Benelli is busy making a few waves in its home country. Back to back product launches with updated features and powertrains have been giving us quite a FOMO. Now, the bikemaker has updated its portfolio with the launch of the 2020 Leoncino 250. The Leoncino might have been built over the design philosophies of a Scrambler but in terms of functionality, it is not essentially a Scrambler. The quarter-litre offering from Benelli is priced at INR 2.15 Lakh in its home market.
New colour palette
While Benelli has given a thorough makeover to the other products in its portfolio, the Leoncino 250 hasn’t received any substantial upgrade. It has been introduced with new colours though. The new colour palette includes red, gray, white, brown, and silver with pink wheels. The one with the pink wheels looks funky and is priced at an equivalent of INR 2.21 Lakh.
The Leoncino 250 is slotted as an affordable alternative to the Leoncino 500. Powering the Benelli Leoncino 250 is a single-cylinder, four-stroke, liquid-cooled, 249cc engine. The motor features a dual overhead camshaft with 4-valves per cylinder, electronic fuel injection with a 37mm throttle body and a 6-speed gearbox. Maximum power and torque are measured at 26.8bhp of power at 10,500rpm and 20.5Nm of peak torque at 8,500rpm.
Highlighting the design of the Leoncino 250, the engine is nestled inside a steel tube trellis frame which compliments the tank design, as does the tail guard which is extremely compact. The full-LED headlight assembly is completely redesigned, in comparison to the Leoncino 500, its elder sibling. The instrument panel is digital and is said to be clearly visible in all conditions. Like its elder sibling, the Leoncino 250 features a proud, laser-cut Lion on the front mudguard, recalling the history of this model.
The chassis is suspended by a 41mm upside-down fork up front, while the rear gets a pre-load adjustable monoshock. The braking system includes a 280mm floating disc with a four-piston caliper up front and a 240mm disc with a single-piston floating caliper at the back with Dual-Channel ABS. The 17″ aluminium alloy rims mount 110/70-R17 and 150/60-R17 tyres at the front and rear respectively.
The prime rival
Though there isn’t any official word regarding its India launch, we believe when Benelli decides to push its India operations further, it will launch the Leoncino 250 here as well. The prime rival of the Leoncino 250 will be the recently launched Husqvarna Svartpilen 250. The Svartpilen too is designed like a Scrambler and both the motorcycles look very different and unique from the other set of wheels we usually see on the road. The Husqvarna retails at an introductory price of 1.85 lacs (ex-showroom Delhi).
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The Svartpilen has a rugged design accompanied by an upright stance. What adds to its brutish appeal are the dual-purpose tyres. It uses the same mechanicals from the KTM Duke 250 and retains the same engine. The 248.8 cc fuel-injected, liquid-cooled, DOHC motor puts out 30 ps of peak power @ 9000 rpm and 24 Nm torque @ 7500 rpm. Main features include WP suspension, Bosch dual-channel ABS, LED headlight and taillight.