Midsized Fun, Two Ways
Manual And Automatic

By Steve Lita, Photos By Bob Feather

This past autumn, we had the good fortune of testing Aprilia’s new SL 750 Shiver and Mana 850 back-to-back. These two sister ships are carrying the 2009 middleweight naked standard flag for Aprilia in similar fashion, but with decidedly specific differences. Both are V-twin, water-cooled, fuel-injected midsize standards with high-tech looks, trellis frames, radial front brakes, and similar seat heights. The wheelbases and engine torque output are close, too. But these siblings have distinctions.

The proof is in the ride. Not in the ride quality — that is, I found both to be equally comfortable for street riding — but in how you ride them.

Most everything is in the usual places — shifter, brakes, throttle, controls, etc. — except the Mana adds the convenience of choosing clutchless shifting, or no shifting at all. There’s no clutch lever, and you can shift the Mana with a paddle-style shifter on the left handlebar or with a conventional toe lever. Or just set the riding mode to one of three Auto Drive settings and let the bike do all the work, twist-’n-go style (see Sidebar). I can imagine some of our colleagues in the industry trying to belittle the Mana, calling it a scooter based on its twist-’n-go optional operation and the puta-puta-puta exhaust note. But I call it a motorcycle because of its looks; shopping list of hardcore, motorcycle-style equipment; seating position, and overall performance. I applaud Piaggio and Aprilia for crossbreeding some of the performance scooter technology they have worked so hard to develop into a sporty motorcycle package to up the fun factor.

The Twins’ V-Twins

The Shiver has a new four-valve, 95 hp, 750cc V-twin engine, featuring dual overhead cams, electronic fuel injection with two throttle bodies, and fly-by-wire throttle control. Spark plug caps with integrated stick coils light the Shiver’s fuel. The six-speed transmission shifted positively and flawlessly. Compare that to the Mana’s 90-degree V-twin engine with single overhead cam, electronic fuel injection, single throttle body, four valves per cylinder, and twin spark plug ignition. The Mana engine delivers 76 hp at the crank and uses belt primary drive, seven gears, and a chain secondary drive to turn the wheel.

Both bikes feature adjustable mapping. Three performance modes, Sport, Touring, and Rain, can be selected on the move through a switch on the handlebar. The engine changes character depending on the mode: Sport provides aggressive, instant power; Touring offers smoother throttle action, better suited to relaxed, long-distance riding; and Rain provides reduced power for improved safety on slippery surfaces. No matter the bike, I found myself riding in Sport mode most of the time. Touring mode was comfortable, but Rain mode is just plain muted. Try them and decide for yourself. At least it’s nice to have the options.

Sister Framework

These lightweight Aprilia beauties both feature trellis frames with lateral shocks: the Shiver carries her shock on the right and the Mana’s is on the left. Another flip-flop is the drive chain location; Shiver has the usual left-side drive while the Mana drives on the right. Aside from looking cool and being easy to get to and adjust (preload and rebound), a main advantage of mounting the shocks in this orientation is to allow room for the rear cylinder exhaust manifold to exit more smoothly. There are major differences in the way the fumes move away from the bikes. Shiver sends the hot gases to a pair of triangular twin undertail exhaust mufflers that were specially tuned with consultation from Alfa Romeo. However, the Mana’s left-side chrome pipe is eerily reminiscent of a small scooter can.

On both bikes a 43mm upside-down front fork with beefy clamps hold up the front ends, and big, tapered, tubular handlebars are perfect for grabbing onto. Both bikes feature the latest in sporty wide wheels with 10 thin spokes, and rubber in 120/70/17" front and 180/55/17" rear.

Braking is similar, but feels different. Front brakes are radial-mounted, four-piston calipers squeezing 320mm floating rotors. Rear brakes differ slightly, with the Mana carrying a 260mm diameter disc and the Shiver spinning a 245mm. Single-piston calipers are used in back on each bike, and all the lines are braided stainless steel. I was a little dissatisfied with the Mana’s rear brake feel. But the Shiver’s brakes never left me disappointed.

