The holy grail for sport bikes is the liter-class segment. These are motorcycles that will break the legal speed limit in first gear and get into their stride when others have run out of puff. After all, they chase the magic ‘200’ – peak power of 200 horsepower and a top speed of 200 miles per hour.
All this excellence and engineering doesn’t come cheap, though. It takes an army to engineer something as high-performing as this, and despite motorcycle manufacturers not really making fat margins, they still cost a pretty penny. The cost of admission seems to rise every year as well. In 2026, you’ll need close to $20,000 to take a 200-HP superbike home.
The Aprilia RSV4 Is The Cheapest 200-HP Sports Bike In 2026
Aprilia is supposed to be an exotic Italian manufacturer, and its motorcycles are supposed to be works of art just as much as they are motorcycles. Yet, the RSV4 offers the most power in its class for the least money. This is a freshly updated motorcycle as well, not an older model dragged on with changes to the decals every year.
Well Over 200 Horsepower For A Mere $19,499
The RSV4 retails for $19,499, undercutting the equivalent BMW by only a few hundred dollars and claiming the title of this article for itself. It is quite the bargain, because you don’t get bargain-bin components or a simple engine here. This is a V4 engine housed in an aluminum frame, paired with world-class electronics, all rolled into one – even if it is the base model. It is an unbelievable price-to-performance ratio at the premium end of things.
Pure V4 Performance Of The Highest Order
Emissions regulations and the hunger for more performance have resulted in almost all premium motorcycles getting variable valve timing. Most have it on the intake valves, while a few notable examples run it on the exhaust valves as well. The RSV4 breaks the norm, doing things the OG way (chasing more capacity). So what started as a 999cc engine currently has almost 1,100cc of capacity. In its latest updates, the brand has enlarged the cat con, installed more powerful cooling fans for the radiator, and given it bigger 52 mm throttle bodies.
As a result, the 65-degree V4 produces 220 horsepower at 13,000 RPM and 93.7 pound-feet at 10,800 RPM. These are eye-popping figures in the segment, and things become better when you consider that almost all of its rivals are detuned in the US. Whatever Aprilia is doing, it is doing very well. This engine has a six-speed gearbox with a slipper clutch and a standard two-way quickshifter, and, of course, a by-wire throttle and six-axis IMU. You have control over engine maps, engine brake, cornering traction control, adaptive and predictive wheelie control, and ride modes.
This Aprilia Is A Budget Sports Bike With Class-Leading Features
The Aprilia RS 457 feels like anything but a budget sports bike. Here are its features.
An Unmatched Level Of Adjustability For The Underpinnings
A twin-spar aluminum frame is par for the course in the segment, but the amount of adjustability the RSV4 offers blows the mind. The movable (also aluminum) swingarm pivot point is something we’ve seen on the RS 660 as well, but the RSV4 takes things further by offering adjustable engine height as well. You are also offered adjustment at the steering headstock, which means you can adjust the rake and trail.
Sachs provides the fully adjustable suspension, with a 43 mm inverted fork and single rear shock. Travel is 5 inches at the front and 5.1 inches at the rear. Sachs also provides a steering damper. The brakes are 330 mm twin discs at the front with Brembo Hypure calipers that are radial, fixed, and with four pistons, while at the rear, a 220 mm disc has a two-piston fixed Brembo caliper. 17-inch cast alloy wheels and sticky tires are present.
Finally, the RSV4 is a lot smaller than you’d expect, thanks mostly to that narrow-angle V4 engine. It is just under 81 inches long and nearly 29 inches wide, with a wheelbase of 56.5 inches. Its weight (450 pounds wet) is also in the ballpark of its rivals. Just make sure you’re not vertically challenged, as the 33.1-inch saddle height isn’t exactly low.
The Used Sport Bike That Gives You Superbike Thrills Cheap
Modern superbikes are incredible machines, but this old sport bike offers the same level of performance at half the price
The Electronics Lead The Way In The Features
The RSV4 has a new 5-inch TFT display for 2026. All-LED lighting and backlit switchgear are standard, too, alongside the full suite of electronic rider aids we’ve mentioned above. Where things get interesting is in the accessories list. Aprilia offers three ‘packs’ for the base RSV4, depending on what you’d like to do with it. All the packs require you to purchase the Aprilia MIA, an accessory that helps you connect your smartphone to the bike. Coming to the packs:
- Track Pack adds three additional riding modes, launch control, slide control, a pit limiter, and a dashboard layout customized for the racetrack.
- The Comfort Pack adds cruise control and cornering headlamps.
- The Race Pack adds the ‘Corner By Corner’ function, which allows you to customize the RSV4’s various systems (traction control, wheelie control, engine brake control) per corner of a racetrack. It also uses the GPS information for the lap timer and corner-by-corner settings.
Both the Aprilia MIA and GPS module require you to physically go to a dealer to make the purchase, while the activation of these packs, once the devices are installed, is pure app-based activation and only requires you to be connected to the Internet. All these features are packaged by default with the RSV4 Factory 1100 ($26,499), but it is nice to see that the option of upgrading the base model is also available to the owner.
10 Most Iconic Aprilia Sports Bikes Ever
Aprilia has always been one of the underrated sports bike giants in the world, and here are 10 of its finest creations
Aprilia RSV4 Competition
There are a number of liter bikes available from all the well-known manufacturers, but we’re only going to talk about the ones that meet the criteria for this article. That is, the 200-horsepower requirement. We have to give a shoutout to the Suzuki GSX-R1000, which is priced incredibly well at $16,499 and misses out on this discussion by a single unit because it generates 199 horsepower. The other liter sport bikes that qualify are the Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP ($28,999, 214 horsepower), Ducati Panigale V4 ($27,795, 209 horsepower), and we’ll throw in the Kawasaki Ninja H2 ($34,400, 240 horsepower) as well. However, their pricing eliminates them from the competition here.
Surprisingly, it is the BMW S 1000 RR that matches the RSV4 on price, asking for just $400 more than the Italian, and giving you 205 horsepower in return. It even has all the equipment you’d expect from a liter sport bike, including a full electronics suite and a two-way quickshifter. The inline four engine is a different layout from the Aprilia, and it is down on displacement as well, but it gets its performance thanks to variable valve timing on the intake valves. Oh, and this was the cheapest 200-HP superbike until last year.
Aprilia RSV4 Vs BMW S 1000 RR
|
Model |
Aprilia RSV4 |
BMW S 1000 RR |
|
Price |
$19,499 |
$19,895 |
|
Engine |
65° V4 |
I4 |
|
Displacement |
1,099 cc |
999 cc |
|
Power |
220 HP @ 13,000 RPM |
205 HP @ 13,000 RPM |
|
Torque |
93.7 LB-FT @ 10,800 RPM |
83 LB-FT @ 11,000 RPM |
|
Curb Weight |
450 pounds (wet) |
437 pounds (wet) |
Source: Aprilia USA