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- Small sprinter for beginners
- Not intended for world travel
- The engine only gives its best from around 7000 rpm
- Interview Haimei Yan (Manager Qianjiang Group)
- Technical data Benelli BN 302
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The top manager of the Qianjiang Group (QJ) from China has been around for eight
Years also managing director of the Italian subsidiary Benelli. MOTORRAD correspondent Eva Breutel spoke to her.
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Crisp 300s for newcomers and returners: The Benelli BN 302 is built in China, but the look and character are Italian.
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Posing in the factory yard: The BN 302 is available with a red or black tubular space frame, with suitcases and / or top cases.
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The analog / digital cockpit is simply designed, but provides all the necessary information. Only one gear indicator is missing.
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Benelli BN 302: economical 4000 euros for real fun and cheeky play, 38 refreshing horsepower and a successful look.
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Benelli BN 302.
Benelli BN 302 in driving report
Small sprinter for beginners
Doesn’t cost more than a scooter, but it’s much more fun: the new Benelli BN 302 naked bike is a full-fledged motorcycle despite its only 300 cm³.
That’s a word: a frugal 4000 euros for real fun and cheeky play, namely for a brand new motorcycle with a two-cylinder in-line engine, 38 refreshing hp and a successful look. A trick, the critics will say, this Benelli comes from China, is definitely junk and that’s why it is so cheap. But with junk the new Benelli has B.N 302 has nothing in common, thanks to its tubular space frame, the directly hinged strut, the crisp muffler and the careful workmanship.
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Benelli BN 302 in driving report
Small sprinter for beginners
Benelli BN 302, however, because ABS is not on board. The Benelli technicians in Pesaro are working on it, but the ABS version will probably not be on the market before 2016.
Not intended for world travel
The small Sprinter is primarily intended for newcomers and those returning to the sport, and they get good value for their money. The low seat height of just under 80 centimeters should allow practically every driver to put both feet securely on the floor, while the comfortable seat position, which is slightly forward and straight, provides additional security. For taller Central Europeans, the knee angle is quite sharp despite the footrests set relatively far back, so you don’t necessarily want to cover a tour to the birthplace of the Benelli BN 302.
But the Benelli BN 302 is not intended for world travel, but for short trips in the city and over the country, whereby it does astonishingly well in mountainous regions, as a tour over the Panoramica proves, a mountain road worth seeing and above all driving, which runs north along the Adriatic Sea from Benelli’s hometown of Pesaro.
The engine only gives its best from around 7000 rpm
Despite its considerable weight of 196 kilograms ready to drive, i.e. with 90 percent of the gasoline, the Benelli BN 302 meanders agile and agile through all the bends and hairpin bends, circles with verve the groups of cyclists that are unavoidable on Italy’s mountain routes and looks like a single piece. It owes this in part to the well-coordinated standard Pirelli Angel tires, but above all to its extremely elastic two-cylinder in-line engine.
It only has 38 hp, but thanks to its 360-degree firing order, it is always ready to go. You should like high speeds, however, because the Benelli BN 302 engine only gives its best from around 7000 rpm. Then it really cranks up, and the sound that begins is pleasantly reminiscent of Benelli’s roaring three-cylinder tradition, until the rev limiter puts an end to the game at 12,000 rpm. The disc brakes, attractively designed in wave design, are easy to adjust; their gentle use is intentional, as it is designed for beginners, as Benelli’s technical director Stefano Michelotti explains. The same applies to the relatively softly tuned chassis, where the focus is on comfort and not on sportiness. The low-lying muffler could turn out to be a point of criticism, which occasionally makes contact with a bump in the sloping position on bumpy roads.
And where did the Benelli BN 302 come from? There is currently no German importer, but an overview of the dealers in Germany can be found on the website www.benelli.de, although not everyone carries all models. The factory warranty of three years is of course also valid in this country, the targeted price of 4000 euros for the BN 302 is quite fair. However, the planned ABS version is likely to be several hundred euros more expensive.
Interview Haimei Yan (Manager Qianjiang Group)
Benelli
The top manager of the Qianjiang Group (QJ) from China has also been managing director of the Italian subsidiary Benelli for eight years. MOTORRAD correspondent Eva Breutel spoke to her.
“We come slowly, but we come”
The Chinese group QJ took over Benelli in 2005, but in the ten years since then there have been hardly any motorcycle innovations. Why is that?
To be honest: We didn’t find much here, we had to rebuild everything. When we were ready to go, the economic crisis hit and that set us back again. It should also not be forgotten that we were practically the first Chinese company in Europe, at least in the two-wheeler sector, and the rapprochement has taken time on both sides. For our part, we first had to understand the European market. But now we have a strong strategy.
What does it look like?
Instead of scooters, we are concentrating on motorcycles, and initially on the middle class, i.e. up to around 800 cm³. The new two-cylinder Benelli BN 302 is just as much a part of it as the four-cylinder BN 600 R, which is already on the market. Other models will follow.
Why the middle class?
QJ is a global manufacturer, we have plants on three continents and built 700,000 motorcycles last year. The middle class finds buyers everywhere, and we adapt the motorcycles to the local conditions. In Europe, this means above all the possibility of customizing the motorcycle with special components.
At the end of last year you significantly reduced the workforce at Benelli in Pesaro. Will the brand stay in Italy in the long term??
Definitely! It is true that we have restructured and now only 45 employees instead of 80, which, by the way, was all socially acceptable. Now we have a very efficient team that does development work as well as service and marketing for all of Europe. But we will also be producing here again, namely the special parts mentioned. The plant in Pesaro is very important to us because trends in Europe affect all markets.
We come to Germany: Benelli currently has no importer here. How should it go on??
We are still looking for an importer. But there are Benelli dealers in Germany and we deliver to them directly. In general, the whole brand is currently being rebuilt, and that can only be done step by step. We are definitely coming back to the German market, slowly, but we are coming. Admittedly, we are currently missing the right product for Germany.
That could be the big three-cylinder that still has many friends in Germany. What about that?
We’re still building it, but only for markets outside of Europe. For Europe itself, we have to completely revise it, from consumption to electronics to ABS. That’s our turn right now, but as I said: our restart works step by step, so it may still take a while.
Technical data Benelli BN 302
Benelli
Crisp 300s for newcomers and those returning to work: The Benelli BN 302 is built in China, but the look and character are Italian.
Benelli BN 302
Engine: Water-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke in-line engine, two overhead camshafts, four valves, injection, Ø 37 mm, wet sump lubrication, regulated catalytic converter, oil bath clutch, six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain.
Bore x stroke: 65 x 45.2 mm
Displacement: 300 cm³
Rated output: 28 kW (38 hp) at 12,000 rpm
Max. Torque: 27 Nm at 9000 rpm
Landing gear: Steel tubular frame, upside-down fork, Ø 41 mm, two-arm swing arm, side spring strut, adjustable spring base and rebound damping, floating double disc brake at the front, Ø 260 mm, four-piston brake caliper, rear disc brake, Ø 240 mm, two-piston floating caliper.
Cast aluminum wheels: 3.50 x 17; 4.50 x 17
Tires: 110/70 ZR 17; 140/70 ZR 17
Dimensions + weights: Wheelbase 1405 mm, steering head angle 65.5 degrees, caster 90 mm, spring travel 135/137 mm, seat height 795 mm, ready-to-drive weight (with 90 percent petrol) 196 kg, permissible total weight 395 kg, tank capacity / reserve 16/3 liters.
Guarantee: three years
Colours: Black, white, green
Price: around 4000 euros
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