2016–2018 · Naked Bike · Buyer's Guide
Italian Fire, Street Ready
MV built this Brutale around a 798 cc inline-three making 118 hp at 11,500 rpm and 61 lb-ft at 7,600, and the character of that engine is the whole point of the motorcycle. The counter-rotating crankshaft pulls weight out of the steering without showing up anywhere on the spec sheet, and the composite steel trellis frame gives the thing a hard, direct feel most middleweight nakeds never bother chasing. Adjustable suspension at both ends, a quickshifter that works up and down, a slipper clutch, ABS, traction control and ride modes all come standard. This is a premium package, not a stripped one.
This is a bike for a rider who wants every ride to feel like an event, and it delivers that at road speeds instead of demanding illegal ones. Wind pressure does the honest work of making 70 mph feel like something. What it asks back is attention. Seat height is 32.7 in (830 mm) and wet weight is 454 lb (206 kg), so it feels like a lot of motorcycle at a stoplight if you are short in the leg. Ownership is the real filter: isolated valve dropout at high mileage, electrical faults around switches and sensors, and a starter sprag clutch that can rattle and then quit.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 118 hp (86 kW) @ 11,500 rpm |
|---|---|
| Torque | 61 lb-ft (83 Nm) @ 7,600 rpm |
| Displacement | 798 cc |
| Engine | Inline-three |
| Cooling | Liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | Chain |
| Fork | Upside-down (USD) |
| Front brake | 320 mm |
| Front tire | 120/70-17 |
| Rear tire | 180/55-17 |
| Seat height | 32.7 in (830 mm) |
| Wet weight | 454 lb (206 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 4.4 gal (16.6 L) |
| Top speed | 147 mph (237 km/h) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Drivetrain
Safety
The first thing that registers is the noise. The three sits somewhere between the punch of a twin and the shriek of a four, and past 6,000 rpm it hardens into a metallic wail you feel in your chest as much as your ears. The bars are wide and flat, the tank is narrow between your knees, and your weight sits forward on your wrists in a way you notice after an hour but never in the first ten minutes. A fine buzz comes up through the pegs at sustained revs. Nothing numbing, just a reminder that nobody sanded the character off this engine. With no fairing, anything above 70 mph is a pushing match with the air, and that pressure is exactly what makes a legal back road worth riding. The seat is firm and the tail is short, so you find one spot and stay in it.
What follows was gathered, not ridden. Two decades of pit-lane conversation, questions after events, and the inbox where owners write once the newness has worn off. On the Brutale 800 the split in that chatter is clean. Praise concentrates on how the bike feels and looks; complaints concentrate on cost and comfort.
The triple leads. Riders describe drive available everywhere in the range and a hard rush at the top, and the sound of it earns its own mention nearly as often. The look draws the same weight of praise, with owners pointing at the shapes and the paint as things mass-market machinery does not offer. Quick steering that stays composed, strong braking with clear feel, and hardware quality follow close behind.
Money is the loudest complaint, covering both the buy-in and what the shop charges afterward. Suspension follows, with owners calling the damping firm enough to send bad pavement straight through. Long days repeat one account: tight ergonomics, a hard seat, no shelter from the air. A smaller but steady number report the Sport mode throttle sensitive enough to need care at low speed.
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.
Sprag clutch (starter) failures
The starter sprag clutch can fail, causing a rattling noise on startup and eventual non-starting. Replacement can be costly.
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
Top speed
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the Brutale 800 is actually built for.
Angeles Crest is exactly this bike's terrain. The lean clearance and the front-end feedback let you commit on a road you know well, and it pays you back for precision more than for raw speed.
Made for Angeles Crest Highway · Coronado Trail / US 191 · Highway 1 / Big Sur
A fine weapon once you reach the Twisted Sisters loop. There is no wind protection and no cruise control, so the long straight run to get out there is work you have to want.
Made for Austin / Texas Hill Country · Twisted Sisters · Austin / Handbuilt Motorcycle Show
Skyline and the run out to Alice's suit it perfectly, and very little parks better outside a coffee stop. Accept that the city miles between the good parts are firm and a bit buzzy.
Made for Bay Area Ridge Roads · San Francisco / Bay Area · Skyline Boulevard / Alice's Restaurant
If you're cross-shopping the older generation, here's what changed.
Previous generation · 2015–2025
140 Horses, Italian Triple Soul
Compare to the previous model →The MV Agusta Brutale 800 also comes in these variants, models and special editions. Each has its own page covering only what differs from the standard Brutale 800 — equipment, electronics, specs and used price.
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 · 2020–2023
Italian Fire, Street Price
Competitor · 2017–2019
Triple Soul, Corner Ready
Roughly $6,100 cheaper used than this bike at 8 yr
Competitor · 2014–2017
Dirt-Trim Triple With Soul
Roughly $4,000 cheaper used than this bike at 9 yr
Competitor · 2024
Attack Mode, Street Legal
Competitor · 2016–2021
Triple Soul, Retro Skin
Roughly $4,500 cheaper used than this bike at 8 yr
Same Platform · 2020–2024
Italian Triple With A Soul
