Compared to the standard Tornado’s £12,000 price tag, what does the
extra £2000 cost of the RS version get you? First of all there are the
obligatory radial brake calipers, uprated Marzocchi forks, forged OZ
wheels and, of course, carbon mudguards. The engine gets new profile
cams, a new fuel-injection map and an adjustable slipper clutch. It’s
all wrapped in a very cool black painted frame and swingarm with a red
and black fairing.
It’s basically the standard Tornado with a bit of a kick up its
arse and a few features that may be a bit too harsh for road use.
This
sums the RS up pretty well. Riding it home on a cold, wet night through
London I started to form a large dislike for the RS. Within just a few
miles my left hand was hurting like hell from constantly having to use
the super- heavy clutch and it was virtually impossible to get the bike
into neutral at a set of traffic lights. This was the start of a vicious
circle as not being able to find neutral meant holding the clutch in,
which made my hand hurt more and my temper rise. Not the best start in
the world.
The next day I rode it around the M25 towards Brands
Hatch and was surprised by how pleasant it was on the motorway. The seat
is actually quite comfortable, the riding position decent for miles and
the motor has loads of grunt in the mid-range for rolling the throttle
on and off to overtake cars. Compared to the standard Tornado, the RS is
keener to rev and feels like it definitely has a few extra bhp in the
mid-range without being breathless low-down.
On track, the RS has
the same balanced feel of the Tornado. To be fair, it was so cold on
the day I never really got up to a pace where the difference in feeling
from the new forks at the front-end became apparent, but it certainly
feels no worse. The RS still turns beautifully and feels fantastically
balanced in a corner but, over the standard Tornado, it has the added
benefit of suspension that can be tailored with far more precision to
your particular requirements.
The RS looks stylish with its red
and black colours and, while they aren’t Öhlins, the Marzocchi forks are
real quality, as are the other components on the RS. And at £500 it is
still cheaper than a less specced-up Ducati 999S.
Saying that, I
wasn’t very impressed by the new radial calipers. It may have been the
cold weather or slightly glazed pads but they didn’t seem to have the
same amount of power or feel as the standard style callipers on the
Tornado, which are excellent. Brembos are usually very good, so I reckon
it was more likely due to something being awry.
The extra power
of the RS isn’t really significant enough to affect which gear you need
to be in for the corners, as the standard Tornado has a decent amount of
mid-range, but the RS does drive out of corners harder and faster
thanks to the altered cams. It isn’t a huge difference but it just feels
that bit crisper when accelerating.
The next day, I rode the
Benelli back through London to the office and I have to confess I was
riding like a bit of a twat because I was running a bit late. I was
banging down the gears running up to roundabouts, braking late for
traffic lights and generally riding quite aggressively. This style
suited the RS perfectly and made it a much more enjoyable ride home than
the cold one a few nights earlier. I suppose that’s riding without
compromises for you.
