Benelli India has extended its product
portfolio with the launch of the Leoncino 500 at INR 4.79 lakh (Ex-Showroom,
India). The scrambler-segment bike can be booked for INR 10,000. Unlike select
international markets, India gets the motorcycle in a single variant –
Standard. The Trail and Sport variants could arrive if the company gets a
strong response for the standard variant.
The Benelli Leoncino 500 draws 47.5 PS at 8,500 rpm
and 46 Nm of peak torque at 6,000 rpm from a 499.6 cc inline twin-cylinder,
liquid-cooled, DOHC, 8-valve, fuel-injected motor, which is paired with a
six-speed gearbox. Anchoring power comes from twin 320 mm discs with
four-piston callipers at the front and a single 260 mm disc with a single-piston
calliper at the rear. The braking system is governed by the safety net of
dual-channel ABS. Shock absorption hardware comprises 50 mm upside-down
telescopic front forks and an asymmetrically mounted, preload-adjustable rear
monoshock.
Styling cues include dual-tone paint, spherical
headlight, curvy design for the rear-view mirrors, a digital instrument
console, single-piece seat with a ribbed pattern on rider’s part of the saddle
and a rear tyre hugger mounted number plate. Modern equipment such as projector-style
headlight, LED blinkers, inverted front forks and monoshock at the back
complement the retro styling of the motorcycle. The split-style LCD instrument
console displays information such as tachometer, speedometer, gear position
indicator, fuel gauge, temperature and a digital clock among others.
The Benelli Leoncino 500 is available in two colour
options - Leoncino Red and Steel Gray. A 5-Year/unlimited-kilometre warranty is
standard. The Standard variant is road-biased, and it comes with 17-inch alloy
wheels with tubeless tyres. The Trail variant, on the other hand, uses a
wire-spoke setup with a larger diameter for the front wheel.
