comfort , rather than an extreme race , low position . The seat is not high , but not that low either at 815mm from the deck . So , suitable for most , but those short in the leg might still struggle . I found it to be pretty comfortable on the road , with a nicely balanced riding position favouring everyday use , but with reasonable track day ergonomics too . Being tall , my normal seated position I was well above the ideal protection line from the screen , but for most this won ’ t be an issue . The front has an aggressive looking triple LED lighting set into the very effective ( for not too tall riders ) double-bubble screen . Surrounding the main lights are highly visible LED , DRL lights … something I think is a great safety feature .
ALL ABOUT THE MOTOR Hitting the starter button , the 659cc DOHC parallel twin bursts perkily into life with real authority , again not that unlike a mini , but subdued , RSV4 . The engine produces 100hp at 10,500rpm and 67Nm of torque at 8500rpm , but impressively 80 % of that torque figure is readily available from only 4000rpm . The cylinders are fed by two 48mm throttle bodies . The compression ratio is a healthy 13.5:1 and the sixspeed gearbox is tickled as standard by a quick-shifter . The engine is liquid cooled , as is the oil , via a liquid-cooled oil heat exchanger . The power delivery is strong and I was impressed with the grunt off the bottom and throughout the rev range , it ’ s very linear as revs increase too . This is in stark contrast to some 600cc four-cylinder machines that are quick , but very mellow - read weak - at low revs . They feel dead at the bottom of the revs and have stratospheric , difficult to use top-ends on road . The RS660 engine is effortlessly quick by
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