Performance – Madness. Utter madness! The Brutale 800 draws power from a 798cc, fuel-injected, inline 3-cylinder engine that pushes out 108.6 BHP of power and 83 Nm of torque. Mated to a 6-speed gearbox, the powerplant is managed by MVICS system and comes with a counter-rotating crankshaft, hydraulic slipper clutch and EAS 2.0 quick shifter. Redline comes in at 11,500 RPM and MV says 90% of the torque is served at mere 3800 RPM! If not this, what’ll blow your mind is the way power is delivered. 100 km/hr comes up in under 4 seconds while the engine doesn’t seem to run out of breath even at 200 km/hr! The Brutale 800 has the tendency to pop a wheelie at the slightest throttle input which brings us to the other side of things. Fuelling is choppy and throttle on-off transitions are thoroughly felt, often accompanied by jerks. Due to this very reason, riding this monster in city limits becomes a task in itself.
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This motorcycle lifts the front wheel at the drop of a hat!
As the name suggests, the Brutale 800 is brutal in terms of power delivery.
The bike sounds coarse lower down the RPM band but transforms into a screamer as the revs climb. Gear changes require some effort as the clutch is on the heavier side. However, EAS 2.0 quick shifter works like a charm and helps in seamless upshifts and downshifts. There are four riding modes to choose from (Normal, Sport, Rain, Custom) along with 8-level traction control and switchable ABS. Even under the umbrella of all these electronics, the front wheel tends to lift up more often than not requiring experienced hands to hold it back. Featuring a 16.5-litre fuel tank, the Brutale 800 averages around 12 to 15 kms to a litre in real world conditions.
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At times, the front end feels disconnected because of the bike’s enormous pulling power
Ride quality will make you want to check if the suspension setup has fallen off somewhere!
Riding Dynamics – Sitting on a steel trellis frame, the Brutale 800 utilises Marzocchi USD forks up front and Sachs monoshock at the rear. While the setup is preload adjustable, it has been tuned for handling and it shows! The ability to handle broken roads is insubstantial and the motorcycle tends to throw you around even at the smallest of road undulations. However, it handles beautifully thanks to this underlying stiffness. It is quite easy to flick this motorcycle around corners and high speed stability is also unparalleled. Standard Pirelli Diablo Rosso III tyres offer tons of grip! While the disc brakes are sharp and powerful, Bosch 9 Plus ABS (with rear-wheel lift mitigation) definitely helps improve confidence by leaps and bounds.
