Benelli Q.J. is an Italian company, based in the city of

Pesaro Pesaro () is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Marche, capital of the Province of Pesaro e Urbino, on the Adriatic Sea. According to the 2011 census, its population was 95,011, making it the second most populous city in the Marche, ...

in the

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

region, that produces motorcycles and scooters. Since 2005 Benelli is owned by the

Qianjiang Motorcycle Zhejiang Qianjiang Motorcycle Group Co., usually known as Qianjiang Motorcycle, is a Chinese motorcycle manufacturer founded in 1985 with registered office in Winling (Zhejiang province). It is now one of the largest manufacturer of 2 wheeled ve ...

, a Chinese company owned by the

Geely Holding Group Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd (ZGH), commonly known as Geely (吉利 "auspicious"), is a Chinese multinational automotive company headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The company is privately held by Chinese billionaire entrepreneur ...

. Originally founded in 1911 in Pesaro, Benelli is the second oldest Italian motorcycle company still in business. Design, development and marketing activities are carried out at the Benelli QJ headquarters in Pesaro, Italy, in synergy with the parent company of

Wenling Wenling ( Wenling dialect: Ueng-ling Zy ; ) is a coastal county-level city in the municipal region of Taizhou, in southeastern Zhejiang province, China. It borders Luqiao and Huangyan to the north, Yuhuan to the south, Yueqing to the west, loo ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

where motorcycles are produced.

History

From founding to World War II

Benelli was established in

, Italy in 1911, which possibly makes it the oldest of Italian motorcycle factories in operation. (

Moto Guzzi Moto Guzzi is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer and the oldest European manufacturer in continuous motorcycle production. Established in 1921 in Mandello del Lario, Italy, the company is noted for its historic role in Italy's motorcycling ma ...

—the oldest motorcycle factory in non-stop operation—was established in 1921, and

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

is the world's oldest and still producing motorcycle factory due to establishing in 1898.) After losing her husband, the widow Teresa Boni Benelli invested all of the family capital into the business in the hope that it would offer stable work for her six sons: Giuseppe, Giovanni, Francesco, Filippo, Domenico and Antonio ("Tonino"). She also sent Giuseppe and Giovanni to study

Engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Initially the business had 6 employees in addition to the 5 brothers working (Tonino didn't work because he was too young.) In the beginning, it was just the Benelli Garage, which repaired bicycles and motorcycles, but was already able to produce all of the spare parts needed for repairs. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Benelli worked hard fixing parts for the Italian machines in war and in 1919 the first motorcycle was presented to the public. In 1920 the company built its first complete engine in-house, a single-cylinder

two-stroke A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a Thermodynamic power cycle, power cycle with two strokes (up and down movements) of the piston during one power cycle, this power cycle being comple ...

75 cc model, immediately adapted to a bicycle frame. A year later in 1921, Benelli built its first motorcycle, using their own engine which had by then become a 98 cc model. But the most successful engine, which made Benelli known in the national and international field, was the 175 cm³ 4-stroke with "cascade" distribution and overhead camshaft of 1927, a bold and sophisticated solution that soon became the "trademark" of the Pesaro house. Giuseppe Benelli was inspired by a theoretical study of an engine by Edward Turner published in 1925 in the French magazine Moto Revue. Giuseppe, in order to beat the competition, did not waste time and completely reinterpreted that project introducing an ingenious simple solution to eliminate the negative effects of thermal expansion that afflicted these applications. The five cylindrical gears with straight teeth of the distribution (one of the crankshaft, three idle, one of the camshaft) were inserted (cascade) in a thin aluminum folder placed on the right side of the engine, on the top of which was mounted the "castelletto" of the distribution with the camshaft and barbells annexed. The whole was fixed to the engine head not rigidly, but leaving the coupling with a degree of freedom. The solution consisted in inserting two screws with the stem partially threaded (columns) in two holes in the castle and screwed on the two of the four prisoners of the thermal head. The threaded part joined firmly to the head, while the part of the threaded screw created a free, but very precise coupling with the two holes in the castle. The screws were tightened so as not to "crush" the castle, but so that they could leave a play of a few tenths of a millimeter sufficient to the two "blocks" (folder-castle/ cylinder-head) to flow over each other in the phase of expansion by the effect of heat, without interfering and creating those deformations that would have made the system unreliable. This solution was patented in 1927 and began the commercial and sporting success of Benelli, which lasted until the outbreak of World War II. (Patent No. 255634 of 29 Oct. 1927 "Arrangement for forming and fixing the transmission box for controlling the distribution shaft at the head in combustion engines") Two years after that, using a version specially designed for competitions, Tonino "the terrible" took to the track. He displayed an extraordinary natural talent as a rider and embarked on a very successful career which confirmed the company's exceptional capacity for development and production. Riding a Benelli 175, Tonino Benelli won four Italian championship titles in five years: in 1927, 1928 and 1930 with engine

single overhead camshaft An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...

