CarBrandLogos archive · Aprilia · 2007

ApriliaShiver 750

The first production motorcycle to replace its throttle cable with a wire.

Photo: order_242 from Chile · CC BY-SA 2.0

The story

A defining chapter in Aprilia history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the Aprilia Shiver 750, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

Origins

The Shiver arrived in 2007 as Aprilia's middleweight naked bike, built around a 749.9 cc V-twin the company designed and built itself rather than sourcing from Rotax - a significant step for a manufacturer that had long relied on outside engines.

2006Honda CBR600RR-profile · Rich Niewiroski Jr. · CC BY 2.5

Design and engineering

Its claim on the record books is the throttle. The Shiver was the first production motorcycle sold with ride-by-wire, with no mechanical cable between the twistgrip and the throttle bodies, and three selectable engine maps that changed how the power was delivered. Motorcycling had been slower than the car industry to adopt electronic throttles, partly because riders were unconvinced a wire could be trusted, and the Shiver's system worked well enough to settle the argument.

In production

The chassis mixed a steel trellis section with aluminium side plates, in the manner of Aprilia's larger bikes. It stayed in production until 2016, when the Shiver 900 replaced it with a larger version of the same engine.

At a glance