Aprilia-based V-twin hits production more than four years after it was first shown
Way back in 2021 Chinese brand Zongshen unveiled the RA9 concept under its upscale Cyclone marque featuring the engine and frame from an Aprilia Shiver 900 under radical new bodywork and with a single-sided swingarm. It was promised for production but it’s taken until now for the showroom version to get its official launch as the Cyclone RA1000.
Over those four years the Chinese bike industry has transformed beyond recognition. Back in 2021, the RA9 concept looked like one of the biggest and most advanced bikes yet to come from China, but today the Shiver-based underpinnings date it and rivals like CFMoto, Zontes and QJMotor as well as newcomers like Kove, ZXMoto and Souo have leapt forward with larger, more powerful and more exotic designs that are rapidly bringing China into direct competition with the European and Japanese companies that have dominated for decades.
In its final production form, the RA1000 gets a revised version of Aprilia’s Shiver V-twin engine, a DOHC, 8-valve, liquid cooled motor that’s been punched out to 996cc thanks to an extra 5mm of bore – now 97mm – paired to the existing 67.4mm stroke, giving a peak of 78.5kW at 9,000rpm and 95Nm at 6,500rpm. Top speed is quoted to be 235km/h, and the kerb weight is a not-insubstantial 225kg. The frame is still visually similar to the Shiver’s, with a part alloy, part steel-tube design, and the show bike’s single-sided swingarm is retained along with its stubby-tailed look, giving a silhouette that’s more like a Ducati Diavel than a traditional roadster. An exaggerated 240-section rear tyre adds to the Diavel-ish impression, as does the low-mounted, stubby exhaust on the righthand side.
Zongshen is among the most established bike makers in China, with a longstanding tie-in with Aprilia’s parent company, Piaggio – the two operate a joint-venture manufacturing facility in China to turn out Aprilias for that market – but it’s been slower than some rivals to expand onto the international stage. Where CFMoto, QJMotor, Kove and the likes of Voge have all rapidly grown their international presence, Cyclone is taking a more tentative approach. It does, however, have a presence in key European markets, as well as Asia and South America, and plans to enter more countries in the coming year.
