After a pause in operations, Benelli is all set to regain lost territory in India. Having forged a new partnership with Adishwar Auto Ride India, a Mahavir Group entity, the storied brand has an aggressive plan in store. Kicking things off, the Benelli TNT 300, the fully-faired Benelli 302 R, and what was once the most affordable inline-4 engined motorcycle one could buy in India – the Benelli TNT 600i, has been relaunched.
The three motorcycles have been priced at an introductory ex-showroom price of ₹3,50,000, ₹3,70,000, and ₹6,20,000 respectively. Fans of mid-segment touring motorcycles will be excited to hear that the company will go forward with the launch of the highly anticipated TRK 502 (Tourer) and TRK 502X (Adventure) models in India, in the first quarter of 2019.
The company is also offering 5-years of unlimited kilometre warranty as standard. Official bookings have begun across PAN India for a booking amount of ₹10,000 for all three models. Production and dispatch of the Benelli TNT 300, Benelli 302R and Benelli TNT 600i start in the 1st week of December 2018, followed by deliveries beginning 2nd week onwards, in a phased manner. The company, which currently has 15 dealers, is on a major expansion spree in India and aims to add another 25 dealers across the country by March 2019.
The company is also re-establishing a robust after sales service in India to build a relationship of mutual trust and confidence with existing and prospective customers. As a first step towards making ownership less of a hassle for existing customers, Benelli earlier announced the change in the service schedule through a nationwide campaign. The revised service intervals from every 4000 km or 4 months of periodic service to 6000 km or 6 months of periodic service, has helped reduce the service cost by up to 34%. The benefit is not only applicable to new but also existing customers owning the following Benelli superbikes – TNT25, TNT 300, 302R, TNT 600i, TNT 600GT, TNT 899 and TNT R.
The Benelli TNT 300 is a naked styled street bike which is powered by 300cc, in-line 2 cylinder, 4-stroke, 8 valves, DOHC, the liquid cooled engine which is tuned to deliver 37.73 hp of power @ 11,500 rpm and 26.5 Nm of peak torque @ 10,000 rpm. Tipping the scales at 196 kilos, the bike gets USD front forks, a rear mono shock, twin-piston callipers on a 260 mm front disc and a single unit at the rear.
On the other hand, the Benelli 302 R is a fully-faired alternative which is also powered by a 300 cc twin-cylinder engine which is tuned to deliver 38.26 BHP of power @ 11,500 RPM and 26.5 Nm of torque @ 10,000 RPM. The engine comes mated to a six-speed transmission. Stopping power is provided by hydraulic, dual disc brakes up front and a hydraulic single disc at the rear. Suspension duties are provided by inverted telescopic fork up front and a hydraulic monoshock at the rear.
What was once the highest selling four-cylinder motorcycle in India, the Benelli TNT 600 is powered by a 600cc, in-line four-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine that produces 85.07 bhp of power and 54.6 Nm of torque? Fed by a Delphi-sourced fuel injection system, the motor is mated to a 6-speed gearbox. Tipping the scales at 208 kilos, the bike rides on 120/70 R17 Metzeler rubber up front and a 180/55 R17 tyre at the back.
