2012 MV Agusta F3 675 Review
MV Agusta | May 16, 2012All-new 675 F3 from MV Agusta opens fresh market to elite lineup of MV Agusta by entering class of middleweight. Mid-sized sport bike category includes 600 cc super sports from Big Four of Japan, but F3 uses 675cc, 3-cylinder formula that is pioneered by Triumph & the Daytona 675 instead of engines of 4-cylinder like Japanese. A Euro correspondent took it for few hot laps @ Paul Ricard circuit @ South of France.
In the segment amongst inline-4 600s where half a horse is though to be big news, this MV Agusta F3 carries great punch indeed. 2012 MV Agusta F3 675 claims to give126 of hp @ 14.400 rpm. For raw technical specifications, this F3 is quite close to Triumph Daytona 675, which is other Triple for this segment. But F3 carries plenty of electronics more from this decade, and this includes control of traction & full ride-by-wire control of throttle.
The traction control for this day is pretty good news for test riders like me as we started the 1st warm up laps it was around 28 degrees F, & that is record for someone like me on race track. This eight level control of traction works pretty well for this cold day, & despite fact that lean gyros & some other aids of electronic aren’t yet activated, I was confident through slower parts of circuit.
Chicane after finish/start straight is around 30mph & this is is followed by the heavy acceleration towards beautiful yet technical left-right where left gets banked & blind. The variation is actually on Mistral straight and it was there today for avoiding any icy patches. However, I really enjoyed driving the F3 on this circuit’s path. Post this it was the full throttle through to the 5th gear or even 6th reaching the speeds of above 150 mph. Final out right on to Mistral straight ended in left high-speed where I got to experience plenty of wheel spin traction control had handled, allowing throttle to get pinned.
Ergonomics of 2012 MV Agusta F3 675 are more humane as compared to the bigger sibling, F4. There is lot more of space for rider & you sit more in motorcycle instead of top of it. It is due to the new architecture of frame along with mixed plates of aluminum & upper trellis part, which let MV engineers to make F3 narrower & lower around area of seat which provides more comfy position of riding. All the hand & foot controls fit in frame pretty fine, both while cruising in & out of the pit lane & riding fast on circuit.
I know that appearance of bike is pretty subjective, however my eyes saw pretty beautiful motor cycle which does not look remotely look like any thing that you would say budget. Still it is that – this F3 is budget motor cycle, having style of Italians. For $13,498, this F3 will be mouth-watering deal for any body who is looking for ultimate middle weight super sport. It is several notches above Big 4 with regards to desirability, & the real competitors are Triumph Daytona 675 & Ducati 848. This Daytona starts @ $10,999 & it ranges to around $12,699 for Ohlins-equipped 675R model. This base Ducati lists a bit higher as compared to the MV @ $13,995, but Corse SE model (along with quick-shifter, traction-control, & Ohlins shock) lists for around $14,995.
Out on circuit again and I was enjoying sound of 675cc Triple that was effortlessly spinning up along with the counter-rotating crank shaft. I’d wish for bit more of oomph lower down for rev-range but it didn’t bother me too much as it is only in 2 places for circuit that this acts as complication. Acceleration more than 10 K rpm is pretty strong. I short-shifted up in to 2nd couple of times in 2 hairpin corners, & it did not work well for me. 1st gear it was & throttles response is not ideal for this kinda situation. This wasn’t a any problem in higher gears so there is enough of room for the adjustment in 1st gear where ratio is bit off.
F3 was quite enjoyable for feeding in gears through quick shifter from 2nd to 3rd and up, & acceleration was more than what I expected, especially for lower 3 gears. Again sound was fantastic, & in spite of fact that F3 is not truly a racing bike, it does look like 1! Wheelies are easy by simply using throttle, but final model will be made available along with anti-wheelie for the ones that are not secure regarding such things or just need it for the racing.
Marzocchi front suspension & Sachs rear shock is now trade mark feature of MV Agusta, and I was impressed with feel of front end while hard on Brembo brakes of radial. Fortunatey, Pirelli brought along few sticky extra tires for me in Diablo Super corsa. 1 could argue on circuit where ambient temperature didn’t reach above 50 degrees F this SC2 (medium) compound could never be warm enough for taking full effect in grip area. This might be true, but surface of Paul Ricard is amongst best that money will buy. In world of super sport tires, same holds true for Diablo Super corsa. Combining these 2 will get you a combo that in spite of cold, will get you lots of grip. This did not stop rear from going its way through the few corners, but chassis of F3 is pretty good that it is only fun & games in doing so.
There’s some thing about MV which makes things feel a bit heavier as compared to the crawling speed. Maybe it is sultry lines that deceives me in to thinking that there is more of mass as compared to what there is actually. Don’t take wrong here, this F3 has almost exact dimensions of frontal as F4 however, it is pretty lighter. Getting it up to the speed, this chassis is very stable & well balanced. Faster I was going, more planted this F3 felt. Slight liveliness in few of corners simply added to the book of feed back & also gave me some confidence for pushing more. With the ultra compact new Triple, the MV Agusta have was able for constructing the chassis along with single-sided longer swing arm as compared to previous models MV, whilst keeping small wheel base of 1380 mm. This F3 weighs @ 381 lbs which is pretty easy for controlling.
The Conclusion:
2012 MV Agusta F3 675 Triple is dream come true for a lot of people, & not least for MV factory it self. The MV Agusta has finally some thing for offering much wider audience who are interested in middle weight super sport. I would say that this is motorcycle that is perfectly able for giving extra satisfaction even for the people who are looking for some thing for replacing the 600s along with and perfect stone of stepping on way to the full-on liter bike. The chassis is pretty superb & engine is exciting with out going over top.
Despite of the fact that this F3 is all new MV version there aren’t any real gremlins in here. All that is needed are few adjustments may be to power band & to incorporate all electronics as they are promised by Varese factory. F3 is definitive frame work for future perfectionist for supersport segment.