Style Points

Personally, I’m torn. I got my hands on the Shiver first and immediately fell in love with the light weight, nimble handling, Euro styling, and fun-to-ride personality. But then the Mana came along with its newfangled, quirky transmission and easy-to-ride nature. Add the twist on conventional motorcycle department layout, and the Mana won me over. I’m talking about the storage compartment where you’d normally find a fuel tank and the repositioned fuel tank. The Mana’s 4.2-gallon tank is located under the seat, lower than normal, to distribute weight more evenly and lower the bike’s center of gravity.

Up top, pop open the lid and you’ll find a cavernous compartment with nonscratch lining large enough for an open-face helmet (Aprilia advertises a full-face helmet that will fit as well), with mobile phone holder and a 12V power socket. You gain access with a small switch on the front of the left switchgear when the ignition is on. The lid opens under the control of a hydropneumatic damper that prevents accidental opening while the bike is in motion. A manually operated lever under the passenger seat is provided to release the compartment lid in the event of a dead battery. The only gripe I have here is that it’s possible to remove the key from the ignition with the lid open and accidentally lock it inside the storage compartment. And, unfortunately, you’ll need the key to lift the passenger seat to manually release the lid. I always checked to make sure I knew where the key was before slamming the lid. And, no, I didn’t lock the key in the compartment by accident.

What we have here are two of my favorite bikes that have passed through the office motor pool over the past few months. There’s no need for liter-bike power plants, as these midsized V-twins have just enough power to get the job done. The technology that Aprilia has put forth in the 850 Mana is truly rider-friendly and easy to use. And the Shiver’s light weight and sporting manners make it plain fun to ride. Aprilia has a winning pair here. It’s difficult to pick one over the other, but I would easily pick either over many other bikes on the market. RB

Mana Shifting

The Mana features an electronically controlled, sequential transmission that offers the rider a choice of control modes:

Sequential mode: The rider shifts gears, either using the conventional pedal or the paddle switch on the left handlebar.

A servo-mechanism shifts between the seven gear ratios smoothly and quickly. There’s no tach on the Mana, so you can upshift by feel or by watching the four sequential shift lights on the dash. During deceleration, if you don’t want to downshift, the control system intervenes to change automatically. You’ll always end up in first gear when you come to a stop. Neat.

Autodrive mode: Electronics assume control over everything, and the CVT transmission keeps the engine running at maximum torque speed for optimum pickup and acceleration. Autodrive offers a choice of three mappings:

Sport: for top performance and acceleration

Touring: for minimum consumption and maximum usability

Rain: for use on wet or slippery roads

The rider can downshift manually in Autodrive, when overtaking a slower vehicle, for example. You can switch from Autodrive to Sequential mode at any time on the fly. The shifting in Autodrive is so smooth you can barely even feel it. The only way to find out what gear you’re in is to kick it down one, then the gear position will illuminate on the dash. By the way, you start the Mana in first gear, as it’s always in first gear at a stop, so don’t blip the throttle, as the bike will lurch forward. And if you try to take off with the sidestand down, the Mana’s engine will stall as a safety precaution. Because the Mana will roll in first gear with the ignition off, the bike is equipped with a mechanical parking brake, which is easy to get to and activate.

Specs

Shiver / Mana

List Price $8,999 / $9,899

Engine V-twin / V-twin

Valvetrain DOHC / SOHC

Displacement 750cc / 840cc

Bore x Stroke 92mm x 56.4mm / 88mm x 69mm

Compression Ratio 11:1 / 10:1

Fuel System EFI / Weber EFI

Mfr Horsepower 95@ 9000rpm (crank) / 76@ 8000rpm (crank)

Mfr Torque Rating 59.7 ft-lbs. @ 7000rpm (crank) / 54 ft-lbs. @ 5000rpm (crank)

Transmission Six speed / Seven speed (manual mode)

Final Drive Chain / Chain

Overall Length 89" / 81.8"

Wheelbase 56.6" / 57.5"

Rake/Trail 25.7degrees/4.2" / 24degrees/4.05"

Seat height 31.8" / 31.4"

Fuel Capacity 3.96 gallons / 4.2 gallons

Weight 416 pounds (dry) / 453 pounds (dry)

Warranty 24months / 24months

2009 Colors Black, Blue, Orange, Silver, White (Shiver) / Red, Silver (Mana)