2015–2025 · Naked Bike · A variant of the Brutale 800
Differences between the standard Brutale 800 and the RR
140 Horses, Italian Triple Soul
The Brutale 800 RR builds its case around a 798 cc inline-three that runs to 140 hp at 13,100 rpm, with 64 lb-ft landing at 10,100 rpm. That is a high-revving middleweight in a class that usually plays safer. Wet weight is 417 lb, the suspension is fully adjustable front and rear, and the standard kit covers ABS, traction control, ride modes, a quickshifter that works both directions and a slipper clutch. What actually separates it from the field, though, is the shape and the noise. Very few nakeds have this much presence standing still.
This is a bike for a rider who wants the occasion, not the sensible answer. It asks for revs, it gives back sound and speed, and it flatters a good road more than a commute. Ownership is where the honesty is needed. The starter sprag clutch is a known weak point, the electrics have moods, and parts can sit on order for weeks if your dealer network is thin. Buy it for the drama and the design, keep a service budget alongside the purchase price, and it makes sense. Buy it as pure transport and it will wear you down.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 140 hp (103 kW) @ 13,100 rpm |
|---|---|
| Torque | 64 lb-ft (87 Nm) @ 10,100 rpm |
| Displacement | 798 cc |
| Engine | Inline-three |
| Cooling | Liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front brake | 320 mm |
| Front tire | 120/70-17 |
| Rear tire | 180/55-17 |
| Seat height | 31.9 in (810 mm) |
| Wet weight | 417 lb (189 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 4.4 gal (16.6 L) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Drivetrain
Lighting
Safety
Swing a leg over and the 31.9 in seat feels taller than the number suggests, mostly because the bike is narrow where your thighs land. The bars sit wide and fairly low, so your weight goes forward onto your wrists, and at town speed you notice it. Get moving and the wind pressure sorts that out. There is no screen, nothing between you and the air, and 60 mph on a back road already feels like an event. The triple buzzes through the pegs at small throttle openings and then smooths as the revs climb, and the intake noise arrives right about where your ears start enjoying themselves. Everything you touch feels expensive: the switch housings, the levers, the finish on the tank. It is a loud, physical, involving place to sit.
The Brutale 800 RR (MY2016-RR) builds on the standard Brutale 800: the upgraded hardware, the key spec changes and where its character shifts. The full ride, specs, scoring and verdict are all right here on this page.
| Spec | Standard Brutale 800 | RR | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 118 hp | 140 hp | +22 hp |
| Torque | 61 lb-ft | 64 lb-ft | +3 lb-ft |
| Wet weight | 454 lb | 417 lb | -37 lb |
| Seat height | 32.7 in | 31.9 in | -0.8 in |
None of what follows is my own riding impression. It is what has reached me over the years of listening to riders: paddock conversations, club nights, owners who stop me in parking lots, and the messages people send me directly once they have lived with a bike for a while. On the Brutale 800 that chatter lands in a very consistent place. The praise is loud and specific, and so are the complaints.
Riders lead with the engine. The counter-rotating inline-three comes up more often than anything else, described as broad and usable underneath and then genuinely fierce once the revs climb past eight thousand, with an intake note owners bring up unprompted. Almost nobody calls it smooth or polished. They call it characterful, and they mean that as praise. The electronics draw their own steady approval: four riding modes, eight levels of traction control and a quickshifter that riders say they use constantly, mostly because clutchless upshifts suit the way this engine wants to be ridden. Owners who like setting things up for themselves say that amount of adjustment is unusual in this part of the market.
After the engine, the conversation turns to how the bike changes direction. Riders consistently call the steering quick and the machine composed once it is leaned over, and they put that down to the short wheelbase and the low weight. The brakes get the same treatment. Owners talk about the stopping power and, more often, about the feel at the lever, which is the part they say registers on a road they are enjoying. The fully adjustable fork and shock come up from riders who dial in their own suspension and value having the range to work with. Underneath all of it runs a steady appreciation for the hardware, and the design gets its share of credit too. Riders who have come from mass-market machinery say the component quality here reads differently.
The gripes are just as repeatable. First is throttle response at small openings. Riders describe an abrupt on-off transition that makes town work fussier than it should be, and several say the sportier mode sharpens that behavior rather than helping it. Comfort is the second theme. The damping is firm enough that broken pavement comes straight through to the rider, and the seat padding gets called thin by nearly everyone who has spent a long day on it. Combined with the compact riding position, most owners describe the Brutale as a two-hour bike rather than a touring one. Money is the third. Riders are open about paying a premium up front and paying again at service time compared with mainstream rivals, and a smaller group raises doubts about long-term electrical reliability and how long it takes to source parts.
Premature sprag clutch failure
The starter sprag clutch can fail, especially on earlier models, causing a rattling noise during startup and potential starting issues. Replacement often requires parts with long wait times.
Electronic gremlins and sensor faults
Owners report intermittent warning lights, sensor failures, and electrical quirks that can be difficult to diagnose.
Difficult access to spare parts and dealership support
Long lead times for spare parts and limited dealer network can frustrate owners, especially outside Europe.
Potential cylinder head valve dropout
Isolated reports of valves dropping into the cylinder, leading to catastrophic engine damage. Typically occurs at higher mileages.
Electrical gremlins (switches and sensors)
Intermittent electrical issues include failing sensors, warning lights, and occasional starting problems. Often linked to poor connections or sensor failure.
Where this MV Agusta Brutale 800 pulls ahead of — or falls behind — its rivals on the numbers, and the typical bike in its class on character.
Power
Torque
Displacement
Wet weight
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the Brutale 800 is actually built for.
Angeles Crest is exactly where this bike earns its money. Light steering, real top-end, and lean angle you will not use up. Budget for the service side and it fits your weekends.
Made for Angeles Crest Highway · Coronado Trail / US 191 · Highway 1 / Big Sur
Perfect for a Saturday loop through the Twisted Sisters. The 4.4 gal tank and forward riding position mean you plan your stops, so treat it as a ride bike, not a road-trip bike.
Made for Austin / Texas Hill Country · Twisted Sisters · Austin / Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
It will hold the parking lot's attention at Alice's and it is genuinely good on Skyline. Commuting works, but there is no cruise control and no USB port, so keep expectations honest.
Made for Bay Area Ridge Roads · San Francisco / Bay Area · Skyline Boulevard / Alice's Restaurant
If this one isn't quite the fit, these are the bikes worth riding back-to-back against it.
Any price note compares both bikes at the same age — the youngest age both have on the used market — against this MV Agusta Brutale 800. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
Successor · 2016–2018
Italian Fire, Street Ready
About the same used price as this bike at 8 yr
Successor · 2020–2024
Italian Triple With A Soul
Roughly $2,000 pricier used than this bike at 5 yr
Competitor · 2018
The Scalpel Hits Its Mark
Roughly $5,800 cheaper used than this bike at 7 yr
Competitor · 2017–2019
Triple Soul, Corner Ready
Roughly $6,200 cheaper used than this bike at 7 yr
Competitor · 2014–2020
Italian Twin With Real Bark
~$1,600 cheaper used than this bike at 11 yr
