Italian brand Fantic’s renaissance shows no sign of weakening, and the Venetian powerhouse has entered 2024 with two brand-new enduro models to augment an already impressive competition range. Fantic dealers will be licking their lips, too, as nothing piques a customer’s curiosity like a brand-new model – so make that two brand new models and you’ve got a definite showroom draw.
The two new models fill gaps in the Fantic competition range. The XE 300 is the long-awaited two-stroke enduro that now heads the XE family, with a potent package that can deliver everything from timecard victories (having already won the ‘J2’ world enduro championship) through to extreme enduro, mountain-goat-emulating performance. The model has been in development ever since Fantic acquired the Minarelli engine plant from Yamaha in 2019. And it comes with a full house of tech, from fuel injection to traction control, assisted by an electronic power valve and electric start. Add Kayaba’s market-leading suspension and Nissin brakes, and the XE 300 is demonstrably a premium product.
Meanwhile, the XEF 310 has come to the market almost unexpectedly, with minimal pre-launch hype. It fits neatly in the gap between the XEF 250 and XEF 450, in a middle ground that has become a clubman homeland given the success of models like KTM’s 350 EXC-F. The XEF 310 has been developed from the XEF 250 by way of a bigger cylinder bore, but Fantic has not stopped there, again adding traction control while exhaustively fine-tuning the engine performance through track testing with former world champion turned development rider, Alex Salvini.
International off-road commentator and Fantic UK press officer Jon Bentman attended the world launch in Northern Italy: “These are two impressive machines. The XE 300 was the news coming into the launch. It’s been much anticipated by the enduro paddock, and I don’t think they will be disappointed. The fuel injection feels well sorted, using throttle body injectors – just as KTM has now reverted to with their TBI – and the whole package feels on-point. It’s a potent beast, but the electronics give good options to rein it all in.
“Meanwhile, the XEF 310 is a clubman winner, so easy to ride and with great power delivery. It suited me as a vet clubman, but equally, it’s going to be a weapon for experts – Manxman Jed Etchells, who won the Junior enduro world championship for Fantic last season, has picked this bike for his 2024 campaign in the premier class. The XE 300 is the apex predator, but I see the XEF 310 as the big seller.”
The first shipment of the new models has already landed and is available now. Fantic Motor UK is keen to grow its specialist off-road dealer network so interested dealers should contact parent company Clements Moto on 01227 720700 or www.clementsmoto.co.uk.