EICMA 2017: Husqvarna Vitpilen 701 And Svartpilen 701 Showcased
Highlights
- The bikes use the same 690 cc, single cylinder engine making 73 bhp
- The Svartpilen is a scrambler while the Vitpilen is a cafe racer
- Both bikes will be coming to India in the second half of 2018
EICMA saw to a lot of motorcycles being revealed. One of the most interesting showcases was the Husqvarna twins. The company had displayed the Vitpilen 701 and the Svartpilen 701. Both these motorcycles get the same single-cylinder engine which makes 73 bhp and 72 Nm of peak torque and is mated to a six-speed gearbox. The Vitpilen (Swedish for white arrow) is a café racer while the Svartpilen (Swedish for black arrow) will be a Scrambler. We say 'will be' because the Svartpilen is still a concept model, while the Vitpilen will soon hit the roads. We do believe that the 'Pilen' twins will be making its way to India soon.
Also Read: Husqvarna Vitpilen And Svartpilen Spotted Testing In Europe
The Svartpilen 701 gets a few different features from the Vitpilen such as a different handlebar, a more upright instrument console and dual-purpose tyres instead of regular street tyres. Both bikes get a chromium-molybdenum steel trellis frame, WP suspension and Brembo brakes and switchable ABS as well. Both bikes carry the same slightly retro-ish, bare-bones, stripped out look and that is something that we really like, from a design perspective. The Vitpilen 701 will be hitting the showrooms, in Europe from February 2018 onwards while the Svartpilen, well, there is no confirmed timeline on its launch. It will also have ride-by-wire and a hydraulic slipper clutch for better, smoother gearshifts.
KTM will be launching the Husqvarna brand in India sometime in 2018 and when they do, they will start with the lower-spec Vitpilen 401, Svartpilen 401 (which gets the same engine as the KTM 390 Duke) and then follow it up with the bigger spec 701 'Pilen' Twins.