Aprilia owners - how's the service?

**Dave C** · 18th December 2011, 10:19

My short list for a (near) new bike has an Aprilia Tuono moving up the ranking, but would appreciate feedback about parts and service support for the brand. I know Triumph NZ are the importers, and my experience of getting Piaggio parts (for my round town scoot) which TNZ also bring in has been patchy to say the least. Good stories - horror shows,all welcome!

**Madness** · 18th December 2011, 10:39

Where's Hitcher?

**tri boy** · 18th December 2011, 10:55

Paging Mr Hitch to the white phone.

Mr Hitcher, you have a call waiting......................

**Fast Eddie** · 18th December 2011, 13:02

I'll be watching this thread to find a place to source Aprilia OEM parts.

my Aprilia parts ordered direct from overseas suppliers. Mainly the UK and USA and strangely.. Brunei

**Gremlin** · 18th December 2011, 13:35

As others have said... Mr Hitcher is most suitable to offer an opinion, having owned a Shiver for an eternity (or perhaps it felt like that).

af1racing.com is the saving grace...

**Hitcher** · 18th December 2011, 15:29

Originally Posted by Madness

Where's Hitcher?

Still seething. One understands that Red Baron at Mt Maunganui, has a supply arrangement for Aprilia parts that doesn't involve having to engage with the arrogant, contemptuous disregard of TNZ. Just as well, if one wants to buy a new motorcycle with a factory warranty that can be honoured.

AF1racing, in Texas USA, is that country's largest Aprilia dealer. Their online parts service is just magnificent. They can have parts delivered to New Zealand at reasonable prices in half the time it takes TNZ to ignore your email.

**Sensei** · 18th December 2011, 20:53

Saddly Hitcher you brought a model that had issue's that you couldn't get sorted quickly from a less than helpfull Importer... It happens , you learn from it , you move on . Most have being there doesn't make it any easyer tho !

**Hitcher** · 18th December 2011, 21:01

Originally Posted by Sensei

Saddly Hitcher you brought a model that had issue's that you couldn't get sorted quickly from a less than helpfull Importer... It happens , you learn from it , you move on . Most have being there doesn't make it any easyer tho !

Not helped either by the fact that there is no way that one can have a conversation directly with Aprilia. Their appointed New Zealand distributor is costing them sales and negatively impacting on the reputation of their brand. One would have thought that such a state of affairs would concern them. Hopefully Ed at AF1 passes back the crap feedback he gets from Aprilia owners in New Zealand.

**blueblade** · 20th December 2011, 11:31

Tuono is a great bike.I owned an '06 for a year and did about 25,000kms on it. Af1 definitely the place to get parts - forget the Nz distributor. Common faults - rear brakes dont work (thousands of pages on the net on this subject) and instrument panel prone to condensation. Also pay to check the steering head bearings - they are expensive and prone to wear from wheelies (and in my case, very poor landings)

**Owl** · 20th December 2011, 18:31

Thinking seriously about the new V4 Tuono, so quite interested in this thread. I've never had an issue getting genuine Triumph parts, but then it's not an Aprilia. Hitcher's experience sucks and is certainly cause for concern...

Then again, if you can acquire Aprilia parts, I'm sure you wouldn't have to buy half a bike like Triumph are starting to do. Maybe a slight exaggeration there, but this is KB so perfectly acceptable

**frogfeaturesFZR** · 21st December 2011, 16:57

AF1 are great, couldn't be easier getting parts. And the forums a great source of info as well

**JimO** · 21st December 2011, 17:11

Triumph NZ are the NZ importers of Cagiva, they took 6 months to supply new brake rotors under warranty

**Pussy** · 21st December 2011, 19:11

Originally Posted by Owl

Thinking seriously about the new V4 Tuono, so quite interested in this thread. I've never had an issue getting genuine Triumph parts, but then it's not an Aprilia. Hitcher's experience sucks and is certainly cause for concern...

Then again, if you can acquire Aprilia parts, I'm sure you wouldn't have to buy half a bike like Triumph are starting to do. Maybe a slight exaggeration there, but this is KB so perfectly acceptable

Honestly, Al, I wouldn't touch an Aprilia with a bargepole.
The NZ "backup" for them is shit.

**Hitcher** · 21st December 2011, 19:44

Originally Posted by JimO

Triumph NZ are the NZ importers of Cagiva, they took 6 months to supply new brake rotors under warranty

Therein lies one of my arguments. If the local distributor is unwilling to honour a factory warranty in a timely manner, then why not be honest about that, discount the price of new Aprilias by a couple of thousand dollars, give prospective purchasers a list of overseas-based approved parts suppliers, and let them contract out of any liability against Aprilia to make good. Of course the provisions of New Zealand's consumer guarantees legislation can't be contracted out of. One may think that two years (the term of an Aprilia factory warranty) is a long time, but Triumph New Zealand clearly have a strategy of delaying tactics designed to make that timeframe work in their best interests.

**Geeen** · 21st December 2011, 20:12

Originally Posted by Owl

Thinking seriously about the new V4 Tuono, so quite interested in this thread. I've never had an issue getting genuine Triumph parts, but then it's not an Aprilia. Hitcher's experience sucks and is certainly cause for concern...

Then again, if you can acquire Aprilia parts, I'm sure you wouldn't have to buy half a bike like Triumph are starting to do. Maybe a slight exaggeration there, but this is KB so perfectly acceptable

They're a damn hot bike. Only thing that would tempt me off my Trumpy.