Benelli has introduced the Leoncino 500Sport in the Chinese market. It is based on the standard variant that’s essentially a scrambler-styled model. However, the Italian bike maker has bestowed the Sport trim with additional cosmetic elements, giving it a café-racer persona. At the moment, it’s hard to comment on the chances of its India arrival. But for now, let’s take a look at the alluring pictures of the bike.
The elements that are different from the standard Leoncino 500 include a headlamp cowl inspired by retro café-racers, a clip-on handlebar, a pair of short exhaust canisters, and a tiny saddle bag mounted on the right side.
All other components have been left untouched. It continues with a circular headlamp, round blacked-out mirrors, a curvy fuel tank blending with the sleek tail that houses a compact rectangular-shaped tail lamp.
It’s decently equipped with modern features like full-LED lighting and a dual-channel ABS setup. There’s a fully-digital instrument cluster too, that comprises distinctively laid out dual LCDs.
Powering the motorcycle is the same 500cc parallel-twin cylinder engine that does duty on the base Leoncino available in India. However, the Sport trim produces marginally more power and torque at 47.5bhp and 47Nm, respectively.
Unlike the road-biased iteration that gets alloy wheels, the Leoncino Sport comes equipped with spoke wheels, with a diameter of 17-inches each. Damping duties are handled by upside down forks and a monoshock while braking is handled by dual discs upfront and a single disc at the rear.
The dry weight of the motorcycle is 198kg that should make it easy to handle. Another aspect contributing to its accessibility is a low 785mm seat height.
In China, the Benelli Leoncino 500 Sport is available in a choice of three colour options – green, black and silver.
