Aprilia introduced the Dorsoduro for the 2008 model year as a street-focused supermoto-style motorcycle built around the brand’s new twin-cylinder roadbike family. The nameplate was positioned as a playful, aggressive alternative to a conventional naked bike, with styling and riding character drawn from Aprilia’s strong supermoto racing heritage. Early Dorsoduro models were sold as the Dorsoduro 750, and the bike quickly became one of the best-known expression of Aprilia’s modern, high-style middleweight era.
The line expanded in 2012 with the Dorsoduro 1200, which pushed the nameplate upmarket and gave the range a larger-displacement flagship with a more powerful, premium personality. That helped establish Dorsoduro as more than a single model: it became a family of road-oriented motard machines that sat between everyday naked bikes and full-on performance supermotos.
Aprilia later refreshed the concept with the Dorsoduro 900, a revised version that carried the same basic identity into the Euro 4 era while updating the engine and electronics package. The 900 kept the nameplate relevant for several more years and represented the final evolution of the series. Based on Aprilia’s official 2020 materials, the Dorsoduro 900 was still listed then, and the model does not appear in Aprilia’s current lineup, indicating the nameplate has since been discontinued.
Enthusiasts remember the Dorsoduro as one of Aprilia’s most characterful street motorcycles: a lightweight, sharp-handling machine with a distinct supermoto attitude, a strong Italian design identity, and a place in the brand’s post-2000s rebirth alongside the Shiver and RSV4 families.