(SOHC) version, and in 1931 with the

double overhead camshaft An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...

(DOHC) version. Unfortunately, a bad crash in the GP of the Tigullio in 1932 put an end to his short and brilliant career; on 27 September 1937 Tonino died following a road accident. As

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

loomed, the Benelli company debuted with a motorcycles with engine four-cylinder in line

supercharged In an internal combustion engine, a supercharger compresses the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to produce more power for a given displacement. The current categorisation is that a supercharger is a form of forced induct ...

250cc designed for racing with double overhead camshaft, liquid cooled and with a vane compressor, credited with a maximum power of 52 hp at 10,000 rev/min and a maximum speed of 230 km/h. This motorcycle was intended to compete in the 1940 season to try to bissare the Benelli's success in the 1939 Isle of Man TT Lightweight 250 cc race, but the outbreak of the Second World War will frustrate all efforts and this solution (banned in the post-war period) will never be used in official competitions.

After World War II

At the end of the conflict, much of the factory was destroyed, the equipment dispersed or damaged and it took three or four years to restart the business in a situation of precariousness and misery. To replenish the scarce financial resources, the Benelli acquired a thousand motorcycles abandoned by the belligerent armies on the battlefields to refurbish them for civil use. Giuseppe Benelli, after irreconcilable disputes with his brothers about productive strategies, split from the company to found first the BBC Automobili in 1946 and after MotoBi in 1952. The management of Benelli factory will pass to the second brother Giovanni who, although not having the design talents of his older brother, had great organizational skills having always managed the productive apparatus of the company. Under his direction Giovanni provides designers with the guidelines of the model of rebirth: the new motorcycle must be light, reliable and cheap. This is how the Letizia model was born, equipped with a two-stroke engine (cheaper than 4-stroke) of 98 cm³ with four bench bearings, mounted on an essential frame, but elastic on both axes. ″Letizia″ will be the motorcycle forerunner of the most famous model of the Benelli postwar: the ″Leoncino″ (little lion). It was produced from 1950 to 1960 in about 45,000 units, the most common motorization was the 125 cm³ 2 stroke, but also 150 cm³ for the version "three wheel" and 125 cm³ 4 stroke with distribution to "cascade of gears", immediately abandoned solution for reliability problems. Since the 1960s, at a time of major market crisis in Italy, Benelli has been saving its balance with exports to the US. In the sixties he chose two different routes to sell overseas: via the importer Cosmopolitan and with the Montgomery Ward and presented the following models: * Tornado 650: the twin-cylinder maxi was marketed first in the US and then in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. The superstructures are completely different, but the peculiarity is the chassis type Metisse, wanted by

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s, and 1 ...

. The actor was the image of the importer

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

and

Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a world-pioneering mail-order business and later also a leading department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The curren ...

. The ″Tornado″ earned a reputation for reliability and high performance, despite its somewhat hefty weight at . Benelli claimed at the time of launch that the Tornado was capable of 57 hp at 7,400rpm for a top speed of 117 mph. The Tornado (later the Tornado S) was discontinued after 1974, when Benelli introduced a series of "multis" intended to compete with Japanese triples and fours. * Mojave 260/360: used the chassis and superstructures of the Tornado while the 4-stroke engine was an increase of 175 cc. The motorbike, proposed also in preparation Scrambler, could be bought in store. * Buzzer/Hurricane/Dynamo/Hornet: small wheeled scooter with 65 cc engine (instead of 50 cc sold in Italy). Compared to the models sold in Italy, the names and some details changed. *

Volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are ...

: low-wheeled "scooter" derived from the Mini Cross but with a displacement of 180 cc.

