China’s QJMotor is taking on two well-known brands with budget versions of their heroes
QJMotor developing low-cost models based on MV Agusta’s Superveloce 1000 retro sportsbike and CFMoto’s 450MT adventure bike.
There’s no denying that MV Agusta’s Superveloce 1000 is one of the most attractive bikes on the market thanks to its combination of modern and retro styling cues – but it’s also expensive enough to ensure that it’s out of reach for the vast majority of riders. And that’s where China’s QJMotor sees an opportunity.
This isn’t just a Chinese company ripping off a European design, though, as QJMotor has longstanding ties with MV Agusta itself, even sharing some of the same designers and, at the high end of QJ’s range, using MV’s own engines and frame designs.
QJ was also due to work with MV to build the planned Lucky Explorer 5.5 adventure bike, shown in 2021 as a concept alongside the large, all-MV Lucky Explorer 9.5 that’s since reached production as LXP. The smaller 5.5 was based on QJMotor’s SRT550 adventure bike, also the basis of Benelli’s TRK502, but was shelved when KTM bought into MV Agusta.
Now that KTM has sold its stake in MV back to the Sardarov family that was in charge when the Lucky Explorer 5.5 project was conceived, there’s a stronger chance that it could be revived.
The upcoming QJMotor Super4, revealed in new type-approval paperwork in China, combines the styling of the Super9 – and hence the MV Superveloce – with QJMotor’s existing 449cc parallel twin engine and a relatively simple steel frame, creating a budget offering with high-end looks.
The approval document confirms details including a light 169kg kerb weight, 190km/h top speed and a peak of 39kW. However there’s more innovation than the bare figures indicate. Most notably, an automated manual transmission.
While there is no confirmation of production dates, QJMoto is more advanced with its SRT450X, which will challenge CFMoto’s 450MT and BMW’s upcoming F 450 GS adventure models.
Revealed in new type-approval documents in China, the SRT450X takes very much the same approach as the 450MT, with Dakar-inspired styling and a combination of 21-inch front and 18-inch rear wire wheels.
It’s powered by the same 449cc parallel twin engine (despite ‘400’ badging on the prototype pictured here) to be used in the upcoming Super4 and weighs 184kg ready to ride, with a claimed top speed of 162km/h.
We expect an official unveiling later this year. QJMotor has experienced an incredible rate of expansion, going from launching its first bike in 2020 to a range of more than 140 models globally today. BP
