What Do you think of Aprilia Pegaso 650

Motorcycling
1

Hi All

I have an option to buy a 1998 Aprilia Pegaso 650 for £1500. It’s black, low milage with a new carbon exhaust. It will be my first bike and the main use will be for getting to and from work in central london.

As a newbie any advice and opinions would be hugely appreciated!

2

buy a bmw f650 parts are cheaper and i think its the same engine

3

There are probably differing views as to which is better Pegaso or F650. The engine is basically the same, with some valve differences between the 2.

I have an F650 of a similar age to that Pegaso, they’re a good solid first bike and very easy to filter around traffic in town. It’s a good managable hack.

Not sure about parts for the Pegaso, but there are 2 BMW parts dealers in the UK both do new and used parts, they seem reasonable.

See if you can take one for a test ride, the single cylinder engine can take some getting used to, so I’ve heard, it’s all I’ve riden so everything else feels weird to me

4

I’ve worked on a few of these bikes now and have a few pointers to help you make an informed decision;

Parts are an absolute nightmare to get hold of, especially on the older models…ie 98; i tried to get a side stand for a customer and aprilia uk themselves couldn’t provide a part number or anything on a 97 bike . . . kept me hanging about for a month too before they said they couldn’t get me one…had to get one made!

you say a new carbon can … …a loud one i presume? MOT laws have tightened significantly in recent years so make sure you get the standard one too if it’s still ok . . .if not refer to point 1 . .expensive too.

other than that they’re good bikes . . resonably reliable; respoked a couple of wheels before but no major problems apart from those above.

the previous recommendation for a BMW is probably wise due to the excellent parts supply new and second hand for the F650. Do you like the teutonic styling though?

Hope i’ve been some help

Matt

5

Thanks for the advice, seeing as it will be my first bike I don’t really want the drama of struggling to find parts! Looks like I’ll give this one a miss and get a bike from a shop that comes with a warranty. (And I prefer the look of the sport bikes )