Moto Morini might not have been a familiar name in India, but the Italian motorcycle manufacturer wants to change that. They have announced a partnership with Hyderabad based Adishwar Auto Ride India (AARI). They also handle operations of Benelli and Keeway in India.

Moto Morini has a golden eagle as its logo and two M stacked on top of each other honouring founder Alfonso Morini and contributor Mario Mazzetti. Looking at the eagle, one might think that it is an American brand. But no. It is an Italian pedigree motorcycle manufacturer from Milan, Italy.

Moto Morini Brand

Moto Morini was founded by Alfonso Morini in 1937 in Bologna, Italy. After facing tough times during World War II, Moto Morini has been one of the most successful motorcycle companies in Italy. Ever since its inception, Moto Morini has been extremely active in motorsports. It has had several wins and podiums along its rich heritage competing with other Italian motorcycle brands.

After its golden age, it has seen some ownership changes. In 1987, it came under Cagiva and in 1996, it was owned by Texas Pacific Group, who also owned Ducati at that time. In 1999, it was in the hands of Morini Franco Motori Spa, which was founded by Alfonso Morini's nephew. Franco Morini's son Maurizio involved the Berti family in the Moto Morini relaunch program.

In 2005, it was reborn with Corsaro 1200 series and 9 1/2 series of motorcycles. The 1200 series had a 1187cc V-twin engine with an 87-degree V angle and DOHC setup that was good for 140bhp. While the 9 1/2 series had a smaller displacement from the 1200's block. This displaced 948cc and was good for 117 bhp.

It launched more motorcycles for a while till 2010 when the company was liquidated. In 2015, the ownership was entirely passed on to Jannuzzelli family which developed Corsaro ZZ, Corsaro ZT and Milano also making them Euro 4 emission norm compliant. It was in 2018 when Moto Morini fell into the ownership of Chinese company Zhongneng Vehicle Group a.k.a. Znen Group.

Moto Morini X-Cape 650

Under Znen, Moto Morini sold Corsaro 1200 ZZ, Corsaro 1200 ZT, Milano and Super Scrambler 1200. Currently, Moto Morini has had a restructuring of its product lineup and the official website only has two models of which, one is still yet to launch in Europe. We can take a look at X-Cape 650 which is available and has a better chance of becoming the first Moto Morini bike in India.

It is an adventure tourer motorcycle powered by a 649cc straight-twin engine that gets DOHC design with 4 valves per cylinder. In a limited edition avatar, it makes 48bhp and in standard avatar, we expect it to make less power. It gets a handsome design with a tall windscreen at front. It gets a large 7" display, panniers, full LED headlights and also gets heated knobs.

For serious off-roading, it gets a 19" spoked wheel at front and a smaller size spoked wheel at back wrapped with Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tyres. It also gets fully adjustable 50mm front Marzocchi forks and a switchable ABS system with braking hardware from Brembo.

With design language inspired by bigger 9 1/2 and 11 1/2 motorcycles, 6 1/2 Seiemmezzo is a scrambler-style motorcycle. It gets minimal design language and is powered by the same engine powering the X-Cape. It gets SCR and STR variants and gets beautiful round headlights with round LED DRL and an LED projector taking care of illumination. Not a lot is known about this motorcycle yet as it is an upcoming motorcycle from Moto Morini.

Launch & Pricing

Moto Morini bikes will be sold by AARI in India through their already established dealer network and touchpoints. Expect existing Benelli India dealer network to showcase and sell upcoming Moto Morini motorcycles.

Expect X-Cape 650 to debut first, bearing the Moto Morini marque and 6 1/2 will follow later. X-Cape 650 will come in 4 different colour schemes, Red Passion, Smoky Anthracite, Carrara white and Gold Wheels Edition. When launched, it might be priced slightly higher than Benelli TRK 502 and below the Kawasaki Versys 650. Apart from these two, it will also compete with Honda CB500X.

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