Benelli's TRK 502 rebranded as QJ SRT 500 in China
What's the story
Benelli's parent company, Qianjiang, has renamed the TRK 502 motorcycle to QJ SRT 500 for the Chinese market.
Under the banner of QJ Motor, the SRT 500 looks leaner than its global counterpart, offering a slightly tweaked semi-faired design, new headlight unit, slimmer fuel tank, and restyled visor.
Interestingly, with these cosmetic changes, it is 10kg lighter than the Benelli TRK 502.
Design
What's new on the QJ SRT 500?
The SRT 500 gets a short front fender with a single headlight instead of a split one. The LED indicators have been moved up from the fairing kit to be enclosed within the headlight unit.
The fairing kit is narrower with the triangle-shaped intakes and new pieces of vinyl. However, the rear section remains unchanged with a split-seat, LED taillights, and hard-case panniers.
Internals
Under the hood
At the heart, the QJ SRT 500 runs on the same 500cc liquid-cooled, in-line twin-cylinder engine that is present on the Benelli TRK 502
The motor delivers a peak power of 47hp at 8,500rpm and a maximum torque of 46Nm at 6,000rpm. However, on the SRT 500, it will generate an additional 1hp due to the considerable 10kg drop in total kerb weight.
Brakes and suspension
On the road
Quite like the Benelli TRK 502, the QJ SRT 500 will feature disc brakes on the front and rear wheels along with dual-channel ABS for improved road handling.
The suspension duties on the rebranded adventure-tourer will be handled by inverted telescopic forks on the front along with a rebound and preload-adjustable hydraulic mono-shock unit at the rear.
Information
Pricing and availability
Since the SRT 500 is made for the Chinese market, it will not be arriving in India or other global markets. However, the Benelli TRK 502 is expected to arrive on our shores in November at a starting price of around Rs. 5.10 lakh.