Benelli BN251 unveiled at the 2014 EICMA

The Italian bike maker- Benelli unveiled its entry level bike- BN251 at the 72th EICMA. It is also expected to be launched in India as well along with the other 5 models under the DSK-Benelli partnership.

The bike looks similar to the KTM Duke twins, instead of its elder sibling BN302. Be it the small but masculine fuel tank, bold headlight shape, split seat, rear grab rails and tiny LED turn indicators look much inspired from them. In fact the power output of the bike is almost similar to its rival KTM 200 Duke. However, the seats are slightly longer and it gets a side slung exhaust muffler, so you can differentiate them even standing too far from the bikes.

Propelling the Benelli BN251 is a new 249.2cc, liquid-cooled, single-cylinder engine, mated to a six-speed gearbox. Using the electronic fuel injection system, the engine put out 24.1bhp of maximum power at 9,000rpm along with a peak torque of 21Nm at 7,000 rpm.

Bolted on a steel trellis frame, the bike has overall dimentions (L x W x H) of 2,080mm x 805mm x 1,090mm along with a wheelbase of 1,385mm. Seat height has been kept decent at 780mm, while the ground clearance of 130mm looks much lower in competition. The headlight arrangement of the bike is also quite similar to the Duke twins, however, it also gets two extra positioning lamps. Instrument console looks much interesting with an analog tacho and LCD display.

The Benelli BN251 also gets the inverted front forks and a mono-shock suspension on the rear side. Front tyre section is 110/70, while the 140/60  rear tyre looks a little leaner compared to the 150/60 section rubber on the rear wheel of the Duke.