In August 2018, Benelli joined hands with the Mahavir Group to commence its second innings in the Indian Two-wheeler market. In what seems to be an attempt to lure the cost-conscious Indian motorcycle buyers, the company has announced a 34 per cent reduction in the prices of its aftermarket services. Other than this, the Italian-origin bike manufacturer has increased the service intervals of its products from 4000 km/4 months to 6,000 km/6 months.
Benelli plans to revise its product portfolio for the Indian market. The new lineup will include a handful of new models, while some of the previous motorcycles will be discontinued. The two-wheeler brand plans to introduce as many as 10 to 12 new bikes across three segments – city riding, cruising and adventure riding.
Dante Bustos, Chief Marketing Officer, Benelli confirmed in an interview that the Imperiale will arrive in two versions – 400 and 530. The lower variant will feature a 373.5 cc, single-cylinder, air-cooled, SOHC engine with fuel injection. It will deliver 19.7 PS of maximum power at 5,500 rpm and 28 Nm of peak torque at 3,500 rpm. Details of the bigger variant aren't known at the moment.
The Leoncino and the TRK range will compete in the adventure motorcycle segment and the company intends to introduce the two products by the end of the current year. The strategy involves bringing a twin-cylinder 500cc platform, with two chassis, two models and four variants. The existing 499cc parallel-twin engine is tuned to deliver 46 bhp of maximum power at 8,500 rpm and 45 Nm of peak torque at 4,500 rpm.
Speaking on the reduction in prices of the after-sales services, Vikas Jhabakh, Managing Director, Benelli India said:
We have taken this decision after receiving feedback from several of our customers. Our on-going national service camp has allowed us to connect with Benelli owners from all over the country and we intend to make further changes to improve the overall Benelli ownership experience.
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Benelli will discontinue the TNT 899, 1130, 600 GT and the TNT 25 from the Indian market.
