At the end of last year, we revealed that Benda – one of the most interesting of the new generation of Chinese motorcycle brands – filed VIN decoding documents with the NHTSA to complete a key step in bringing its motorcycles to the US market. Now, a new small-displacement bobber from the company has appeared in Chinese homologation documents, giving a hint of the type of motorcycle we can expect from the company if it does indeed enter our market.
Benda’s recent releases have been notable for breaking the norm. The company first caught international attention with its LF-01 concept in 2020, and surprised everyone by putting it into production, unchanged, as the LFC700 a year later. It also debuted the first Chinese motorcycle with a V-4 engine, as well as working on a variety of other ideas, including a 300 cc sportbike. Its new BD250 bobber may not be as radical, but it is still an unusual machine that seems to have no direct rivals.
The frame has a Softail-style design with a triangular swingarm at the rear, but instead of a hidden rear shock, there are visible suspension units that appear to be mounted on the swingarm. But the front suspension is even stranger, at least at first glance. From the single available photo, it appears to be a “beam” type fork, but upon closer inspection, there are conventional telescopic fork tubes behind those beams. This is a trick that Benda already used on the Napoleon 500 bobber launched last year, which completely encases the fork in beam-like outer boxes, but the new design is more complex, with what appear to be spring units mounted between the fork tubes and the beam sections.
The homologation documentation reveals important details of the motorcycle, including the maximum power of 25.5 hp from a 249 cc twin-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. This value is very close to the slightly larger engine power of the Honda Rebel 300, which produces 28 hp with its 286 cc twin-cylinder engine. Weighing a total of 181.8 kg, the Benda is a bit heavier than the Rebel, which weighs 165 kg. Unlike the Rebel, which has 16-inch wheels, the Benda uses 18-inch wheels with a front tire size of 130/80 and a rear tire size of 160/70, and its wheelbase is 2 inches longer than the Honda’s, at 60.8 inches. There is a single front disc with a Benda brand four-piston radial mount caliper, with the company’s own BD01 ABS system.
Like most Chinese motorcycles and other products, Benda’s biggest advantage over its rivals will likely be the price.
