Benelli Files New Engine Patent, Allegedly For TNT900

www.informationautomotive.com - Benelli's Chinese parent company Qianjiang filed for a new engine patent. This new engine is reportedly designed for future models. Strong allegations are aimed at the Benelli TNT naked bike. From the images circulating it is also known that the mechanical heart is closely related to the LC8c design owned by KTM.

Benelli Files New Engine Patent, Allegedly For TNT900

Although Qianjiang has several brands, including QJMotor and Benelli, it is clear that these parallel twin engines are destined for the TNT model. The 'TNT' logo appears on the cylinder head. Although the scattered design does not reveal the internal structure of the engine, the specifications are arguably similar to KTM's.

In addition to characterizing it from the design side, naming conventions for Chinese engines usually begin with the manufacturer's initials, followed by the number of cylinders and then the size of the cylinder hole in millimeters. In this case the QJ for Qianjiang, for two cylinders uses an 88 mm hole.

Visually, the engine is similar to the LC8c KTM twin, as used on the Duke and Adventure 790 and 890 models as well as its brother such as the Husqvarna Norden 901. They use a hole size of 88 mm and perfectly match the original version of the engine, 799 cc (nomenclature model 790).

It should be noted that LC8c is already manufactured in China by CFMoto, on behalf of KTM. And cfmoto also has its own version of the 799 cc twin engine, used on the newly launched 800MT adventurer bike.

The Twin Twin Benelli parallel engines seen here aren't actually 100 percent identical, although the company may have used KTM's design as a template. Just copy each component. The bracing pattern around the cylinder and the lower end of the engine is different from the KTM or CFMoto units, and castings for cylinder heads, water pumps and clutch covers and generators are also different, although the pattern and distance from the bolts holding them in place are identical.

Of course, a successful copy of a Chinese machine is not unusual. The kawasaki 650 parallel twin has inspired several Chinese-made motorcycles, as has Honda's CB500 engine. Last year, we also noticed that another company, Colove has developed a very similar engine to the KTM LC8c, for use on its own 800cc adventure bike.

Although it is not yet known what type of motorcycle, the appearance of the 'TNT' badge on the right side of the cylinder head is quite a clue. It was clear that it was destined for Benelli's 'naked' model. The company currently has a twin 754cc engine, which is used on the Leoncino 800 and 752S, as well as the newly launched TRK800. But the design is relatively old and old. It also re-released the TNT899 in China for 2022, but the new engine patent suggests that Benelli has much more ambitious plans to expand the TNT line.

If it goes according to plan, Benelli will announce as early as September 2022. At the time, the company also intends to introduce new line-ups ranging from 250cc, 380cc and 530cc (one cylinder), 400cc, 700cc and 900cc (two cylinder), 900cc and 1200cc (three cylinder) as well as 650cc and 1,000cc (four cylinders). The last one, the 1,000cc four-cylinder will be derived from the four-cylinder MV Agusta.