The management of Alejandro de Tomaso

Towards the end of the 1960s, the arrival of Japanese manufacturers caused a crisis in the European motorcycle industry. The original Benelli company was heavily involved in the American motorcycle market, selling motorcycles under 350cc through

. The advent of competition from Japan led to Benelli products (still largely of single cylinder pushrod design) losing popularity as they were perceived as old-fashioned in comparison to

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a product ...

s of the era which sported

overhead cam An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...

engines with

electric starter A starter (also self-starter, cranking motor, or starter motor) is a device used to rotate (crank) an internal-combustion engine so as to initiate the engine's operation under its own power. Starters can be electric, pneumatic, or hydraulic. ...

s, in much the same way as the British motorcycle manufacturers such as

Norton Norton may refer to: Places Norton, meaning 'north settlement' in Old English, is a common place name. Places named Norton include: Canada *Rural Municipality of Norton No. 69, Saskatchewan *Norton Parish, New Brunswick **Norton, New Brunswick, a ...

, BSA and

Triumph The Roman triumph (Latin triumphus) was a celebration for a victorious military commander in ancient Rome. For later imitations, in life or in art, see Trionfo. Numerous later uses of the term, up to the present, are derived directly or indirectl ...

were affected in the larger capacity sector. The Benelli, in obvious economic difficulty, will be purchased by the Italian-Argentine industrialist

Alejandro de Tomaso Alejandro de Tomaso (10 July 1928 in Buenos Aires – 21 May 2003 in Modena, Italy) was a racing driver and businessman from Argentina. His name is sometimes seen in an Italianised form as ''Alessandro de Tomaso''. He participated in two Formula ...

, who was undoubtedly one of the most discussed and powerful figures in Italy in the '60s, '70s and '80s. In 1959 he founded De Tomaso automobili in

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

and made his own series of road and racing cars. He then acquired a number of Italian companies such as

Maserati Maserati S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury vehicle manufacturer. Established on 1 December 1914, in Bologna, Italy, the company's headquarters are now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. The company has been owned by Stellantis since 2021. Ma ...

Innocenti Innocenti () was an Italian machinery works, originally established by Ferdinando Innocenti in 1920. Over the years, they produced Lambretta scooters as well as a range of automobiles, mainly of British Leyland origins. The brand was retired in 1 ...

Ghia Carrozzeria Ghia SpA (established 1916 in Turin) is an Italian automobile design and coachbuilding firm, established by Giacinto Ghia and Gariglio as "Carrozzeria Ghia & Gariglio". The headquarters are located at Corso Guglielmo Marconi, 4, Turin ...

and

Vignale Vignale is the luxury car sub-brand of Ford Motor Company used in automobiles sold in Europe.Honda CB500 Four engine to save time and money. Thus was born the 500 Quattro (1974) which will be the basis of the 750 Sei with its six-cylinder engine in line, first in the world on a road motorcycle. Experts in the field judged the 750 Sei an easy-to-ride motorcycles, with good engine elasticity, exceptional roadholding and excellent brakes. The only downside was the ignition that had to bring the power at the right time to the candles. In 1974 it became "Moto dell'anno" and in 1975 there were the first deliveries. It had a top speed of 200 km/h, 75 hp at 9500 rpm and was produced in 3200 units until 1977. This industrial policy, combined with little investment in plant and research, with a quality of materials that is not up to the competition, with a lack of distribution and after-sales network, will soon prove to be harmful. Then, the final blow, will be caused by the merger with the acerrima and historical rival (in racing)

in the Guzzi-Benelli Moto (G.B.M. S.p.a.) that will transform the Benelli in an empty box. Benelli motorcycles from the 1970s and 1980s, particularly the 750 Sei, often command higher prices than their contemporaries on the secondhand market.

The management of Andrea Merloni

After a failed attempt of rebirth in 1989 supported by the Pesaro industrialist Giancarlo Selci, operating in the field of woodworking machinery and ex machine operator in the Benelli factory, in December 1995 there was the decisive turning point: the young Andrea Merloni, at only 28 years old, scion of family of the famous Marche dynasty of household appliances and passionate motorcyclist, has decided to take over the Benelli brand to relaunch it on the world market, first by opening a new factory in Strada della Fornace Vecchia, where Benelli itself is still based today, then entered the most difficult sectors, using young and dynamic designers, launching a series of scooters and maximoto to give immediate oxygen to the crates and organize the sales network and assistance. So, in just over a year from the acquisition, were placed on the market the first new products such as models

Adiva Adiva was the first wife of Boleslaus II of Bohemia. It has been speculated that she was the progeny of Edward the Elder Edward the Elder (17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alf ...

