There are some truly great middleweight sportbikes these days, and the RS660, Yamaha R7, and Honda CBR650 are among the top. That’s we needed a shootout!
Recently the fine folks over at Motorcycle News had a chance to get the three of those bikes together to conduct a shootout.
In the video above you’ll see just how they all stack up against one another. And I want to do a brief spec rundown below.
Aprilia RS660 vs Yamaha R7 vs Honda CBR650R Shootout – Three Great Sportbikes
Aprilia RS660
The Aprilia RS 660 features a 659cc, liquid-cooled, DOHC parallel twin, four-valves per cylinder engine that’s fuel injected. The bike features a Kayaba 41mm inverted fork with rebound and preload adjustment that offers 4.7 inches of travel. In the rear, you’ll find a Monoshock with rebound and preload adjustment with 5.1 inches of travel. This combo makes the RS660 fantastic on the track and the street.
Check it out at Aprilia’s website.
Yamaha R7
The Yamaha R7 is the successor to the legendary R6. It’s a track-honed weapon. It features a fuel-injected 689cc liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, DOHC inline twin-cylinder; 4-valves per cylinder. It has a telescopic fork offering 5.1-in travel, adjustable for preload, rebound, and compression. At the rear, it provides a linked-type monocross shock with adjustable preload and rebound and 5.1-inches of travel. This combo makes it a potent package for the track.
Check it out at Yamaha’s website.
Honda CBR650R
The most comfortable and reasonably mild bike of the bunch, the Honda CBR650R offers a good blend. It features a 649cc liquid-cooled inline four-cylinder engine with fuel injection. The bike offers a 41mm fork up front with 4.3 inches of travel. In the rear, you’ll find a Showa Single Shock with 5.0 inches of travel. This is a fantastic bike for the street with all the track chops that most of up will actually be able to use.
Check it out at Honda’s website.
