Benelli 302R Test Ride Review

Benelli 302R Review

Bike Tested: Benelli 302R; Road Test No. 860; Test Location: Lavasa

Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 4,21,700/-

This really is an all-rounder, it’s a sports tourer that enjoys spirited riding

It’s been my pleasure to be a proud owner of a KTM Duke 390 and a Kawasaki Ninja 300, that being said when I heard Benelli was launching another bike in the same segment, it got me nothing short of excited to see competition get so strong from other manufacturers. First, from Honda with their now outdated CBR250R, then came competition from the rather forgotten machine called the Hyosung GT250R which faced a lot of issues and made you envy a Royal Enfield owner, which is saying something. KTM then comes to the mix and takes the segment by storm with the RC 390 which offers a lot of performance while still undercutting all of the above-mentioned bikes in terms of value and price. If this isn’t enough, further adding to the mix comes the well reputed and much awaited Yamaha R3. To be honest with you, most of the bikes mentioned above aren’t single-cylinder machines or proper sports bikes. Except for the RC 390, they all lean more towards the sports touring family. So just like me, I bet you too are very eager to find out where this new twin-cylinder menace from Italy (or China) fits in.

Motor Quest: The Benelli 302R is the full-faired version of the TNT 300 but isn’t mechanically the same as its street-fighter cousin. It is Benelli’s only full-faired motorcycle after the 600 GT.

Styling – To begin with, the silver and green colour look beautiful and is a unique colour not seen by any other manufacturer in this segment or above. The Benelli 302R is one of the, if not, the longest motorcycle in its segment. It has great road presence and immediately gets people’s attention with its single yet twin headlamp set up with LED daytime running lights. Even the front wheel doesn’t miss out on any attention to detail with the twin petal discs and the front fender with its vents and lines just look so purposeful, adding onto and complimenting the aggressive yet bold design. The attention to detail is so evident once you walk around the motorcycle and start noticing things like the Benelli logo under the visor and at the tip of the tail. No matter where you see, you’ll always find some design queue incorporated in every part. The strong and characterful design is just gorgeous, with the shoulder seamlessly blending into the rest of the fairing along with an LED indicator mounted on each side. The front half of the fairing being divided by the smart-looking steel-tube trellis frame that links the steering head directly to the swingarm pivot. The engine casing looks expensive and exudes quality and is a total eye candy.

Move up to the tank and you’ll notice the Lion logo proudly engraved into the fibre under the tank, speaking of which, the tank has these strong chiselled lines that make it look muscular and downright bold. The footpegs are quite unique and are the same ones found on its elder siblings which is never a bad thing. The 302R gets split seats with the name ‘Benelli’ engraved into the seats which is quite an expensive and cool looking feature. The green on this silver runs from the front fender, all the way across till the tail. The tail design is a little bland compared to the sharper tails found on its competition but the LED tail-lights help spice things up. One thing I really liked was that most people overlook the design of the wheels. They don’t look as large or chunky as the ones found on its naked sibling, pun intended, but still looks intriguing and are finished in gunmetal grey, unlike the usual black or orange. One thing I’m still getting used to is the exhaust. I personally don’t find it very attractive but it’s the sound it makes that gets me going, more on that later.

Instrument Cluster and Switchgear – The instrument cluster looks extremely dated and like something you’d find on a Bajaj Pulsar. It shows you most basic information like speed, two trip meters, an odometer, a fuel gauge, a gear position indicator and an engine temperature gauge. The gear position indicator is large and easily visible even at high speeds but sadly misses out on a shift light indicator, something that would have been a nice addition. The speedometer is finished in an orange backlight which adds to that rather bland feel. The buttons are well positioned and are of good quality and the starter button is in red which is different and feels purposeful. There is no headlight ON switch, just a switch to alter between high and low beam just like all bikes these days due to AHO. The motorcycle also gets adjustable clutch and brake levers which is a welcome addition.

Ergonomics – This is a very comfortable machine and even after an entire day of riding, I barely broke a sweat. I’m going to go ahead and say that this clearly is more comfortable than the KTM RC 390 and even manages to outdo the Kawasaki Ninja 300 in terms of comfort. Touring is a breeze on this machine with its thick and wide seats and upright yet leaned forward riding position that manages to strike an amazing balance between laid back and committed. The pillion doesn’t sit too high up and is quite comfortable. The mirrors are positioned vertically unlike the usual horizontal positioning found on other bikes. At first, it takes a little getting used to but the mirrors are wide enough to offer good visibility and only someone really broad would have trouble with their arms or shoulders obstructing their view but there is a serious problem once you get moving anywhere past 4000 RPM and the entire mirror goes blur due to the amount of vibrations that get to it, making them practically useless beyond 60 km/hr.

The footpegs are placed at a comfortable position letting someone even as tall as me get comfortable without any complaints but it too suffers from vibrations at higher revs and just for the record, I’m 6 feet tall. The visor is very short offering little or no wind protection and barely even deflecting the wind while riding in a tucked-in position. The 302R could definitely do with some better wind protection if you plan to ride at higher speeds. Another issue I faced with this motorcycle was the headlamp illumination which is very poor. Besides its twin headlight setup, it still doesn’t manage to light up the road ahead of you and even the high beam feels like an extra low beam. I wish Benelli would have gone with the times and given this beauty an LED headlamp but I suppose that would be beating a dead horse.

