Benelli 302R's touring version BJ300GS-A unveiled: All you need to know

Italian motorcycle maker Benelli has unveiled the touring version of the 302R sports bike. Christened as BJ300GS-A, the tourer version of the 302R has been unveiled in China, the home market of the Italian brand's current Qianjiang. Benelli BJ300GS-A has been priced Rs 35,800 Yuan which is approximately Rs 3.67 lakh in INR.

To make the 302R suitable for adventure riding, Benelli has reworked on the fairing along with tall windscreen. The two hard-case panniers on the sides and a top box is spot on for cross country rides and the motorcycle also gets crash guards. Fairing-mounted indicators are one the other additions.

For the comfortable long distance ride, Benelli has added raised handlebar and wide split seats. Both these will give upright riding position for the rider. The BJ300GS-A also gets 3.5-litre bigger fuel tank than the one on 302R which is 17.5-litre capacity. Addition of touring equipment means the tourer version is 18 kg heavier than the 302R, at 216 kg.

Both Benelli 302R and BJ300GS-A shares the same in-line two-cylinder DOHC unit. It develops 36bhp at 12,000rpm and 27Nm at 9,000 rpm in the 302R while it develops 34bhp in the BJ300GS-A. The engine comes mated to a six-speed transmission.

Benelli 302R's adventure version employs 41mm upside down forks at the front and mono suspension at the rear. It gets twin 260mm floating discs with a four-piston caliper brake at the front and a single 240mm disc with a single-piston caliper brake at the rear along with dual-channel ABS.

Will it be launched in India?

Benelli has not revealed any plans to launch the BJ300GS-A outside China for now. Affordable touring motorcycle segment is getting serious traction in India and hence, we can expect the arrival of the BJ300GS-A sometime in 2019.

Ahead of that, Indian subsidiary DSK Benelli is expected to launch the TRK 502 middleweight adventure tourer and the Leoncino scrambler in 2018.