2017 MV Agusta Brutale 800 first ride review: The lightweight champion suited for Indian roads

By Shubhabrata Marmar

MV Agusta is a brand of legend. Whether it is their racers from the old days or their more recent motorcycles, the bikes are special. When we first got to test their products on Indian roads, we discovered that among the range of options, we seemed to gravitate towards the three-cylinder motorcycles, like the F3 and the Brutale 800 a lot more than the older four-cylinder machines, like the F4 and the Brutale 1090. So naturally, we got excited when Motoroyale, the Indian representatives, told us that it is nearly time for the new 2017 Brutale 800 to come join the party. But in preparation for that, we went to the storied MV Agusta factory in Varese, about an hour from Milan to ride the new motorcycle.

Part of the story of the MV Agusta is the design. The late Massimo Tamburini was a big part of it, and now Adrian Morton’s lines have become well-appreciated as well. The Brutale, MV’s sport-naked, has always been a distinctive motorcycle. In fact, many of the details that you see on the sport-naked bikes today can be traced back to the original Brutale from 15 years ago.

And that many years later, while the Brutale continues to evolve slowly, the silhouette is still striking and distinctive. The bodywork is tightly packed and heavily sculpted and there is a sense of unabashed wallowing about in mechanical glory about the design. For 2017, the design has heavy revisions, within the limits of the silhouette and lines that signify the Brutale. The tank is new, for example, but it takes a moment to notice the shape. More obvious is the new instrument cluster and the plastic housing into which it is mounted. Also new is the headlight which includes a simple DRL as well as an MV Agusta logo now. At the back, the light is a new design and the grab rails are neatly integrated so they disappear though you can use four Allen bolts to move it backward and make it useable. Very good idea that one.

But the revisions are not restricted to the design. The chassis has been revised too with MV Agusta elongating the wheelbase slightly as well as adding a hint more of trail. The base frame is the same, more or less, with a red trellis frame connecting the headstock to the cast pivot plates, which in turn host a single-sided swingarm. Suspension is Marzocchi 43mm upside-down forks, fully adjustable while the rear is a fully adjustable Sachs unit. The tyres are Pirelli Diablo Rosso IIIs, and Brembo works its magic with twin 300mm discs at the front and a 220mm single disc at the rear.

The Brutale also boasts the latest suite of the MVICS electronics which add engine brake control, 8-level traction, 3-level ABS and more. And thankfully, MV has evolved both the screen and the switchgear and solved one of the issues we had with the older Brutale.

And let us not forget the engine. The 799 cc triple has been revised too. It makes 110 PS but gets as much as 25 per cent more torque of which 80 per cent is available at under 4,000 rpm. Peak torque is 83 Nm, again at a low point too – 7,600 rpm. The Brutale 800 has a slipper clutch, a quick shifter and more. But enough specification, let us go for a ride, shall we?

The Brutale looks like a small, tightly packed motorcycle and it feels even smaller to ride. The new subframe with the hole in it looks tres cool, and you really feel just how compact it is when you sit on the hard, flat saddle and realise that there isn’t any squirm room. The seat combines well with footpegs that are set backwards but not too high and a flat handlebar that puts you in a sporty slant but without too much weight on your wrists. We only had a short ride but it felt good, and that instrument cluster mounting keeps more wind off your chest than you would expect.

MV Agusta also made the triple-tipped exhaust pipe bigger for 2017, and it looks better finished to be sure. It also sounds good. The hum from the triple is more raw than you expect, and it adds to the flavour of the Brutale 800. Listening to it echoing off Italy’s walls and mountainsides was a distinct pleasure.

But this is an easy bike to ride. Torque is immediate and city speeds are despatched easily. Opening more throttle produces instant bursts of speed, but I like the fact that MV hasn’t made the throttle too sensitive even in the Sport mode.

But the sensation of the Brutale is of lightness. It feels completely weightless. And it begins with the engine which appears to have no crankshaft attached to it. The counter-rotating crankshaft, to be clear, is one of the signature features of the machine. But the revs rise and fall with an inertia-free glee that I really loved. Feed it the gears as the revs rise or dawdle in, say third, and you will be happy with the progress in either way. Lovely, really.

The handling of the motorcycle is similar. The bars give good leverage but it feels more as if the Brutale 800 weighs as much as, say a KTM 390 or something. Direction changes are assured but instant, and I would love to buzz a racetrack as well as tight mountain road with the Brutale. I imagine it would totally destroy apexes in both environments with great aplomb.

What will probably need adjusting is the stock suspension set-up which feels very taut indeed. We did run into some bumpy roads and some manhole covers around the Varese area and that motorcycle absorbed the punishment, but only just. If I were regularly riding the Brutale 800 in India, I would be hunting for more compliance to be sure.

But in sum, the MV Agusta Brutale 800 will be a good addition to the Motoroyale Indian line-up. Motoroyale is aiming to launch the new motorcycle this June at a price around Rs 14.99 lakh, ex-showroom Pune. It will also add the higher spec version, the Brutale 800 RR a few months later. The price intent places the Brutale 800 roughly Rs 2 lakh under the lovely MV Agusta F3 800, though the arrival of the Euro IV F3 might increase the gap as the sportsbike’s price will creep up a bit. Motoroyale says it intends to widen the product range this year and though the F3 is their current biggest selling model, I suspect that the Brutale will take over shortly.