While the Benelli Leoncino 250 & Leoncino 500 launched in India have a lot in common except for the engine, the new Leoncino 800 which has been revealed at the EICMA 2019 show in Milan is a lot different. This street sracmbler motorcycle will arrive in India sometime in 2020, and will rival the likes of Triumph Street Scrambler, Ducati Scrambler, etc. Benelli claims that this bike follows the philosophy of ‘Timeless Desire’ and the bike will appeal to a wide audience, who are a lot more interested in modern classics in today’s date. The bike is very close to the concept model showcased last year, and the Lion of Pesaro motif sits proudly over the front fender.
Powering the Benelli Leoncino 800 is a 754cc, parallel-twin, liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, Euro-5 compliant petrol motor with an 8-valve setup and DOHC setup. This motor produces 81.6 HP of peak power @ 9000 RPM and 67 Nm of peak torque @ 6500 RPM matched to a 6-speed gearbox. The bike rides on a 50mm USD Marzocchi suspension and a rear monoshock. The stopping power comes from Brembo brakes making use of dual 320mm discs at the front and a single 260mm disc at the rear.
In terms of styling, the Leoncino 800 was revealed with spoked rims, dark theme with black chassis & engine components, smoked headlamp with LED DRLs, full LED lighting including headlight and tail lamp, forged levers, single-piece contoured seat, exposed chassis, full size exhaust, conventional number plate mount, full digital speedo console, gold finished USD front fork, conventional rear view mirrors mounted on handlebar and a sculpted fuel tank. The Leoncino 800 follows the minimalistic body panel approach and looks rather nice as per 2019 standards. There is no engine bash plate, but the bike does get knobby tyres for all-terrain rideability.
Although a twin-cylinder model, when launched in India, it would be more expensive than the Benelli TNT 600i which is a 4-cylinder motorcycle. This has more to do with the fact that this is a much more modern, and latest build in comparison.
