During the 2002 World Superbike season, Noriyuki Haga — also known as the the “Samurai of Slide” or “Nitro Nori” — placed fourth overall on his RSV Mille. Aprilia commemorated Haga’s efforts with a limited production run of the RSV Mille R. Just 300 Haga Replicas were built for the 2003 model year, 60 of which were sold in the US. Modifications from the standard Mille R included the paint job that emulated Haga’s WSBK racer, a blue Ergal triple clamp with the production number and Haga’s signature, blue OZ wheels, dual titanium Akrapovic exhausts, and EPROM fuel injection. Taken together, such upgrades yielded a 10 horsepower bump and a 6.6-pound weight reduction.
The RSV Mille was originally released in 1999 and it marked Aprilia’s first foray into the big-bore superbike market. The model was well-received, touted for being exotic (yet still more affordable than Ducati’s 996) while offering reliability more on par with V-Twins like Honda’s RC51 or Suzuki’s TL1000R. Drawing from experience born out of the Italian firm’s race program — specifically its 250 GP machines — Aprilia bestowed the V-Twin literbike with an array of trick competition-derived features like its box-section aluminum-alloy twin-spar frame and double banana swingarm.
Manufactured in June of 2002, this example is VIN: ZD4RPU0173S000299 and is number 107/300. The seller purchased it three years ago. He reports that it was “originally sold in Tennessee and then spent some time in Ontario, Canada.” During his ownership, the seller has ridden the bike for approximately 200 miles. The odometer shows 7,424 kilometers (4,613 miles), and it’s said to be completely stock except for a set of frame sliders.
Find this Haga for sale in Glendale, California with bidding up to $6,600 and the reserve not yet met here on Iconic Motorbike Auctions.
Disclosure: Bike-urious is a partner in Iconic Motorbike Auctions.