As manufacturers steadily drip-feed their annual sales figures from 2019, one brand that enjoyed a particularly impressive 12 months was Benelli… and it has bold plans to consolidate those figures in 2020.
Saved from going under a decade ago after being purchased by the Chinese Motor Group Qianjiang company, Benelli has maintained its Italian identity but taking advantage of the greater financial security to enact a recovery plan that shows no sign of slowing.
Indeed, having already shifted record numbers of motorcycles in 2018, Benelli broke that figure again with 63,000 models sold worldwide – greater figures than Ducati and almost surpassing Triumph – and nabbing the third biggest-selling model in Italy with its TRK502 adventure tourer.
Now Benelli is laying out its plans for the future with a number of new models set to be launched over the next year, according to documents which confirm a timeline of reveals.
Most importantly for the brand’s profit margins, the successful TRK range will gain a new flagship using the 754cc parallel V-Twin that recently made its way into Benelli’s Leoncino big scrambler. The Benelli TRK800 is likely to get an EICMA 2020 reveal, where it will be pitched directly at its BMW F-Series counterpart.
Perhaps more interesting is what comes under the ‘600’ denotation with a 600N and 600RR both slated for a mid-year reveal. It’s worth noting that the 600N (presumably ‘naked’) is likely to be the below which we have been calling TNT600 but seems to be a good educated guess.
Is a Benelli sportsbike on the way?
The 600RR, however, is a more curious beast. The term ‘RR’ is a familiar suffix on sportsbikes across the market, suggesting this is going to be a fully-faired, sportier version of the ‘N’ platform.
This would mark an interesting shift back into a sporting arena for Benelli having largely focused on tourers, cruisers and nakeds since Qianjiang came on board. However, it does have stock in this area having sold the Tornado triple-cylinder between 2003 and 2014 and could be looking into more halo models.
There is no suggestion however that Benelli – which now exports to a vast 72 markets – is preparing such a model for European audiences, though a GT version later in the year shows it has big plans to expand this new 600 line.
Also featuring on the new model line-up is an Imperiale 530 to slot above the current 400, plus the previously reported Harley-Davidson HD380, which will be built on a Benelli platform for sale in Asian markets.
Benelli remains a relatively niche player in the UK market but counts its biggest markets globally as Italy and China.
