Breaking cover in November 2012, the MV Agusta Rivale 800 is the Italian brand’s newest addition to its motorbike family, and features a new 800cc three-cylinder engine, which also powers the mid-range MV Agusta Brutale 800.
Whereas most brands debut a model at the INTERMOT or EICMA shows in the fall, and then release that models in the spring of the following year, MV Agusta has a slightly different timeline, which could make things interesting for when the Rivale actually makes it onto dealership floors.
Our history lesson starts with the MV Agusta F3, which debuted after a long bout of teasing at the 2010 EICMA show. Slated to be available a year later, the MV Agusta F3 didn’t enter production until February 2012, and even then that was only the premium MV Agusta F3 Serie Oro. June would see the arrival of the F3 pushed back again in the USA, with bikes finally arriving in the early fall.
The MV Agusta Brutale 675 was a similar story, with the bike’s existence leaked in August 2010. Over a year later at the 2011 EICMA show, MV Agusta debuted the near-production Brutale 675 to the assembled press and two-wheeled enthusiasts. Now almost a year and a half later from that point in time, the 2013 MV Agusta Brutale 675 is set to hit US dealers in April of this year, though that arrival date could get pushed into the summer months, if history is any indication.
That brings us to MV Agusta’s latest announcement that the MV Agusta Rivale 800 will start production in the second-half of this year, which depending on what month that actually ends up being, could make the Rivale 800 a 2014 model for the Italian brand, though we suspect MV Agusta will have another new model at the 2013 EICMA show to distract us from that fact.
It’s not that MV Agusta makes bad motorcycles (though the F3 should never have been let out of the factory with its originally fueling issues), in fact that company is making some of the most compelling bikes in the industry right now. However, when you create a reputation of missing deadlines and producing vaporware, it only takes away from the forward-motion you have created. Other brands would do well to learn from this lesson.
Photos of the MV Agusta Rivale 800:
Source: MV Agusta
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