(in the displacement 125 and 150) equipped with rigid canopy foldable in the trunk (first scooter in the world to be equipped with this mechanism, then copied by the competition), the Velvet (in the displacement 125, 150, 250, 400) which remained in the list until 2012, the 491, very popular among fourteen-year-olds of the time, that mounted a rare horizontal Morini engine of 50 cm³ at 2 times with liquid cooling and that made it one of the most performing of the lot, the K2 (50 and 100 cm³) and the

Pepe Pepe is a pet form of the Spanish name José (Josep). It is also a surname. * People Mononyms * Pepe (footballer, born 1935), real name José Macia, Brazilian footballer *Pepe (footballer, born 1983), real name Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira ...

(of 50 cm³ then became the best-selling Benelli scooter in recent years); the latter, powered by a

Minarelli Minarelli is an Italian motorcycle engine manufacturer. It is part of the Fantic Motor Fantic Motor is an Italian manufacturer of motorcycles. History Fantic Motor began in 1968, manufacturing and exporting enduro motorcycles, mini-bikes ...

engine, had a good commercial success. In 1999 was hired the technician Riccardo Rosa (ex

Cagiva Cagiva is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer. It was founded in 1950 by Giovanni Castiglioni in Varese, originally producing small metal components. Giovanni's sons, Claudio and Gianfranco Castiglioni, went into the motorcycle industry in 1978. ...

) and was then presented the new Tornado Tre, a sports bike (900 cm³, then brought to 1130 cm³), with interesting technological innovations. It was in fact a pure sports bike, equipped with a 3-cylinder engine in-line that presented a new arrangement of the cooling radiator positioned under the rear tail and equipped with two forced air extraction fans of spectacular effect and a new "mixed" frame consists of a die-cast aluminium and steel tubes joined with a technology of aeronautical origin. The Tornado Tre 900 super sport bike was launched in 2002, and the

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

, roadster some years later. "The races improve the breed" and Merloni, a former driver, knew it well so the next step was to prepare the new Tornado for the races. As per his style, Merloni immediately began to run in 2001 and 2002 in the

World Superbike Championship Superbike World Championship (also known as WorldSBK, SBK, World Superbike, WSB, or WSBK) is a silhouette-class road racing series based on heavily modified production motorcycles, also known as superbike racing. The championship was founded i ...

with the Australian rider Peter Goddard, who with his long experience has been able to give directions to improve the bike and consequently also the series. Given that the team was at the start and fierce competition, the results were higher than expected with a 36th place in the final classification in 2001 (with 7 points) and a 22nd place in 2002 (with 23 points). A limited version of the Tornado (named the Tornado LE, where LE stands for Limited Edition) was built. The results of the new Benelli are encouraging but the strong investments for the Tornado are not compensated by sales and even Andrea Merloni decides to stop.

Current Qianjiang ownership

In 2005, Benelli was acquired by Qianjiang Motor Group, a Chinese company which has been controlled by the Geely Holding Group since 2015. The Qianjiang Group is a Chinese manufacturer of small motorcycles and engines, which already owns the Keeway and Generic brands. Qianjiang decided to maintain production and engineering in Pesaro, entrusting the company to sole administrator Yan Haimei. The production of motorcycles started almost immediately with the assembly of 3-cylinder engines (previously performed by Franco Morini Motori) brought back to the marque. The scooter range also restarted with engines of Chinese origin. For 12 years Benelli QJ carried out the projects and production of the previous management. 2016 was a breakthrough year, with coincided with the acquisition of Qianjiang Group by the Geely Holding Group. The Leoncino 500 and the TRK 500 are still made in Pesaro. Both motorcycles have the same 500 cc twin-cylinder 4 valve, double camshaft engine. The Leoncino is a "naked" bike with historic reference to past models. It comes in two versions, a roadster with 17" cast wheels, and a scrambler with longer suspension and spoked wheels. The TRK 500 is an "Adventure Bike" made for long-distance touring. It also comes in two models, the base model with cast 17" rims is a road touring machine, and the TRK502X is a more dirt-oriented machine. It has more suspension travel, spoked wheels, and a 2" higher seat height. In general, the success of TRK has been overwhelming. In 2020 it was by far the best-selling model in Italy. Benelli currently offers a very wide range of models from 125 single cylinder (135cc in some markets) to 300, 500, 750 twin cylinder and 600 four cylinder models. Benelli is one of the oldest motorcycle brands in business in the world, and in 2021 celebrated the 110th anniversary of its foundation. The synergy with the know-how of the historic company in Italy and the parent company in China has turned out to be a winning move: Italian Style combined with the large economy of scale available from Chinese ownership have produced attractive models at very competitive costs.

