QJMotor Type Approves New 400cc Model

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QJMotor has type-approved a new 400cc sport model that could be reskinned into a small MV Agusta in the future. (QJMotor/)

The launch of MV Agusta’s Lucky Explorer 5.5 at this year’s EICMA show gave us the first clue to how deep the deal between MV and China’s Qianjiang Motorcycle runs. Underneath its typically attractive MV-designed skin, the 5.5 is all Qianjiang, which means that other bikes in Qianjiang’s stable, sold in China under the QJMotor brand, could also one day be reskinned to become MVs.

Of course, Qianjiang is already tied to Benelli, which has been owned by the Chinese firm since 2005. As such, virtually all of the current Benelli models also have Chinese-market QJMotor-branded equivalents, although each company uses its own bodywork. Although the deal with MV Agusta doesn’t involve ownership, it means MV is able to create bikes on QJ platforms while also accessing Qianjiang’s distribution network to sell its Italian-made machines in China. In return, Qianjiang will use MV Agusta’s four-cylinder 1000cc engine in a future Benelli model.

The Lucky Explorer 5.5 is the first Qianjiang-made machine to be reskinned into an entry-level MV Agusta, and gains an enlarged engine in the process to set it aside from the QJMotor SRT500 and Benelli TRK502, which share with the same underpinnings. But it’s unlikely to be the last, and the Chinese firm has just approved a new 400cc sport model that could be the perfect basis for a small mass-market MV.

The 400RR’s motor is a twin cylinder unit that’s said to produce 44hp. (QJMotor/)

Yet to be officially shown, even in China, the new bike goes under the internal name ‘QJ400GS-J,’ though the decals on the fairing suggest it will be sold as the GS400RR. It’s based on another model, also still to be officially released, expected to be called the GS350R; that bike has a smaller, 354cc parallel twin in the same frame and bodywork. Comparing the type-approval details of the two, the new 400 has 44 hp while the 350 makes 36; both machines weigh 179kg wet.

The QJMotor 400 design also incorporates a single-sided swingarm, which would fit nicely on a similarly-sized and configured MV model. (QJMotor/)

The pictures reveal a key improvement for the GS400RR making it an ideal as a future MV Agusta or Benelli model: a single-sided swingarm. That’s something missing from the 350, and it inevitably lends the bike a much more upmarket style.

Related: New Chinese Bike Could Be Preview Of 350cc Harley Model

The 400′s engine also appears to be more than just an enlarged version of the 350. The approval documents say it’s called the QJ270MQ, which would indicate two cylinders and a 70mm bore. At the same time, Qianjiang has filed patent documents for another engine, also called QJ270MQ, which looks very much like the twin used in the Kawasaki Ninja 400 and Z400; that Kawasaki engine also has a 70mm bore and makes almost exactly the same amount of power as the new QJ design.

The QJMotor 400 engine will also be used in a smaller sub-400cc model that’s yet to be announced. (QJMotor/)

Speaking in 2020 when the deal with Qianjiang was announced, MV Agusta CEO Timur Sardarov said he was “...thrilled about this agreement with QJ for the second phase of our expansion into the Chinese market. It is an ambitious long-term partnership that will make MV Agusta the number one Italian premium motorcycle brand in China in the next five years. QJ is one of the leading global players in terms of scale, market presence, and quality standards, and I am confident that with such a solid partner we will rapidly reach all our commercial objectives. We are also developing further important collaboration on the industrial front, which we will announce shortly.”

That collaboration turned out to be the use of Qianjiang’s platform to create the MV Agusta Lucky Explorer 5.5.

QJ has also retained its relationship with Harley, so there’s still a chance a small displacement cruiser - like the SRV300 seen here - may make it into production as an H-D-branded model. (QJMotor/)

It’s worth bearing in mind that Qianjiang’s tie-ins with western firms don’t end with Benelli and MV Agusta. The company is also working with Harley-Davidson to create a small-capacity model, again using an existing platform. Sketches of the proposed HD338R parallel twin appeared in 2019 and appeared to confirm that it’s based on a derivative of QJ’s existing parallel twin and the Benelli 302S chassis. While prototypes have been photographed in China since then, and the project was officially signed off for production in December 2019, there appears to have been a delay, potentially due to the strategically rethought ‘Hardwire’ five-year plan Harley announced earlier this year. However, Harley-Davidson’s most recent company report says the deal with Qianjiang remains ongoing, and that the firm will “continue to develop and maintain a productive relationship with Zhejiang Qianjiang Motorcycle Co. Ltd., and launch related products in a timely manner.”

Related: Could This Be Harley-Davidson’s New Mini Sportster?

In the meantime, QJMotor has added a much more conventional Harley-style 300cc V-twin model to its range, which would arguably be a more suitable basis for an entry-level machine than the HD338R design originally proposed.

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