Hot on the heels of the Benelli BN 302 learner-approved motorcycle come two 600cc sports tourers, one of which is a LAMS bike.
The two sports touring versions of the BN 600 are the BN 600GT and GTS available in white, black, and matt army green for $8990 plus on-road costs. That includes two-year premium roadside assist and two-year unlimited kilometre warranty. The pictured panniers are not included in the price.
The GTS is a throttle-restricted LAMS version and the GT is a non-restricted model.
The Italian-designed and Chinese-made BN 600 GT and GTS are half-faired models with windscreen, very generous 27-litre fuel tank, an upright ergonomic riding position and optional hard panniers for touring capabilities.
They share the inline four-cylinder, four-stroke, liquid-cooled engine from the BN 600R. The GT has maximum power of 62kW at 11,000rpm and 55Nm of torque at 8100rpm, matched to a six-speed gearbox. The GTS has a throttle restrictor. There are no confirmed power figures yet but it is expected to be 44kW as in the BN600S learner bike.
The BN 600 GT and GTS have a rigid tubular steel trellis frame mounted to cast aluminium rear section which incorporates the engine as a stress member.
Suspension consists of a 50mm inverted front forks, and a rear aluminium alloy swing arm with rear mono shock absorber that has adjustable rebound and spring preload.
Stopping the GT and GTS are twin floating 320mm diameter discs at the front with four-piston radial callipers and a 260mm diameter disc with a two-piston calliper on the rear.
Benelli also has the BN 302 in its learner ranks. It arrived in January at less than $5500 plus on-road costs.
Benelli BN 302 colour rangeIt is powered by a four-valve DOHC inline two cylinder engine, producing 28kW at 12,000rpm and 27Nm at 9000rpm. Feeding this engine is the Delphi MT-05 fuel injection system which is also used in the BN 600 range. The engine is mated to a six-speed transmission.
It sits in a rigid steel trestle frame with 41mm inverted forks with adjustable rebound and a mono rear shock with adjustable preload and rebound.
The aluminium alloy wheels are fitted with Pirelli 120/70-17 front and 160/60-17 rear tyres.
It is equipped with twin 260mm brake discs, twin four-piston callipers at the front and a single 240mm disc with a two-piston calliper on the rear.
The BN 302 comes in white, black, orange and Benelli green with the option of black or red frames. It comes with a two-year unlimited kilometre warranty.
The 300-500cc learner bike category, led by the Kawasaki Ninja 300, is highly competitive and becoming crowded with new models from Honda, Yamaha and KTM. There is also talk of a Triumph and BMW joining the ranks.