Let's put the countdown music on now. Shall I get the calculator? Oh, lost my track count then. You're not going to put this in, obviously, are you? I don't know, am I? No. As soon as you mention halves, I knew it was going to be difficult to add a half. Is this going to help proceedings? Well, I don't know, is it? It's quite close, isn't it? It is close. It's quite close. So in total, adding up our scores, the S1000, we have a total of 130 points. 130.5. So that is your scores plus my scores all added up. Added together. Yep. The RSV4, 139.5. Really? So the RSV4 is the winner on points. Based on that score. Based on points. But the question is, which one? If I could give you the keys to one of these bikes and you had to keep it for the next five years, you couldn't say, I'll just buy it and sell it. Yep. Which one would you take? The Aprilia. You'd take the Aprilia? I would, yeah. I love it. It's just amazing. Yeah, just the experience. It's just too good. It's got some idiosyncrasies. It's got some little niggles that I'm not so sure about, but overall, it's phenomenal. And I just can't stop laughing when I'm riding it. It's just brilliant. It's really good. And I feel more confident on it overall. I think the handling suits me better. Yeah. Yeah, it's very racy. But yeah, I just prefer it. You? I'm a little bit more torn than you. It's not as obvious for me which one I'd have. I like the practicality of that. Yeah. I like how nice it is to ride on the road, how comfortable it is. Yeah. You know, I'd want something maybe to use that for longer trips. A bit more versatility. Use it as almost a bit of a mile muncher to a degree. And I think you could. You could use that, you know, if I've got to go up to test a bike, go to St Edmunds like I did the other week, go on that. Whereas I wouldn't really want to do it on that. No, fair enough. So. BMW for you then. It's allowed. I know. This is amazing. Yeah. But I think I would take the BMW. Why? Okay, good. But we're agreed that they're both fantastic. They're both incredible. The Aprilia is my preferred bike. But equally, if you gave me the keys to the BMW for the next five years and said that's it. I'd be perfectly happy with that. Yeah, exactly. You wouldn't be disappointed. They're both amazing bikes. Yeah. They are quite different, aren't they? Yeah. They are quite different. And this is a road test. I mean, you haven't taken these on track. I mean, if you took them on track, you may form different opinions, you know. So we're talking just road test. This is one afternoon on roads. On roads, a lot of them that we do know reasonably well. Yeah. Some I know less well. And, you know, they're both amazing. Quite different. Different characters, different handling. Quite, yeah, so, so different. But yeah, there you go. There we go. BMW for me, I think. I think. I could be easily swayed, but I'm thinking BMW. Stick with your decision. RSV4 for you. It is, definitely. There we are. Well, what we're going to do is the end of August, I should be getting the new Fireblade SPRRR. So perhaps we could do a rematch. RRR. The RRR. Perhaps wheels would be kind enough to lend us this again. Yeah. Plus the, well, with that, well, yeah, probably this. I reckon go the RSV4 versus the Blade. To see which one we prefer. And then we could win. I know, it's a shame we've not both agreed on a bike, because then we could take that. But that is the outright winner. On paper, on points, the RSV4's taken it. Based on that careful, objective scoring system. Exactly. So the RSV4 is the winner. So we're going to take the winner versus the new Blade. So personal preference, I prefer the Impreza, you prefer the BMW. But overall winner, you have to accept, John, is the Impreza, based on the scoring system. No, but I think you're right. An Aprilia test against the new Blade would be brilliant. We both own Blades. Yeah. Not the current one, far from it. Yeah. But we're familiar with Blades, aren't we? That would be a good test. And I'm really, really intrigued to ride that. And we've got the Japanese garden for it. So absolutely perfect for the Japanese bike. And for that test as well. So we keep flying out. I'm very jet lagged, aren't you? Terrible, terrible. That's why I couldn't have scores up. Thanks for watching, guys. Appreciate your support, as always. See you next time.