It’s no secret that Chinese-made motorcycles are taking the global market by storm. Manufacturers like Zontes, CFMOTO, Benelli, and even Moto Morini have been making headlines quite a lot lately, and mostly for good reasons. This time around, we head on over to India, wherein two manufacturers with Chinese origins are looking to take the highly competitive premium segment by storm.
I’m talking about Zontes and Moto Morini—two manufacturers that offer premium yet affordable models which are manufactured in China. Zontes, on the one hand, is known for occupying the small to mid-displacement segment, with its offerings focusing on 350cc platforms. Moto Morini, meanwhile, which is a brand with Italian origins but sees all of its manufacturing in China, takes things up a notch with offerings in the 650cc segment. Both Zontes and Moto Morini have entered the Indian market via Adishwar Auto Ride India (AARI), who already handles the local distribution of Benelli and Keeway.
The new motorcycles under the Zontes and Moto Morini umbrellas are expected to go on sale in the coming weeks. With that, AARI has opened pre-bookings for the two manufacturers’ model ranges. On the Zontes side of the equation, customers will have a wide selection of motorcycles to choose from. In the naked segment, Zontes offers the 350R, while the 350X serves as the brand’s sport-touring offering. Retro aficionados will be best served by the GK350, while ADV riders can opt for the 350T and 350T ADV. All these models are powered by a 348cc single-cylinder engine churning out around 38 ponies.
As for Moto Morini, the pickings are slightly slimmer, but its model range seems to be targeting the popular middleweight segment head on with four 650cc models to choose from. The Moto Morini X-Cape will be offered in two flavors—a standard version and an off-roady X version. Meanwhile, retro aficionados will have the option to choose between two variants of the Moto Morini Seiemmezzo 6.5—Retro Street and Scrambler. All Moto Morini models are packing the same 650cc parallel-twin engine with around 60 horsepower on tap.
Now, AARI has yet to announce the official pricing for all these models, however, it’s speculated that the Zontes model range will fetch anywhere between Rs 350,000 ($4,378 USD) to Rs 450,000 ($5,630 USD), while the more premium Moto Morini lineup will set you back around Rs 600,000 ($7,506 USD) to Rs 650,000 ($8,131 USD). That said, you’re more than welcome to make a reservation for any of the above mentioned models for the amount of Rs 10,000 ($125 USD).
