QJMotor SRK1000RC Ten78 First Look

[Admin]

China’s latest superbike prototype is QJMotor’s SRK1000RC Ten78 (QJMotor/)

QJMotor is among the companies vying to become the first Chinese brand to offer a truly modern superbike and it’s taken a step closer to that goal with the SRK1000RC Ten78—a near-production concept unveiled at Milan’s EICMA show.

The Italian unveiling is fitting as the Ten78′s heritage is as much Italian as Chinese, perhaps even more so, as it packs MV Agusta’s old-generation 1,078cc engine—hence the Ten78 name—in an MV-like part-steel, part-aluminum chassis with a single-sided swingarm.

The SRK1000RC Ten78 prototype uses exhausts that are neither under the seat or side mounted. (QJMotor/)

Even the styling—which is sure to be a conversation piece even if it’s not universally loved—comes from Italy. It’s the work of C Creative, a design studio set up by former MV Agusta design director Adrian Morton, a British prodigy of Massimo Tamburini. His résumé also includes the Benelli Tornado Tre and TNT 1130, as well as recent MVs including the F3, Turismo Veloce, Brutale 1000, Superveloce 800, and Rush 1000.

With the Ten78, Morton’s team has clearly opted for a design that distances itself from the MV Agusta elements underneath, notably with the unusual frontal shapes focused on a pair of headlights that jut forward beneath a transparent screen that makes up most of the front bodywork. It might not be conventionally pretty, but it’s a design that helps address the common complaints of Chinese companies lacking innovation or originality in their styling.

Left-side view of the SRK1000RC Ten78. (QJMotor/)

Further back, things get more conventional, though the side panels that cut back into the fuel tank and the long bellypan that extends around the leading edge of the rear tire are departures from the superbike norm. The same applies to the two mid-level exhausts, which are neither “underseat” nor side-mounted, instead hanging somewhere between those two positions.

Mechanically, the bike centers on MV Agusta’s old 1,078cc inline-four engine, the final evolution of the original F4 motor before it was replaced by the all-new 998cc four used in the current Brutale 1000. In the QJMotor model, the engine is tuned for a restrained 144 hp—far less than it managed in its ultimate form for MV Agusta, and an interesting clue to the bike’s production future. After all, if this was just a concept, never to progress to showrooms, why not claim a much higher power figure?

The number QJMotor has settled on is a realistic figure for an older four-cylinder superbike engine that’s been retuned to meet modern emissions standards. Just look at the Fireblade-derived four in the Honda CB1000R, for example, or the GSX-R1000-based unit in the Suzuki GSX-S1000, which both achieve similar power figures in the 140-to-150 hp range.

The prototype currently uses Öhlins suspension, but will likely run Marzocchi if it goes to production, as QJMoto has a partnership with that Italian brand. (QJMotor/)

That engine sits in a frame that looks very much like an MV Agusta unit but is, in fact, purpose-made for the Ten78. The same applies to the single-sided swingarm. Both are different to the parts used on the QJMotor SRK900RR, which we’ve seen before but also appeared at EICMA, and is built around a less powerful 128 hp, 921cc version of the same, old-generation MV Agusta four-cylinder engine mounted in a chassis that also appears to come directly from the Italian company, wrapped in more conventional superbike styling than the Ten78′s futuristic design.

For the rest of the running gear the Ten78 opts for the superbike staples of Öhlins suspension and Brembo brakes, though should the bike reach production it’s likely that Marzocchi suspension will be used, since QJMotor and Marzocchi are already manufacturing partners.

Technical details of the Ten78 include a 56.1-inch wheelbase and 17-inch wheels with 120/70 rubber at the front and a wide 190-section rear. Weight comes in at 437 pounds including a full tank of fuel. There’s no definitive timescale on when the prototype is likely to spawn a production derivative, but the fact it made its debut in Europe rather than China is a clear indication that QJMotor has global intentions for the machine and the brand going forward.

View the full article