Current products (2021)

Motorcycle_Benelli_Imperiale_400_Tetin_Czech_Republic_2020

Naked

* BN 125 * TNT 125 * TNT 135 * 150S * 180S * TNT 150i * TNT 25 / BN251 * TNT 300 / 302S * TNT 600 * 752S * 502 Cruiser (502C)

Sport

* 302R

Touring

* TRK 251 * TRK 502 * TRK 502 X * TNT 600 GT

Classic

* Imperiale 400ES

Scramblers

* Leoncino 250 * Leoncino 500 / Leoncino 500 E5 * Leoncino 500 Trail / Leoncino 500 Trail E5 * Leoncino 500 Sport * Leoncino 800 * Leoncino 800 Trail

Scooters

* RFS 150i * Caffenero 150 * Zafferano 250

The Benelli and MotoBi Museum

The Benelli and MotoBi museum is located in

, in Viale Mameli 22, right in the former workshops of the original factory, in use until the end of the 80s. Of the original plant was "saved" only a building of just over a thousand square meters, the only example of industrial archeology of the city, which became the seat of the Officine Benelli Museum, managed by the Moto Club "Tonino Benelli" and the Benelli Historical Register (R.S.B.). The "survivor" building of the old Benelli factory, at the time used as a warehouse, was perfectly restored with the supervision of the Superintendence of Fine Arts in the 2000s. In its rooms there are about 200 Benelli, MotoBi and more motorcycles on permanent display and from spring 2021 you can admire the prestigious ASI-Morbidelli collection. The itinerary starts from the room dedicated to Dr. Paolo Prosperi (co-founder and historical president of the Historic Benelli Register dead in 2020) in which you can admire some motorbikes "symbol" of the over 100-year history of the Pesarese house, photographs of riders, technicians and characters who gave lustre and glory to Benelli and MotoBi, trophies of every era and Benelli, MotoBi and Molaroni engines. It continues in the large room dedicated to Ing. Giuseppe Benelli in which, in addition to the first motorcycle that passed through Pesaro in 1897, a tricycle

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and motorcycles with engine of all kinds, two very rare Molaroni specimens of the twenties, there are the Benelli motorbikes built before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and a wide range of MotoBi from 1950 to 1970. In the third hall two examples of Letizia, all types of the Leoncino model, the two cylinders two stroke, the four cylinders and six cylinders four stroke of the De Tomaso period, some models for the US market and a large series of high and low wheel mopeds. Then the exhibition continues on a mezzanine floor of about 250 square meters. with scaffolding and wooden roof, where the ASI-Morbidelli Collection was placed it consists of 71 models from 30 brands from 9 countries, all models prior to the S.G.M. and two car models

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...

(Version "Giardiniera" and Autotelaio with engine) produced by Giuseppe Benelli, finally, on an ideal "pit line", some rare examples of racing motorbikes built in the

province of Pesaro and Urbino The Province of Pesaro and Urbino ( it, Provincia di Pesaro e Urbino, ) is a province in the Marche region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pesaro. It also borders the state of San Marino. The province is surrounded by San Marino and Emilia ...

between the sixties and eighties: MotoBi,

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

Morbidelli Morbidelli was an Italian motorcycle manufacturer founded by Giancarlo Morbidelli in Pesaro. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the company was particularly successful in Grand Prix motorcycle racing. The team won the 125 cc world champi ...

, Piovaticci and Sanvenero.

Palmares

Tonino Benelli, the younger of the six brothers, graduated as Italian Champion in 1927, 1928, 1930 and 1931, driving in the first three cases the Benelli 175 super sport monoalbero and in 1931 the bialbero. With the latter bike in 1932 will also conquer the square of honor in the European Championship, behind his teammate Carlo Baschieri. The Benelli motorcycles without Tonino, which had to interrupt his brilliant career as a driver in 1932 due to a serious accident occurred in the circuit of Tigullio, continued to reap successes and came to win again the European Title FICM in 1934 of the class "175" with the Belgian centaur Yvan Goor; in 1935 the world speed record of category of the Mile and the Km launched with the milanese rider Raffaele Alberti riding the "250" bialbero sport with 182.500 Km/h; in 1939 the Tourist Trophy with the English

Ted Mellors Edward Ambrose Mellors (10 April 1907 – 7 June 1946) was an English international motorcycle road racer who rode in the Manx Grand Prix in 1927 and the Isle of Man TT from 1928 to 1939. He was the 350 cc European Champion in 1938, bu ...

always with a "250" bialbero sport. After the war Benelli won two world titles in the 250 class with the Italian

