UPDATE: Here’s my review!
The follow-up to Husqvarna‘s stylish Vitpilen 701 is finally here, giving their street lineup some balance. Now Husky has two supermotos (FS450 and 701), two Vitpilens (401 and 701), and two Svartpilens (also 401 and 701).
If you had to guess what “Svartpilen” means, you’d probably be able to figure it out just by looking at the bike. It roughly translates to “Black Arrow”, and Husqvarna clearly took that to heart with the color of the bodywork and the powdercoated frame. This is a sibling to the Vitpilen (or White Arrow) 701 from last year, but the new bike isn’t just a new coat of paint. While the Vitpilen was a bit of a cafe racer…
Photo by Nathan May
…the Svartpilen is a neo-retro take on a flat-tracker:
Most of the important components stay the same, such as the Brembo brakes, Bosch ABS, WP suspension, quickshifter, slipper clutch, KTM 690 Duke-derived motor with two counterbalancers, and even the angular tank. To make the Black Arrow, Husqvarna obviously made everything black, and revised the front headlight fairing, fork shrouds, seat, tail, and handlebars.
They also replaced the tires with Pirelli’s MT60 RS, which are also the OE tires for the Ducati Scrambler and are a common choice for supermotos that compete on street and light dirt. I’m not too excited about the new tires, but I like the idea of taller handlebars and a revised seat which give the Svartpilen a more reasonable rider’s triangle.
THE BASICS
Price:
Engine:
Displacement:
Bore x stroke:
Compression ratio:
Power:
Torque:
Clutch:
Transmission:
Chassis:
Front suspension:
Rear suspension:
Front wheel travel:
Rear wheel travel:
Front brake:
Rear brake:
Wheelbase:
Seat height:
Fuel capacity:
Weight (curb, claimed):
$TBA (roughly $11,999)
Liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, single cylinder
692.7 cc
105 x 80mm
12.8:1
73.8 hp @ 8500 rpm
53.1 lb-ft. @ 6750 rpm
APTC slipper clutch, wet multi-plate
6-speed
Chrome-moly trellis frame, powder-coated
43mm WP inverted fork
WP Monoshock with linkage
5.9 in.
5.9 in.
Brembo four-piston caliper, 320mm disc, ABS
Brembo single-piston caliper, 240mm disc, ABS
56.5 in.
32.87 in.
3.17 gal.
346 lbs.
One of my few complaints about the Vitpilen was the basic dash. It seems to be unchanged for the Black Arrow.
I’ll be attending this launch on behalf of Cycle News, so check out what Husqvarna has to say about their newest model here, and then hit me with your questions in the comments!
Photos courtesy Husqvarna.