Performance – The Benelli 302R comes with a familiar 300cc inline twin-cylinder, 4-stroke, water-cooled engine that produces a respectable 38.26 BHP at a rather high 11,500 RPM and 26.50 Nm of torque high up at 10,000 RPM. After an increase in 1 BHP and 2 kgs of weight, the odds aren’t in its favour. The powerband feels less like a punch and more like a jab that takes forever to kick in. The engine is set up more for touring and less for leaving the world behind. This bike isn’t the slowest in its segment thanks to the existence of the Honda CBR250R but it sounds by far the best in its segment and if I had to go that far ahead and say a segment above, only second to its elder street-fighter sibling. The sound gives you real eargasms and masks the slouch of this motorcycle by giving you the feeling of going much faster.

If only the lion could run as loud as it can roar! The Benelli 302R sounds really well

If only the 302R went as fast as it sounded, this machine would be unstoppable. The motor is extremely versatile though and very well behaved. It can do as much as 50 km/hr in top gear and feels extremely relaxed throughout. Power takes forever to build up and by the time you manage to get into triple-digit speeds, you run out of road. The throttle can take some time getting used to and feels a little choppy and the on-off throttle transition isn’t always smooth which does add a little character to this bike but it would make sense if the 302R was any faster. Thus coming off less as a character and more like a flaw. I wish Benelli would have made this motorcycle lighter because that really holds it back from some real potential performance. We managed to hit a top speed of around 160 km/hr beyond which this machine ran out of breath and road.

One major concern was heating and thankfully this machine handles the heat very well with it never getting as bad as a Hyosung GT250R or a KTM RC 390. Even after a whole day of canyon carving and intense bumper to bumper traffic, the 302R never felt like it was overheating and could easily do more of it without breaking a sweat. The gearbox, on the other hand, is butter smooth. In fact, it’s so smooth that after riding a KTM Duke 200, I could literally feel the next gear being slotted and immediately once I got back on the Benelli, I couldn’t even tell that I had shifted. It shifts gears so seamlessly and it’s only the clutch that feels heavy but changing gears on this motorbike is a breeze and takes little or no effort. The gearing is short and once you get going, you end up shifting gears than you’d like in a short stint and that just makes the slouch more unbearable. During engine braking, it’s very obvious that this bike doesn’t have a slipper clutch and at this price, it should have one.

Riding Dynamics – From the moment you get on the Benelli 302R, it feels right at home. This is an extremely easy bike to ride and the only challenge you’ll ever face is when you’re reversing the motorcycle out of a parking spot because of its sheer weight, something this Chinese machine is very good at masking once you get going. The Benelli 302R feels compliant and the suspension setup is just spot on! The Benelli 302R is the first bike in the segment to offer damping and rebound action on the front suspension which is also present in the TNT 300. It does a brilliant job at soaking bumps and undulations on the road. The motorcycle feels nimble mostly but only shows its weight once you start to straighten your lean angle while exiting a corner. Around corners, the motorcycle feels very planted thanks to its low mounted side stand, you don’t manage to get too low without scrubbing it against the ground and increasing the chances to lose balance mid-corner. It’s very obvious that this motorcycle is set up less to be an outright track tool or canyon carver and more towards being a sports tourer that doesn’t mind the occasional twisties.

The bike feels right at home from the moment you get on it and fire it up

The brakes on the Benelli 302R offer phenomenal feel and inspire a lot of confidence. This is the only bike in the segment (apart from the long-lost Hyosung GT250R) that offers a dual disc brake setup at the front, the only other bike that offers petal discs (apart from the Kawasaki Ninja 300) and fortunately not the only bike that offers ABS as standard (along with the Honda CBR250R and KTM RC 390). The front brake lever feels a little spongy but the moment you press it a little harder, it drops anchor and stops in an instant while the rear offers good bite throughout. Completing the wonderful braking are the Metzeler tyres that come standard on this motorcycle.

Verdict – This is a motorcycle that’s meant to do it all. Be it your daily office commute, touring across the country or even visiting the twisties. This is a sports tourer that can do it all while letting its sound always remind you that you’re riding something expensive or special. At its price, this isn’t exactly an affordable bike but it justifies that price by bringing to the table utmost detail to quality, feel and comfort. This motorcycle has a soul and if you are someone that seeks a touring machine that never fails to get attention or impress in its own way, then look no further. This isn’t a performance bargain by any means but an alternative.

What’s Cool

* Riding comfort is the best in its class
* Beautiful attention to detail, keep looking at it
* The mesmerizing exhaust sound is pure eargasm
* Dual disc setup with ABS provides amazing braking feedback

What’s Not So Cool

* Bad headlamp illumination, looks good but does not show well
* Lack of performance, could have done with more muscle to the wheel

Benelli 302R Specifications

* Engine: 300cc, Parallel-Twin, 4-Valve, Liquid-Cooled
* Power: 38.26 BHP @ 11,500 RPM
* Torque: 27.50 Nm @ 10,000 RPM
* Transmission: 6-speed
* Fuel Type: Petrol
* Frame: Steel Tube Trellis
* Suspension: 41 mm USD Forks (Front), 45 mm Mono-Suspension (Rear)
* Tyres: 110/70/17 (Front), 150/60/17 (Rear), Metzeler Sportec M5
* Brakes: 260 mm Dual Disc (Front), 240 mm Disc (Rear), ABS

Benelli 302R Dimensions

* Wheelbase: 2150 mm
* Ground Clearance: 150 mm
* Fuel Tank Capacity: 14-litres
* Kerb weight: 198 kgs