The New Benda Rock 707 Brings an Auto Clutch and Air Ride Suspension
Benda is going big with its next cruiser, with the Rock 707 featuring an auto clutch as well as air ride suspension!
Benda has a raft of cruisers in its ranks, although the recently announced Rock 707 might just be the brand's most interesting to date.
Like many manufacturers, Benda is looking to open up the market to more riders and is adding an auto clutch option to the new bike. It’s not totally defined how the system works, although from looking at the images, we can have a pretty good idea. Like the Honda E-Clutch system, the Benda features an actuator on the clutch side of the engine, which can play the part of a hand on the clutch lever. Importantly, the new bike retains a clutch and gear lever (as does the Honda system), meaning the rider can shift as normal if they wish. It should give riders the ability to engage first gear, pull away, change up and done the ‘box, and come to a stop again all without touching the clutch lever.
And if you’re thinking, ‘well, what’s the point in that?’ This system isn’t aimed at you. It’s aimed at riders who might have been riding twist-and-go scooters or electric bikes, who want to step up to riding a geared bike, but without having to learn the dark art of clutch control.
Another big piece of news to report on this bike is the addition of proper air suspension. Pneumatic suspension isn’t anything new, although this system seems to work in the same way as air-ride works in the four-wheeled world. Its makers claim that “multiple adaptive airbags intelligently adjust the vehicle status to make each trip safer and more comfortable.” So, in a nutshell, it’s reading the roads, and possibly the way you are riding, and adjusting the pressure within the system to account for increased or decreased load on the chassis. There is no mention of any similar tech at the front of the bike, so we’ll assume the system is only active within the rear twin shocks.
Will we ever see the Rock 707 in the UK and Europe? Who knows, we get several Benda cruisers over here already, and with the Chinese brand looking to emulate its European and Japanese competitors in terms of technology and engineering, we wouldn’t bet against it.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
