Watch Out Triumph, China’s New Triple-Cylinder Engine Is Coming

The Chinese company, QJMotor, has one of the world’s largest portfolios of motorcycle engines, including singles, parallel twins, V-twins, inline-4s, and even V4s. They don’t have a triple yet, but that might change soon as new patent filings show an inline-3-cylinder engine. While everything is speculative at this point, the engine sways towards being a potent middleweight package with an affinity for powering various motorcycles ranging from streetfighters to ADVs, similar to how Triumph and Yamaha utilize their triples.

This QJMotor AMT Patent Filing Hides A Three-Cylinder Engine

You might notice that the engine showcased in the patent filing images is incomplete, as our CycleWorld friends point out. The cylinder head is missing, and this is because these filings are not originally for an engine but for QJMoto’s automated manual transmission. Similar to the Yamaha Y-AMT on the likes of the MT-07, the MT-09, and the Tracer 9, the semi-automatic gearbox uses two external actuators (one for the clutch and the other for the gear shifter) to eliminate the use of your left hand and left foot completely. The clutch actuator has a design similar to another electronic clutch patent filed back in 2023 by Qianjiang (QJMotor’s parent company). QJMotor has already deployed this e-clutch on its 2025 SRV 300 AMT cruiser bike.

When it comes to the engine, if we look at the trend of new motorcycle engines, this one will most likely be heavily inspired by already-established engines like the Triumph or Yamaha. We sway more towards Yamaha because another Chinese bike maker, Zontes, launched its first 700cc triple in 2023, which was “inspired” by the Yamaha MT-09 triple. This engine is versatile enough to power an ADV and a sports bike, albeit in different configurations. If the trend follows suit, this QJMotor triple might be similar to the Zontes’. As Cycleworld highlights, we can expect a 699 cc triple producing 100 horsepower and 56 pound-feet of torque in that case.

We Might See This Triple On A Future Benelli Motorcycle

Imagine A Next-Gen Benelli Middleweight ADV With An Automated Gearbox

Today, Triumph and Yamaha are the flagbearers of three-cylinder motorcycle engines. But Benelli used to share the fame of the triple engine once upon a time. Three-cylinder engines powered the likes of the Tornado, TnT, and the TreK models. Benelli has been under the Geely Holding Group umbrella since 2005 and is owned by Qianjiang Motorcycle Group. This is also QJMotor’s parent company.

Since QJMotor is not established outside of China, its all-new three-cylinder engine will likely power future international Benelli motorcycles. While it’s all still speculation, it would be dope to see a middleweight ADV and a Street Triple-rivaling streetfighter powered by a new triple and coupled to an automatic transmission. What are your expectations? Will this new triple engine give Triumph and Yamaha a tough time?

Expected Engine And Transmission Specs