Benelli Tornado 302 spied testing in India for the first time; launch during Diwali

Italian motorcycle brand Benelli has begun testing its much-awaited 300cc motorcycle -- the Tornado 302 -- on the Indian roads, consolidating the belief that the new offering could join the company's India line-up soon.

The Benelli Tornado 302 is expected to be launched in India during the festive season this year. Ahead of its possible launch, a prototype of Benelli Tornado 302 has been spied testing probably for the first time. The bike was spotted in Pune.

Caught on camera by MotorOctane, the Tornado 302 was seen in its fully covered form. The Tornado 302, the fully-faired sibling of TNT 300, will be assembled at the company's all-new Talegaon plant.

Benelli Tornado 302 made its India debut at the Auto Expo 2016 in February. The fully-faired model will take on the likes of Kawasaki Ninja 300 and Yamaha YZF-R3 when launched in India. While it has been confirmed already that the Tornado 302 will be launched in India with ABS, it is yet to be known whether the safety feature ABS will come as optional or standard.

Benelli Tornado 302 measures 2,175mm in length, 746mm in width, 1,146mm in height, and weighs 180kg. Built on a trestle frame, the fully-faired version of the TNT 300 gets power from an in-line two-cylinder four-stroke four-valve DOHC engine that can dish out 36bhp at 12,000rpm and 27Nm at 9,000 rpm. The engine is mated to a six-speed transmission and can reportedly attain a top speed of over 170kmph.

The Benelli Tornado 302 features 41mm upside down forks at front and mono suspension in the rear. It comes with a fuel tank capacity of 14 litres and uses twin 260mm floating discs with a four-piston caliper brake at the front and a single 240mm disc with a single piston caliper brake for the rear.

Benelli, which entered the market in March last year, sells its bikes through its Indian-partner DSK Motowheels.