Milan 2007: Benelli

Chinese-owned Benelli still bases its presence on the tried-and-true 1130cc Triple that was conceived in 900cc form during the mid-1990s, but the Pesaro factory has some tricks in the works.

Sadly, the 750cc parallel-Twin that was to be a two-cylinder slice of the 1130 is still a long way from becoming reality. In fact, the prototype that was unveiled at Milan in ’06 has been discarded; a wooden mockup of a new 750-powered bike was on display this year. To fill in the model line under 1000cc, Benelli has revamped the Triple in its original 900cc displacement.

And apparently the company is getting into the dirtbike biz. On show at Milan 2007 were the members of the new family of off-road and supermoto bikes powered by an advanced four-stroke, liquid-cooled, dohc, single-cylinder engine that will be developed in three displacements: 449cc for motocross, 505cc for enduro and 570cc for supermoto.

The 98 x 59.5mm motocross unit should generate 56 hp at 9500 rpm, fed by an FCR MX41 Mikuni carburetor. The 238-pound motocrosser appears well set for action. The 104 x 59.5mm enduro/ISDT 550 is fed by 42mm throttle body fuel-injection in order to achieve the emission levels required to obtain European homologation. Power was announced at 60.5 hp, and it should be very torquey and tractable. The 570 Supermoto is a stroked (104 x 67mm) version of the above and is due to power a bike that was barely finished the night before the show.

None of the three Singles is in production yet, but Benelli is serious about getting dirty.