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A brand that most are aware of but few might currently consider buying, Benelli is entering a new era with ambitious model plans, a strong production infrastructure, and firm financial footing that could see it become a mainstream name in years to come.
With a history dating back more than a century, Benelli is one of the oldest names in motorcycling, but in typically Italian style it’s bounced between owners and dipped in and out of bankruptcy over the years. Founded in Pesaro on Italy’s Adriatic coast in 1911, it was in constant production for more than 70 years, with a reputation for high-tech machines — notably the six-cylinder Sei that was launched in 1972 — before the factory fell silent in 1988.
An ambitious rebirth started in the late 90s when Andrea Merloni bought the firm, developing the three-cylinder Tornado Tre 900 that finally reached the market in 2002. It was followed by the TNT naked bike and TreK adventure model, with the engine growing to 1,130 cc, and the company was bought by Chinese firm Qianjiang in 2005 with ambitious plans to expand into even more markets. Those plans took a hit when the financial crisis started its squeeze in 2008, but more than a decade later Benelli is getting wind under its wings again.
With production facilities in China, a design and engineering base still in Pesaro, and hugely deep pockets thanks to Qianjiang, itself a subsidiary of Geely — the automotive giant that owns big-name brands including Volvo and Lotus — Benelli has the building blocks in place to for future growth.
What’s in store?
A snapshot of the firm’s plan for 2020 emerged from China early this year, detailing the launch schedule for the coming months. Now we’re halfway through 2020 and we’re starting to see some of the bikes mentioned on the document. The first couple — the TNT600i and TRK502X — are simply minor updates of existing models, while the third new model on the timeline is the Leoncino 800, which was unveiled at last year’s EICMA show in Milan and reached production in April. The next two, the 600N and 600RR, haven’t yet been seen, at least not wearing Benelli badges. Both have, however, appeared in China under the newly launched QJMotor brand name.
The Benelli 600N is expected to be nearly identical to the QJMotor SRK600 shown in the photo at the top of the article. It’s an evolution of the existing Benelli TNT600i, using a four cylinder, DOHC engine that was originally developed by Benelli more than a decade ago for a proposed hub-center-steered sport bike penned by Bimota Tesi designer Pierluigi Marconi. That machine never made it, but the engine reached production in the 2013 in the TNT600. The SRK600 carries over the same frame as the TNT600, but the engine is reworked to meet modern emissions rules. With a peak of 80 horsepower, it’s not a full-blown supersport, but the new bike does add Brembo brakes and Marzocchi suspension, along with tech including a TFT dash, keyless ignition, and multiple ride modes, Bosch ABS and traction control.
The leaked timeline shows a "600RR," which has also emerged under the QJMotor banner, as the SRG600. It’s yet to be officially launched but images have emerged via Chinese type-approval documents. It’s basically a fully faired version of the SRK600, with the same engine, frame and suspension but an all-enveloping fairing. Like the naked version, it meets the latest Chinese emissions laws, which are on a par with Euro 4 standards, and has been developed with features including ABS brakes (needed for the European market) and side reflectors on the fork, as needed for sales in Europe and the United States.
The next model that appears on Benelli’s timeline isn’t a Benelli at all; it’s a Harley-Davidson. The HD338 is Harley’s forthcoming small-capacity model (as Andy Greaser reported last year) designed for developing markets rather than Europe or the United States. It’s basically a restyled and reworked version of Benelli’s existing 302S naked bike, with a larger 338 cc capacity achieved by using the longer-stroke crankshaft from the 502S.
Come September, Benelli’s new model timeline confirms the launch of the TRK800 — an adventure bike built around the 80-horsepower, 754 cc parallel twin engine from the 752S naked bike and retro-scrambler-style Leoncino 800. In China, the new QJMotor firm is on the verge of unveiling its own adventure bike with the same engine, called the SRB750, but Benelli is adamant that it’s not representative of the final TRK800 that will reach international markets next year. That’s a little surprising, as leaked images show the SRB750 clearly uses the existing Benelli engine and frame. However, Benelli says it’s reworking both for the TRK800, which is expected to be the most important international-market model that the firm has launched since its Qianjiang buyout.
One bike that doesn’t appear on Benelli’s 2020 model plan — but which has appeared in Chinese spy shots — is the BJ1200 tourer, the biggest bike ever to wear the Benelli badge. It’s initially being offered to Chinese police forces under the name Qianjiang QJ1200J but a Benelli logo on the keyless ignition button and the TFT dash’s start-up splash screen leaves no doubt as to its true origin. Its styling has also been patented under the Benelli BJ1200 name in China.
The engine is a 140-horsepower, 1,209 cc derivative of the three-cylinder motor originally developed for the Tornado Tre. It was last offered in 1,130 cc form in the Tornado, TNT 1130 and TreK 1130, which was discontinued in 2017. The new revision meets modern emissions limits, though, which means it could be set for a return to international markets. Leaked pictures of the civilian version of the bike (complete with a top case and pillion seat rather than the police version’s radio, siren and strobes) appear to show radar or camera sensors on both the front and rear, suggesting it could be fitted with adaptive cruise control and blind spot monitoring systems.
All in all, Benelli is on the verge of having a range including scramblers, ADVs, sport bikes, nakeds, retro bikes, and tourers — using singles, twins, triples and four-cylinder engines ranging from 125 cc to 1,200 cc — built with the backing of a major automotive manufacturer. Whether or not Benelli can rise to the prominence it once had, the company certainly seems to have an eye on being a serious rival to the established brands all over the world.
