MOTORCYCLE OF THE YEAR 2016 FINALIST – Brutale 800

This year we selected eight wonders: the Kawasaki ZX-10R, the Honda Africa Twin, the Triumph Thruxton R, the Aprilia 1100 Tuono Factory, the MV Agusta Brutale 800, the Ducati XDiavel S, the Yamaha MT-10 and the KTM Super Duke GT. They come from across the spectrum of bike genres: adventurers, tourers, café racers, nakedbikes and out-and-out track weapons.

What they have in common is that they all stood out from the two-wheeled crowd in 2016. Each scored an invite to AMCN’s annual MOTY ride, which this year took in the Great Ocean Road and some of the best scratching roads in the Otway Ranges. Saddle up…

MV Agusta Brutale 800

Mid-capacity bikes rock. When you analyse just how much of a big bike’s performance is ever used on the street, shopping in the 600 to 800cc category makes a lot of sense for most riders.

The Brutale 800 isn’t your average mid-capacity middle-of-the-road bike though. It’s like a firecracker planted in the proverbial date of mediocrity – red, raw, racy, and ready to go off.

Its place here in the MOTY line up is proof that the prize on offer isn’t purely about practicality and perfection. We also like MOTY to celebrate the bikes that capture the essence of motorcycling in its purest form. Riding should be fun, and it should be exciting. The Brutale supplies these two valuable emotional commodities by the dumper-load.

At the heart of the Brutale’s appeal is MV Agusta’s sublime 798cc counter-rotating in-line triple. It’s a motor that effortlessly rolls out a ribbon of torquey, raunchy power so seamlessly flat you could balance Mama’s meatballs on it. This sort of power characteristic would normally lead to a lack of character. But when wrapped in a short, stiff and feisty chassis, and given the kind of firebrand soundtrack that only MV Agusta’s organ pipe exhaust can produce, it’s a recipe for delightful drama. To this end, the Brutale isn’t what I’d call a relaxing bike to ride, and neither would I want it to be. It’s eager to be ridden from the moment that sweet cacophony fractures the morning air, and to be ridden fast.

Conspicuous beauty is often accompanied by idiosyncrasy, and the Brutale certainly has its little foibles. The switch for negotiating the main menu is, frankly, not fit for purpose. Thankfully the MV isn’t the type of bike you need to adjust much once it’s all set to your liking, and mercifully it also retains your previous settings when switched off.

The compact front end and wide wedge-shaped fuel tank restrict steering angle and make the MV’s minimum turning circle far greater than is ideal, particularly for negotiating tightly packed city traffic, where the mamothly wide ’bars can also require some careful threading. The suspension, too, will seem on the taught side for anyone without a sportsbike background. But all of these minor niggles fade away as fast as the scenery in your mirrors when the Brutale is let loose in its natural environment: real roads, and technical riding in precipitous places. Head for the mountains and this bike comes into its glory zone.

Even for those who scored it low in their list, the Brutale 800 gave some unique joys and jollies not offered by any other bike. Like the exhilaration of its effortless acceleration, and the electrifying crack of the uppy-downy quickshifter as the MV slices swiftly through each gear ratio and paws the air with its front Pirelli. The experience is almost a brand in itself. Sure, the MV may be just for lovers, but when was too much love ever a bad thing?

Second ops

Kel Buckley

It’s only $500-odd bucks off the Yamaha MT-10, but in three years’ time when the faded-plastic coloured Yamaha with its rattly seat is dustier than it should be in the corner of your garage, the MV will still stir the same emotions within you as the day you bought it. It’s oh-so MV, it’ll age gracefully, and will turn heads for many years to come.

The in-line triple engine is a delight and the adjustability of the Brutale’s standard equipment means it has the potential to be set up splendidly. Sure, it has an extremely narrow focus – but it was designed to be exactly what it is first and foremost. With change from $20K, you’re getting a shed-load of exotica and an utterly unique riding experience.

Chris Dobie

Kel made a good point in the MOTY debate: “If you want to own an affordable piece of Italian exotica that looks great, has a lovely engine, but also the usual amount of Italian quirkiness, then the Brutale 800 hits its design brief perfectly.” All good, but these days you need to aim for a much wider audience. I think that’s what MV was trying to do, but has fallen a little short.

It looks and sounds great, the engine is sweet, but it’s a bit of a handful to ride. Not in an overpowering sense, more in an overly sensitive chassis way. It feels like it’s trying to disappear up its own exhaust pipe, and quick direction changes while feeding the power on can cause the front wheel to skip.

Paul McCann

Essentially, riding the Brutale is the equivalent of driving a Lamborghini. It’s unique, futuristic, and single-minded, but on the flipside this model lets itself down with a few minor issues that make the whole package feel somewhat unfinished.