Benelli is at it again in improving its motorcycle lineup for the global market. The Chinese-owned Italian brand has had a resurgence in recent years, particularly in Asia and Europe thanks to Qianjiang Motors, its Chinese owners. A couple of days ago, we saw an update from QJ Motor in the form of the SRK 700, a parallel-twin equipped bike with aggressive, streetfighter styling. This time around, QJ Motor has updated the SRK 600.
Inline-four equipped middleweight motorcycles are rather sparse in today's market. We have the Honda CB650R, the Kawasaki Z800 in certain markets, and the dinosaur that is the Suzuki GSX-S750. In fact it could be argued that the latter two are leaning towards the heavyweight segment, leaving the CB650R as the sole i4-equipped bike in its class. Well, this could soon be about to change if and when Benelli rolls out an all new TNT 600. While being available in multiple markets several years ago, the Benelli TNT 600 was criticized for its lack of power, poor build quality, and heavyweight construction. Could this all be about to change?
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At first glance, it's clear to see that the QJ SRK 600, or soon-to-be Benelli TNT 600, now wears thoroughly modern apparel in the form of aggressive, angular bodywork. Additionally, the bike now also features an LED headlight and a TFT instrument panel—pretty common fare in today's tech-laden motorcycle market. But how does the upcoming TNT 600 stack up performance-wise? Well, the exact specifications of the new engine are currently as clear as China's copyright laws. However, multiple sources speculate that the new bike could have a power output of 80 horsepower. That's a pretty healthy jump from the old bike's 67 ponies.
Additionally, the new engine definitely meets China's most current emission standards, which are pretty similar to that of Euro 5. If and when Benelli launches the SRK 600 as the TNT 600, seeing premium components such as Marzocchi suspension and and Brembo brakes isn't a far-fetched notion. That said, we could very soon have another premium player in the middleweight street bike segment.
Sources: iMotorbike, CycleWorld