Benda patents a V-engine with a supercharger integrated into the crankcase: a solution that challenges Kawasaki H2 architecture

Benda is preparing to go supercharged. In recently filed patents, the Chinese manufacturer showcases a V-twin paired with a centrifugal supercharger integrated directly into the crankcase—a different solution from those used so far by manufacturers that have already brought mechanical supercharging to motorcycles.

This comes as no absolute surprise from a brand unafraid to make life complicated when it comes to engines. Its lineup includes the LFC700 cruiser, powered by a 680 cc inline-four, and the Dark Flag 500, a custom with a 500 cc V4 sold in Germany for less than €9,000. Then, in September 2025 at the CIMA show in Chongqing, it unveiled a 1,686 cc inline-six aimed squarely at the BMW K 1600.

The drawings depict a V-engine with overhead valve gear and a centrifugal supercharger, the same type of system Kawasaki uses on its H2 models. The difference lies in its position: instead of sitting above the transmission, behind the cylinders, the impeller is mounted low down at the front of the engine, integrated into the crankcase.

It is driven by a gear connected to the crankshaft and housed in an extension cast into the crankcase. This same extension also supports the supercharger, concentrating the entire system in a single unit.

Several questions remain unanswered. The documents show only a cross-section of the engine, so it is unclear whether it is a V-twin or a V4. There is no information on displacement, power, or torque.

Benda has flirted with forced induction before. In January 2021, the company announced the VTR300 Turbo, a small sportbike with a 300 cc V-twin derived from the engine in the BD300 cruiser. Drawings of the motorcycle surfaced the following year, but then nothing more: it never made it to dealerships.

Even then, more than one observer suspected that “Turbo” was the result of a rough translation and that the bike actually used a supercharger—a more sensible solution than an exhaust-driven turbine on such a small engine. The new patent, showing a mechanically driven supercharger, seems to vindicate those who thought so, although it is impossible to say whether the VTR300 project is still alive.

The Chinese manufacturer is not the only one exploring forced induction. Honda is nearing production of the V3R 900 E-Compressor, expected in 2027, which pairs an electrically driven supercharger with a 75° V3 engine. Yamaha and Suzuki also have supercharged projects in the pipeline, while, around the same time, a reference to a turbocharged version appeared in patents for CFMoto’s V4.

The patent does not say when—or on which model—the Benda supercharger might reach the road. But with a V4 already in its lineup and a 1,686 cc six-cylinder in the works, the Chinese manufacturer has shown it wants to compete in the world of unconventional engines. A supercharged V could be its next move.

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