Benelli R18i 2021: the sport scooter for the Asian market

 Benelli R18i 2021: the sport scooter for the Asian market

QJMotor continues pushing its brands in Asia and launches the Benelli R18i scooter with, sporty design and available in two versions.

A large slice of the Asian motorcycle market is represented by urban commuters, which require a small-displacement motorcycle or scooter, agile, fast, economical but with an attractive design because aesthetics are and will always be an essential element. The congested roads of most Asian countries are populated by vehicles of these characteristics instead of large displacement and high-performance motorcycles.

Thus, in countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, underbones are depopulated, a vehicle that created a subculture of motorcycling. In Italy were popular in the 1980s for those who remember the Malaguti. It is moped with a single-beam tubular frame, equipped with a gear motor and without a footrest, where the tank was placed in its place, to reduce production costs. But to accommodate a sufficient quantity of gasoline, it was necessary to increase the pipe's diameter considerably. Hence the term "tube." These vehicles now call themselves superclubs in modern times, whose market leader by image alone is the Honda Super Cub.

In this very profitable segment in the Far East and to solve urban mobility problems, QJ Motor's proposal is the Benelli R18i tube.

Between scooter and sportbike

The Benelli R18i is a perfect combination of the best features of a scooter and a motorcycle.

Sporty design with an aggressive appearance, small dimensions, and low weight, with a 174 cc liquid-cooled single-cylinder engine, a declared power of 18 HP at 9,500 rpm, a torque of 15.1 Nm at 7,000 rpm, and a six-speed gearbox with final chain drive.

The keenest eyes and the experts of the Asian market will have recognized the platform used, that of the other Benelli RFS150i underbone/tube, already marketed by Benelli Malaysia.

Premium chassis

The Benelli R18i inherits most of the equipment from the descendant: braking system with single 240 mm discs at the front and 220 mm at the rear, suspension consisting of the upside-down fork and Kayaba single shock absorber, the latter adjustable in preload, wheels in 17 "legs covered by 80/80 tires in front and 120/70 in the rear.

The headlights characterize the front view, with aggressive-looking LED daytime running lights integrated into the shield and a larger single headlight in the handlebar fairing.

The tail points upwards, like sports bikes, and has a basic design, where the rear light and arrows are placed, in a simple but successful aesthetic solution.

The weight of the Benelli R18i is 126 kg, easily governed by sitting on the saddle, 787 mm high from the ground.

Proof that the Benelli underbone is not a lower-end product, nor a scooter, is demonstrated by the instrumentation with a digital display that shows all the necessary information.

Availability, colors, and price

The Benelli R18i is, for the moment, available for the Malaysian market, but the goal is to market it in other countries as well. Asia for now, but his arrival in the Western ones are not excluded.

Two versions are proposed: the standard, black and red colors, and Special Edition, in the blue color.

In Malaysia, prices are RM7,999 (about 1,620 euros) for the standard version, RM8,299 (1,680 euros) for the Special Edition version.