In mid-May, 2022, Benelli Motorcycles revealed the new 2022 TRK 502X in China. Now that we’re five months into 2022, that may seem a little strange—particularly if you’re already familiar with the 2022 TRK 502X that was released in both Europe and the U.S. However, it seems that the best things may indeed come to those who wait, because the China-market 2022 TRK 502X appears to have a few choice features not found on the European release. Let’s take a look.
First and foremost, it seems to have lost a little bit of weight—and specifically, weight from that formerly chunky steel swingarm. That’s now gone, in favor of an aluminum alloy unit that reportedly weighs a full 3.6 kilograms less. Folks, that’s almost eight whole pounds, or the weight of a small-to-medium cat. Nice work, Benelli!
Additionally, Benelli seems to have paid attention to the feel of the controls, offering slightly modified buttons that allegedly feel better to the touch than the outgoing version. That might seem like a small thing, but if you ride often, you’re constantly interacting with the controls—and ones that feel good are definitely a plus.
Other features include spoked wheels that allow tubeless tire installation, tire pressure sensors, full-color TFT dash, and also some nice heated grips to keep your mitts toasty on those chillier days. While fans in other markets outside China would probably like to have that lightened swingarm, it’s nice to see that the pace of improvement keeps moving along.
Can we expect to see these improvements in the 2023 TRK 502X when it’s released in Europe, the U.S., and elsewhere? It seems like a definite possibility, and it’s not at all uncommon for update waves to hit different markets at different times. That can be confusing if you’re talking with a friend in another market, because your 2022 might not be the same as their 2022, but it does happen on occasion. In any case, here’s hoping that the TRK 502X keeps changing in ways that riders have been asking for as the model keeps developing into the future.
