EICMA 2015: Benelli Tornado Naked T and Leoncino unveiled

  • Nov 17, 2015
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Roll out the red carpet and sound the clarion call; Benelli now has a scrambler bike in its line-up. Oh, and a small enduro-style dual-purpose bike.

2016 Benelli Leoncino

Not to be outdone by Ducati’s exhaustive range of Scramblers, Benelli has taken the wraps of the Leoncino, its very own scrambler at the ongoing 2015 Milan Motor Show. And it is quite a striking machine, this Leoncino. It looks good without being too flamboyant, and retro without being too nostalgic. Designed by CentroStile Benelli, the Leoncino is actually a reimagination of one of the marquee’s most beloved brands of the same name, and it shows in the styling.

Powering it is a twin-cylinder four-stroke, liquid-cooled, 500cc mill, with wet sump lubrication, electronic injection, overhead double camshaft timing system, 4 valves per cylinder, hydraulic clutch and a 6-speed gearbox, producing a peak power figure of 48 PS and max torque of 45 Nm. 

2016 Benelli Leoncino

Suspension duties upfront are handled by an upside down 50mm fork, mated to 4 piston brake calipers gripping 320mm discs. The rear swingarm’s movement is controlled by a laterally mounted shock absorber and braking is handled by a 260mm disc with a two piston caliper. The spoked rims are of aluminum, 19" at the front and 17" at the rear, which accommodate wide-sectioned tyres: 110/80-ZR19 at the front, 150/70-ZR17 at the rear. 

The front features an all-LED headlamp and Benelli says ABS will be standard on the Leoncino. 

2016 Benelli Leoncino

Then there’s the Benelli Tornado Naked T, a new duo of models that we believe could be specially suited for India. Powering it is a single cylinder, 4 stroke, air cooled 4 valves, double spark, available in 125cc or 135 cc guises, the former offering 11.7 PS of power and 10Nm of torque. The slightly larger model – we still don’t understand the rationale behind two engine options so close to each other – offers marginally higher figures at 12.6 PS of power and 10.8Nm of torque. 

Both the 125-cc and 135-cc versions of the Benelli Tornado Naked T will ship with 12-inch wheels, with 120/70 and 130/70 tyres at the front and rear, respectively. Suspension is via a 41mm upside-down front fork and a rear swingarm with lateral shock absorber with spring pre-load adjustment.

2016 Benelli Tornado Naked T
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Braking duties are handled by a 220 mm steel disc upfront, with a smaller 190mm disc taking care of the proceedings at the rear. The fuel tank has a capacity of 7.2 litres.

Both the Benelli Leoncino and the Tornado Naked T are slated to be launched in the latter half of 2016, with competitive pricing, but we reckon they just might show up in India before that at the upcoming 2016 Auto Expo in Delhi. 

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