warming myself and the bike up while scrubbing in the OEM Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa II tyres . Oh , that engine , how I ’ d missed that throaty growl from the 659cc parallel-twin engine . At 95hp , it ’ s down 5hp on the RS model , but it certainly wasn ’ t that noticeable as the Tuono feels like it has different gearing , which works well with the engine mapping . This engine produces good torque down low , but it ’ s higher in the rev range where all the fun and noise happens . Keeping the revs up and flicking through the gears has the Tuono making max torque at 8500rpm and max power at about 10,500rpm Just like the RS , the power delivery is very linear , so no nasty surprises when grabbing a big handful of throttle , it just reacts like a super eager puppy and speeds off in the direction it ’ s pointed . On track the ergo ’ s are good , the upright riding position , whilst not ideally suited for the track , sure was comfortable and I still managed to get in a tuck and keep my head relatively out of the wind . There ’ s no vibration through the bike and I rode multiple sessions on the track , back-toback without tiring . The only session I didn ’ t ride in was the Race Group , as we were missing a few too many ponies to keep up with that lot . The Tuono is missing a few of those special extras the RS has , namely the quick-shifter / autoblipper ( an optional extra on the Tuono ), and I was a tad disappointed as it meant using the clutch and having to see if I could create
36 KIWI RIDER