Upcoming new Benelli motorcycles revealed

DSK-Motowheels which has launched five Benelli motorcycles in India has much bigger plans for the Indian market. According to reports Benelli will launch eight new motorcycles in our two-wheeler market by 2016. DSK-Motowheels had showcased three new motorcycles at the 2015 IBW (India Bike Week) motorcycle show in Goa earlier this year. The three new motorcycles were the Benelli TNT 250, Blackster and TreK 1131. The Benelli TNT 250 will be cheapest offering from the Italian bikemaker in India. The styling of the Benelli TNT 250 is akin to any modern naked motorcycle offering while a heavy influence from the Benelli TNT 300 is clearly visible. Sculpted tank, split seat, rear grab rails and chunky side slung exhaust complement the attractive design of the bike. Powering the bike is a 249cc, liquid-cooled, single cylinder engine which makes 24.5PS of power and 21Nm of torque. The powerplant is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox. 

The TNT 250 features an exposed trellis frame and 42mm upside down front forks and an adjustable monoshock rear unit which isn’t off-set like its 300cc sibling. Four piston calipers mounted over a 280mm single disc takes care of braking duties at the front with a two-pot 240mm single disc at the rear. The motorcycle comes shod with 110/70 front and 140/60 section tyres fitted over 17 inch aluminium alloy wheels. The Benelli TNT 250 is powered by a single-cylinder motor that should result in an aggressive pricing. The Keeway Blackster will be renamed and sold as the Benelli Blackster in India and it will be the only cruiser motorcycle from the stables of Benelli for out two-wheeler market.  As the name suggests carries an all-black theme, highlighted with chrome dual exhaust. Powering the Benelli Keeway Blackster is a 249cc, V-Twin, fuel injected, air-cooled motor, churning out 19.18PS peak power at 8,500rpm and maximum torque of 18.70Nm at 5,750rpm and mated is to a 5-speed gearbox. The expected pricing for the Benelli Blackster is around Rs 3 lakh (ex-showroom). 

The Benelli TreK Amazonas is an adventure tourer based on the TNT 1131R. It will be the flagship offering from Benelli in the Indian two-wheeler market.  The bike features a revised suspension setup, spoke wheels and windscreen to better suit its sports-tourer characteristics. The Benelli TreK Amazonas is powered by the same 1,131cc motor as seen of the TNT 1131 but it has been detuned to produce 126PS of power output and 112Nm of peak torque. Suspension travel on the motorcycle has been increased while the USD forks at front and monoshock setup at the back are fully adjustable. The Benelli TreK Amazonas is equipped with aluminium Excel rims, three-way adjustable front screen and two power modes. The fuel tank capacity of the Benelli TreK Amazonas has been hiked to 22 litres for lesser fuel stops while touring. Braking duties are handles by Brembo sourced petal disc brakes at front and rear. The Benelli TreK Amazonas will be pitched against the Suzuki V-Strom, Triumph Tiger 800 and the Kawasaki Versys1000 in our two-wheeler market. 

For 2016, DSK-motowheels will ride in a faired version of the Benelli TNT 300. The changes made on the new bike will be cosmetic and no changes will made to the bikes mechanicals. The super sports styling and full fairing will make the new bike more appealing to Indian buyers who have a fairing fixation with performance bikes. The bike will feature clip-on bars and rear-set footpegs that should result in a sporty and aggressive riding posture to gel with the sporty dynamics of the bike. The fully-faire Benelli 300cc bike will compete against the Kawasaki Ninja 300 and KTM RC390. DSK-Motowheels will also launch a semi faired offering based on the TNT 300 platform that would be more suited for touring. 

Get latest updates on
the automobile community

Login Now

The most interesting bit of news is the fact that DSK-Motowheels is developing a new 500cc displacement twin-cylinder motor. The new powerplant will mated to an adventure motorcycle which is currently under development in China. Given the aggressive pricing of Benelli motorcycles a sub Rs 5 lakh should be safe to estimate and this should make many bikers excited. 

Benelli is also developing a new 750cc, twin-pot powerpalnt. Details regarding this new platform is scarce but it is rumoured that Benelli would launch two new motorcycles based on this new platform. The two new bikes will be a 750cc naked and full faired offering which should slot in between the TNT 600 offerings and the TNT 899. The new range of Benelli Motorcycles will make their debut at the 2015 EICMA motorcycle show in Milan, Italy later this year. With so many new products in varied segments, the Indian consumer will have much more variety and options. Watch this space for more updates. 

Source: AI