| | | | world launch and road test: 2007 Benelli Tre-K |  Written: 25/09/2006 : 16:59. Read 8147 times (14/day). | | The integrality of this filed article is for Premium Members. | Mention Benelli and Italian exotica are the first words that come to mind. The “TREK” is meant to be a more versatile TNT, but it still features the same 1130cc triple engine and a tubular frame that you can stare at for hours. Benelli’s are fantastic to look at and ride, when they work…
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We are assembled outside the paddock gates at Misano one sunny morning in September to ride the new Benelli Tre-K in conjunction with the “I love Benelli” weekend. In true Italian fashion the last bikes were finished the night before and there is chaos! I grabbed a key and a photographer and off we went on the most scenic roads offered on the Italian East coast. The bends are many and very tight, perfect to test a motorcycle on, but also slippery.
On the left hand side on the instrument panel Benelli have kept the Power management button from TNT that allows you to soften the power. A two-way ECU enables two different engine mappings and the soft power option can be useful when it rains or in other scenarios when you want softer throttle response. I only used the button to be able to write about it as the Tre-K is much more fun to ride with full power. Full power is a claimed 125bhp @ 9000 rpm and 115Nm @ 6250rpm. Compared to Ducati Multistrada and Yamaha TDM900 this is a lot of horsepower! The 1130cc in-line triple is in a slightly lower state of tune than the TNT, but 125bhp is still plenty of power. Whilst the Tre-K wants to lift the front wheel when full throttle in first gear, nothing much happens when doing the same on soft power. I could feel the engine management cutting power and I would only use the soft power option if it was dangerously slippery or to save fuel.
The triple engine is a very versatile engine that Benelli have in several different states of tune. The most powerful version sits on the new 163bhp Tornado 1130. Benelli claims that more than 100Nm of torque is available already at 4.500 rpm. This makes for a very strong midrange and on the motorway I could easily cruise in sixth gear all day as there are huge reserves in the engine. The triple sounds a bit rough in the edges compared to a smooth Triumph 1050, but as soon as you use the throttle a bit the roughness on idle and lower rpms disappears into a hysteric three-way scream from the underseat exhaust.
The seat height on Tre-K is more like on a sportsbike than a big adventure bike. At 810mm the seat height is 40m ...
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(not translated yet) Benelli TNT cafe Racer, Titanium et Sport.
