Benelli
By Ben Purvis
The onslaught of new bikes from Benelli and its Chinese parent Qianjiang is showing no sign of slowing down, with several additional as-yet-unlaunched new machines (seen in Chinese type-approval certifications) likely to start reaching European showrooms at some stage this year.
After slow progress following its buyout by China's Qianjiang, Benelli has now started to develop its offer rapidly and has topped the sales charts in Italy with the TRK 502 and had a good reaction to the Leoncino 800.
In China, Qianjiang has used the Benelli building blocks to create a whole new brand, QJMotor, that launched in 2020 with a fast-growing model range that gives strong hints at the direction of travel for future Benelli-branded models in Europe.
Benelli TNT600
The first four-cylinder Benelli since the Quattro of the 1970s, development of the TNT600 (also sold as the BN600) began before Qianjiang took control in 2005, but spent years in limbo before reaching production in 2014. In Europe, the model was short-lived, falling foul of Euro 4 emissions limits, but it sold well in India and Asia, as well as providing a foothold in the US market. Now it appears set to return in Euro 5-approved form with this revamped design.
Although based on the earlier model, the update features an LED headlight and TFT dash - both items that appeared on the 2020 model in India - but also gains restyled side panels flanking the radiator, a new seat unit and a sharper-looking tail section. There are technical updates, too. The Chinese documents confirm the bike at least meets the latest emissions rules in the country - equivalent to Euro 4 - and the presence of ABS and the use of the Benelli name suggests Europe is its eventual target market. The engine is rated at 80 hp, putting it on a par with earlier versions despite its improved emissions performance.
European suspension and braking parts also feature, including Brembo calipers and forks that appear to come from Marzocchi - a brand that Qianjiang already favours for its QJMotor models. A new aluminium swingarm, shared with the TNT600's Chinese-market cousin, the QJMotor SRK600, replaces the old tubular steel design.
Benelli 302R
Another Benelli model that's disappeared from European markets in recent years, the 302R (Tornado 300 in some markets) always looks slightly overweight for a small-capacity sports bike, not helped by a wide headlight that emphasised its broad nose. The new version seen here might share the old bike's chassis and 35 hp parallel twin engine, but it addresses the styling problem with a new front fairing and vertically stacked headlight design.
The transformation is impressive, particularly since the side panels and fuel tank are carryovers from the previous model. A new seat unit cleans up the rear end design, and once again we get the tell-tale ABS sensor ring on the front brake to confirm that the mandatory in Europe anti-lock is now fitted. It's not just visually slimmer either, as the approval documents show a 'wet' weight of 182 kg, 8 kg less than the old 302R.
QJMotor SRT600 (600 cc adventure bike)
Benelli's 'QJMotor' sister brand is aimed at the Chinese market but offers unusually high-specification machines that are closely related to European Benelli models. Recent filings show several new machines, starting with this 600 cc four-cylinder adventure bike - likely to be called the SRT600.
Borrowing its frame and the 80 hp four-cylinder engine from the Benelli TNT600 (also used on the QJMotor SRK600 naked bike and SRG600 sports model), the SRT600 combines them with a completely different, adventure-inspired look. The styling is much like that of the smaller SRT500, itself derived from Benelli's TRK 502, and it suggests that it would take little more than a badge-swap for this design to become a mid-sized Benelli TRK 600.
QJMotor SRK700
While every QJMotor model to have been officially launched so far has been closely related to an existing Benelli, this new design - the SRK700 - breaks that mould.
Like the other models seen here, its existence is confirmed by a type-approval filing in China, revealing an unfamiliar engine and chassis, although the bike itself is clearly a production-ready machine.
The engine is a 693 cc parallel twin, built by QJMotor's Qianjiang parent company. Both its visual appearance and its capacity are a close match to the twin used on rival CFMoto's upcoming 700CL-X. Performance-wise, it's good for 75 hp and weighs in at 192 kg complete with fuel. Given the fact that QJMotor and Benelli share the same engines and frames for other models, it is quite likely that a Benelli-branded European version of this bike could be on the way in the future - especially given the use of high-end European components from the likes of Brembo.
QJMotor SRG350
Another new QJMotor that breaks with the trend of being a rebodied Benelli is this faired sports bike, likely to go under the name SRG350.
Built around a 350 cc parallel twin that's loosely based on the 300 cc Benelli 302S's engine, it features a new tubular steel frame allied to a banana swingarm, all wrapped in styling that goes a long way to dispelling lingering doubts that Chinese companies can't compete with Japanese or European firms when it comes to appearances. The satin gunmetal and orange paint scheme even manages to avoid the taste transgressions of most Chinese market sports models. It's a higher-spec (and better looking) machine than the revised Benelli 302R sports bike that has also emerged via type approvals. Specs have yet to be seen, but QJMotor has also been spotted testing a smaller 250 cc sports model alongside this 350 cc machine that features a single-sided swingarm.
