- New Benelli Tornado 252R launched in China
- Shares its styling with the bigger 302R
- Priced at CNY 25,800 (approximately Rs 2.93 lakh) in China
Benelli has launched its new quarter-litre fully-faired motorcycle, the Tornado 252R, in its home country China. The motorcycle looks closely similar to the latest edition of the 302R but packs a smaller engine.
The Tornado 252R retains some styling cues from the older 302R that was discontinued in India a long time back. However, the front fascia of the 252R is absolutely new with an MV Agusta-like oblong-shaped headlamp. It is flanked by air-scoops on both sides and thin DRL stripes at the bottom. Meanwhile, the angular fairing, sculpted fuel tank, and the long and raked tail section look the same as the 302R.
Running on a 249cc, liquid-cooled, parallel-twin engine, the 252R isn’t really focused on performance. It churns out 25.6bhp of power at 8,500rpm and 24.1Nm of peak torque at 6,500rpm. However, being a Benelli product, we are sure it has a sweet-sounding, inline four-like exhaust note. The engine comes mated to a six-speed gearbox along with a slipper clutch.
The Tornado 252R rides on 17-inch alloy wheels at both ends which are suspended by 37mm upside-down forks up front and a monoshock at the rear. A single disc at both ends deliver stopping power with dual-channel ABS as standard. The seat height of the bike is accessible at 785mm but it’s quite heavy for its displacement at 177kg.
The Benelli Tornado 252R is priced at CNY 25,800 (approximately Rs 2.93 lakh) in China. Given the stiff competition in the quarter-litre segment, Benelli is unlikely to launch this bike in India. However, it might bring in the bigger 302R which will compete against the TVS Apache RR 310 and KTM RC 390.