Dario Ambrosini Dario Ambrosini (March 7, 1918 in Cesena - July 14, 1951 in Albi) was an Italian Grand Prix motorcycle road racer who competed for the Benelli factory racing team. He finished second to Bruno Ruffo in the inaugural FIM 250cc world championship ...

in the 1950 World Championship and with the Australian

Kelvin Carruthers Kelvin Carruthers (born 3 January 1938) is an Australian former world champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and racing team manager.

in the 1969 World Championship; has also established itself in five Italian Speed Championships in the 250 class with Dario Ambrosini (1950), with the Emilian

Tarquinio Provini Tarquinio Provini (29 May 1933 – 6 January 2005) was an Italian professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He was a two-time world champion in road racing. Provini was also a four-time Isle of Man TT winner and won 13 Italian national ch ...

(1965, 1966), with the Rimini

Renzo Pasolini Renzo Pasolini (18 July 1938 – 20 May 1973), nicknamed "Paso", was an Italian professional motorcycle road racer. He competed in the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championships from 1964 to 1972. Although he never won a world cham ...

(1968, 1969); in three Italian Speed Championships in the 350 class with Pesaro driver

Silvio Grassetti Silvio Grassetti (24 February 1936 – 9 September 2018) was an Italian professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Motorcycle racing career Grassetti was born in Montecchio, Sant'Angelo in Lizzola. The son of a Benelli employee, he began hi ...

(1967) and again with Pasolini (1968, 1969). Numerous were the affirmations and the placings in the classic of great bottom of the epoch, the Milan-Taranto and the Motogiro d'Italia, with the Leoncino 125, decidedly the most iconic motorbike of Benelli of the years 50/60. The Trofeo Pesaro Mobili, held at Villa Fastiggi in Pesaro, was attended by the greatest names in world motorcycling of the time as

Giacomo Agostini Giacomo Agostini (; born 16 June 1942) is an Italian multi-time world champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Nicknamed Ago, he amassed 122 Grand Prix wins and 15 World Championship titles. Of these, 68 wins and 8 titles came in the 500 ...

Mike Hailwood Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood, (2 April 1940 – 23 March 1981) was a British professional motorcycle racer and racing driver. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest racers of all time. He competed in the Grand Prix motorcycle ...

Jarno Saarinen Jarno Karl Keimo Saarinen (11 December 1945 – 20 May 1973) was a Finnish professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. In the early 1970s, he was considered one of the most promising and talented motorcycle racers of his era until he was kil ...

and

. In 1971 "Mike the Bike" riding an old Benelli "350" came second behind "Ago" driving the three-cylinder MV Agusta. In the 1972 edition

riding the brand new Benelli motorbikes 4 cylinder "500" and "350" wins in both classes beating respectively Giacomo Agostini on

MV Agusta MV Agusta (, full name: MV AGUSTA Motor S.p.A., original name: Meccanica Verghera Agusta or MV) is a motorcycle manufacturer founded by Count Domenico Agusta on 19 January 1945 as one of the branches of the Agusta aircraft company near Milan in ...

and Renzo Pasolini on

Aermacchi Aermacchi was an Italian aircraft manufacturer. Formerly known as Aeronautica Macchi, the company was founded in 1912 by Giulio Macchi at Varese in north-western Lombardy as Nieuport-Macchi, to build Nieuport monoplanes under licence for the It ...

. The era of De Tomaso begins in promising way, but this will be the first and the last competition of its management. In fact the Italian-Argentine businessman, after the death in Zandvoort of the English pilot

Piers Courage Piers Raymond Courage (27 May 1942 – 21 June 1970) was a British racing driver. He participated in 29 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 2 January 1967. He achieved two podium finishes, and scored 20 championship point ...

, driving a De Tomaso F1, did not want to know any more about racing. Benelli will only return to compete in the 2000s in WSBK with the "Tornado 900 tre", the creature wanted by Andrea Merloni.

Race models (1927–2002)

European championship

MotoGP World Championship

* 250 cc class; :

MotoGP World Constructors championship

Tourist Trophy Island Man

Italian Speed championship

References

External links

Benelli official website

Officine Benelli - Benelli Heritage

OfficineBenelli-Mototeca Storica Marchigiana old site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benelli (Motorcycles) Motorcycle manufacturers of Italy Cycle manufacturers of Italy Electric bicycles Scooter manufacturers Moped manufacturers Italian brands Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1911 Italian companies established in 1911 Pesaro Companies based in le Marche