Benelli 654 Quattro
Benelli 654 Quattro
. .Which Bike review 1980
The 654 is basically a morepowerful, relaxed version of the 504 Sport. The footrests are mounted forwardand the 'bars have a slight rise. The seat is stepped, wide and filled with ahard compound but the riding position is comfortable. Stylistically the 654 islike the 504 but without the handlebar fairing and a deeper seat with grab rail.The rear light is integral with the mudguard and the indicators are rectangular.
The instrument console is larger,incorporating a voltmeter as well as the usual array of warning lights. LinkedMoto-Guzzi front and rear brakes is now a feature of all the four strokes fromthe 354 Sport to the 900 Six. Another feature is the side-stand ignition cutout: the bike won't start unless the stand is retracted.
The 654 actually displaces only603.9cc, each of the four pistons having a bore and stroke of 60x58.4mm.Outwardly, the engine is identical to the 350 and 500 fours with a singleoverhead camshaft chain driven from the centre of the crankshaft. Primary driveis by a Hy-vo-type chain that drives a counter shaft which is geared to theclutch and starter motor. The valves are operated by screw adjustable rockers inthe conventional way.
Ignition is by coil and twin contactbreakers mounted on the right side of the crankshaft. The mixture is fed in viafour Dellorto carburettors.
The engine produces a claimed poweroutput of 60 bhp at 8,700 rpm and maximum revs are at 9,500 which would suggestthat all the power is at the top end, but this is not so. The motor will pullcleanly from low revs and it doesn't lack torque in this area either; even intop (fifth) it will pull reasonably from 4,000 rpm onwards so it's not just anoverdrive.
Top speed is claimed at 119 mph butthis is probably optimistic in the usual Italian fashion and as the engine onthe launch bike was new we couldn't put it to the test. The Vegliainstrumentation seems to have improved with the needles on both clocks remainingsteady.
To fire up the 654 the clutch needsto be disengaged and the side stand up (a warning light for the side stand wouldbe helpful in preserving battery life as the motor will turn over but it won'tfire). The Dellortos have a progressive choke mounted on the left side, muchbetter than the snap ones associated with Moto Guzzi twins. Once the choke isoff the motor settles down to a smooth purr and will tickover at 1000 rpmhappily. Mechanical noise is higher than we're used to on Japanese bikes withtheir silent cam chains and bucket and shim followers. The noise soon fades fromthe rider's ear as wind noise takes over.
Suspension is typically Italian,which means good but with the rear sprung harder than the front. Having theintegral braking system means that under normal stopping the front doesn't divetoo much as the whole bike tends to go down compressing the springs front andback. This also makes for more controlled stopping. The frame is a full doublecradle and feels very rigid. The swing arm looks a bit light, though it didn'tseem to have any adverse effect on the handling. The 654 handles much the sameas the 504 Sport, which isn't bad by any standards. The only difference is in alower footrest height which restricts the angle of lean on the 654. The centrestand extension too can ground easily on left handers. The Pirelli tyres fittedto the 18-inch cast wheels were excellent in the dry but didn't grip too well onthe wet Italian roads on which the bike was ridden. But to be fair you wouldn'tfind road surfaces that bad in this country. (Wanna bet? -Ed.)
So good handling and the best brakesyou can get plus the smoothness and zip of a multi cylinder engine are basicallywhat the 654 has going for it. The engine is an Italian version of a 500 Hondafour only most of the Japanese have gone to two camshafts so the Benelli seemsdated by comparison though it's only 4 bhp down on the Z650 Kawasaki and threeon the CB650 Honda,which, incidentally is the only other multi around with a single overheadcamshaft and that was based on the CB500 too. If we are to believe the weightquoted by the manufacturers, 399 lbs dry, then the Benelli's slight powerdisadvantage is purely academic.
The Benelli 654 is small for a 650class machine. But unlike the sports models making up the rest of the range it'snot back breaking to ride for long distances. It is obviously an able tourer,but its physical size doesn't encourage the use of fairing, panniers and theextra weight of these items could well slow the bike down more than they wouldits competitors.
The test bike was well finished anddetails like the proper grab rail and flush fitting,lockable fuel cap shows some thought. If the chrome holds out then so much thebetter but the Italians seem to have problems in this area. The instruments areeasy to read but the warning lights are rather too dim to be noticed easily indaylight. Unfortunately the Mickey Mouse switchgear is still there and we wishthe Italians would relent and buy in Japanese switches if only for their exportmachines. It works alright but it's a pain to use.
The only thing that lets the 654down is the boring colour scheme, a sort of brick red with gold striping. Ifthey had used the gold wheels found elsewhere in the range then the £2099 pricetag wouldn't seem so high.