Feels better than a Ducati, looks better than a Ducati, but it’s not a Ducati. That pretty much about sums up Aprilia. It’s equiped with better components, it more affordable and in many cases, it perfoms better. But damn, Ducati and it’s “lifestyle!”

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Patrick and I hauled ass to the Aprilia Demo Day and spent all day testing Aprilias.

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“It’s here…We’ll build it”

Alex and Tony have insanely embarked on a project to track a wrecked Daytona 675. We follow them through the wallet-eating, bank account draining process.

“This is going to be a lot of work.” Truer words have never been spoken. However, we’ve managed to get all the simple things done this month, such as checking for and removing all damaged parts. We ended up with a strong frame, engine, and swingarm. “Looks pretty clean and simple.” Tony just laughed.

JOB ONE

Locating parts.

We decided to go as much aftermarket as possible with this project. OEM parts for this model are as scarce as dodos. However, we made one sweep of FeeBay and the local classifieds for OEM parts first. We managed to secure headers, a rear brake caliper, a side stand, kill switches, a seat, and an airbox with throttle bodies.

Our next goal was to get it up on stands so we could properly work on the 675. To do so, we needed front forks or at least front triples. 675 forks were made in 41mm measurements, so there were not a lot of aftermarket alternatives. A call to our local supplier yielded no direct replacements. Kyle Racing makes direct supersport drop in cartridges, but having no OEM forks made that option useless.

After much head scratching, we came up with four options. One, we wait for a pair of OEMs to show up for sale online. Two, we buckle down and order OEMs from the factory (Heck NO! –Editor). Three, we purchase Marzocchi 43mm forks and fabricate a custom set of triple trees. Or four, we try to bolt 2007 Honda Cbr600rr or Kawasaki Zx6r 41mm forks onto our 675.

Whichever option we go with, we have a feeling it is going to be expensive! Stay tuned and come back in thirty days to see how miserable we have become!

I had one of these kits installed on the XR. They are designed for “racers striving for competitive advantages in endurance races.” It came with components including high compression forged pistons (for 11.5:1 compression artio) and high-lift cams (15 degree increase) intended for high output at higher rpm. Reinforced clutch related parts (including springs, outer clutch housings, etc) are included in the kit to meet increased power output.

Honda claims a 15% increase in power with the kit installed. The recommended retail price is from $2,500-$3,000.