MV Agusta Stradale: Details, specs

MV Agusta will unveil the Stradale touring bike at EICMA this week, but photos and details have leaked early. Here’s what we know.

The Stradale is built around the same 798 cc three-cylinder motor that’s already in use in MV Agusta’s Brutale and Rivale series bikes. However, to make the bike more street-friendly, they detuned it (it makes 115 hp, thanks to a lower 11,000 rpm redline, and max torque is down as well). After all, when you’re touring, reliability is more of a concern than wheelies.

A touring bike rider also wants more fuel range than what’s usually found on a naked bike; the Stradale obliges, offering 16 litres, up from 12.9 litres for the Rivale. There’s a set of small hard saddlebags with integrated blinkers, and a tiny windscreen. This bike is still aimed at the sporting rider, not at the all-weather warrior.

We haven’t seen capacity specs for the luggage, but the bags don’t look as if they’d hold much more than a couple changes of underwear and socks. The alternator only has a 350W output, not much for a modern touring bike; again, this is a machine that you likely wouldn’t take on an Iron Butt.

Comparing the spec sheet with the Brutale seems to indicate the bikes share same 43 mm Marzocchi USD forks, adjustable for rebound and compression damping, as well as spring preload. The Stradale has a Sachs shock in rear, like the Brutale, but with 150 mm of travel; the Brutale only has 125 mm of travel – so the engineers obviously did some tweaking back there.

The Stradale will have the MVICS electronics system, with torque control, traction control and much more. The ABS is Bosch’s 9 MP Plus system, with the RLM option to prevent the rear wheel from lifting under braking. Braking is courtesy of two 320 mm discs up front, with Brembo four-piston caliper. The rear disc is 220 mm, with a Brembo two-piston caliper.

The machine weighs 181 kg dry; the added weight over the Brutale and Rivale machines is mostly due to the luggage, most likely. Other changes include revised exhaust and different wheels. Saddle height is 870 mm.