New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
This week, Husqvarna unveiled the prototype for their new upcoming Svartpillon 801, and it has to be said, this is a very exciting development indeed.
Now, the full details of the production version will be announced in a couple of weeks.
But in the meantime, here’s absolutely everything you need to know about this prototype so far.
Single Cylinder to Parallel Twin Engine
Now, the biggest change for this Svartpilen will be the engine, moving away from the single cylinder of the previous iteration called the 701 to a new parallel twin, which will be largely similar gets the one used in KTM 790 Duke.
KTM and Husvana are sister companies, and so you generally get a lot of shared componentry and tech. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
But it has to be said, I think overall, that’s a good thing because this is one of the most lively and fun parallel twins on the entire motorcycle market.
Look, firstly, you’ll get a hugely different engine character from these new bikes. You’re going to get a much smoother feel than the big single cylinder of the 701.
And I think, realistically, this is probably going to appeal to a wider range of potential buyers, with singles, I think, being a little bit of an acquired taste.
Impressive Performance
On top of that, though, you’ll get a lot more performance, with Husqvarna confirming in the press release for this prototype that the final production bike will make a 105 horsepower peak. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
It’s a huge step up from the 70-ish horsepower of the 701, but also a little bit more than the KTM 790 Duke, which is capped at 94 horsepower so that it can be legally restricted down to A2 licensed compliance.
Now, the Husqvarna, Svartpilen, and Vitpilen bikes have always straddled both modern and retro categories.
But I think generally the people who like retro bikes or cafe racers or scramblers, they’ll probably like this thing. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
But it’s got to be said, there are very few bikes in this sector that make that power. And so this should make for a very exciting new option that not only looks good, but also goes like a modern day bike.
Weight
Now, the other thing they confirm in the press The release is that this bike will weigh just 181 kilograms, although they don’t specifically state whether that’s a dry or wet weight.
But either way, that’s generally going to be quite a bit lighter than other semi-retro or design-biased bikes, and it should help to make this bike a real blast to ride.
Chassis and Design
The rest of the chassis looks largely similar to KTM’s middleweight Nakeds, with suspension from WP, which is their in-house brand, and generally offers really good levels of quality and adjustability at different levels of price point.
Now, you can also pick out the 17-inch cast wheels front and rear, the lattice swing arm, which is a bit of a signature KTM feature, and also some four-piston, radially mounted break calipers up front, which are branded with their own Husky logo.
Advanced Technology
Now on the tech front, the previous generation 701s were a little bit basic with their round LCD display, but this bike looks like it’ll get a pretty significant bump in capability with a new TFT display with which you can manage what they’re calling a bunch of state-of-the-art electronic rider aids. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
Now, again, a lot of this stuff is going to trickle down from their KTM equivalents.
TFT Display
But what I do like about Husqvarna bikes generally, like the Nordern 901, is that they do give them a little bit of their own style in terms of the graphics and layouts on the TFT display.
Usually, they’re pretty good, and so I’d expect more of the same here. Now, they also say that their easy shift, quick shifter, which works on the up and down shift, will be fitted as standard.
And then I’d also expect some connectivity through the dash because that’s usually offered on KTM and Husqvarna TFT displays. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
So you should be able to control calls and music and messaging, as well as get some navigation features.
Stylish Evolution
Now, from a styling perspective It does look similar, maybe a little bit of an evolution of the previous generation Svartpilen 701 with the angular bodywork and the round headlight up front.
But what I will say is it does look physically bigger, partly owing to the fact they’ve moved over to that parallel twin engine, and so it just gives it a bit more buttiness in the stance.
There are also some tweaks to the side panels and the tail section.
And so once all of this prototype wrap is removed, I’d expect something that looks pretty similar to the 401 version that they announced a few weeks back.
Now, generally, I absolutely love what Husqvarna do with their styling.
And the great thing about it is that their bikes offer pretty much all of the fun of riding a KTM, but just with a visual style that I think is perhaps a bit more broadly palatable than the Angular orange KTM vibe, which I think I’d say isn’t designed to be for everybody. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
Interestingly, though, they haven’t announced a Vitpilen version at the moment, which is typically the slightly more road and cafe racer-inspired version of these bikes.
I’d wholeheartedly expect one to follow at some point, especially given that they also announced their 401 version of the Vitpilen at the same time as the new Svartpilen.
Future Expectations
Now, previously, the Vitpilen 701 had these these low clip-on style handlebars, and in fact, the previous generation of the 401 had the same.
And so that made it feel quite aggressive and low and sporty in the riding position. But the thing is, for 2024, the 401 version of the Vitpilen has more like flat bars, yet still with the more road-biased spec like the tires.
Now, realistically, they’ve done this to broaden the appeal of the riding position that’s going to be much easier to get on with for the majority of riders.
And so when they do, presumably, announce an 801 version of the Vitpilen, I’m 99% sure they’ll probably take the same approach. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
Pricing
The 2024, 790 Duke starts at £7,999, and so realistically for this bike, I’d probably expect somewhere just above that, as generally you do a bit of a premium for the Husqvarna treatment.
Plus you’ve got the extra 10 or so horsepower, and so I think that probably around the 9 to 10 grand mark is going to sound pretty good.
My Word
For me, though, I really like the slightly more rugged vibe of the Svartpilen, and so that’s probably the one I’d go for. New Husqvarna Svartpilen 801
And of course, we’re only at the prototype stage here, so there’s no word on price, but hopefully that’ll be announced when the full bike’s details are unveiled in a couple of weeks.