2024 Husqvarna Svartpilen 801 review | Husky’s Svartpilen 801 offers something different with its mix of refined style and performance

Before deciding if Husqvarna’s new £10,499 Svartpilen 801 naked middleweight is any good, we first need to pin down what it is. Replacing the out-going single-cylinder, 74bhp Svartpilen 701, the 801 uses a much more powerful 104bhp parallel twin motor, taken from the original 2018 KTM 790 Duke. It’s designed to be less shouty and more grown up than a KTM with its own new tubular steel chassis, calmer steering geometry and the high spec WP suspension and electronic rider aids from the latest KTM 990 Duke.

It's also a scrambler…sort of. It runs on Pirelli MT60 RS dual purpose tyres (80/20 road/off road) and Husqvarna says its upright riding position works as well standing on the pegs in the dirt, as it does sat your derriere on tarmac. Here at its world launch in the south of France we stay on terra firma, as most owners will.

The Svartpilen 801 is a unique take on the middleweight naked. It has its own industrial, underground scrambler style and the way it rides is somewhere between a snappy, up-to-no good KTM 790 Duke and a mild-mannered roadster. It’s fast, carves accurately through corners, even with its dual-purpose tyres and has strong brakes.

Its power delivery is strong but never aggressive and its relaxed steering geometry endows the Husky with a sense of calmness. Even the skids and wheelies it so eloquently performs are done in an unruffled and measured way.

It comes with a decent level of chassis and electronic spec, although the full bells and whistles spec pushes it close to 11 grand. There are cheaper scramblers out there and more dynamic, well-rounded middleweight nakeds for the money, but the Svartpilen 801 offers something different with its refined mix of refined style and performance.

2024 Husqvarna Svartpilen 801 review video:

Husqvarna have created a superb chassis that lets the 801 rail confidently through corners, the Pirellis grip superbly, wet or dry, and the twin J.Juan radial brake/300mm disc combo are strong with plenty of feel. With its long wheelbase the Husky doesn’t change direction like a pinball, but it’s incredibly stable in a straight line and full lean.

WP suspension is plush, controlled, but softly sprung and can bottom out over big bumps. The riding position is also spacious for the tall and with an 820mm high seat and a narrow stance, it’ll be manageable for shorter legs, too. The thin seat itself is beautifully designed but only comfy for a couple of hours.

Husqvarna make a deliberate effort to make its bikes feel different to its equivalent KTM sisters. In this case the Svartpilen 801 is relaxed compared to the more manic 790 Duke, in the same way the Norden 901 is softer, gentler and more Triumph or Ducati-ish than the fiery 890 Adventure. As such the 801 is fun, but lacks pizzaz compared to a Street Triple, MT-09, or even the old Svartpilen 701 single.

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Unlike the old single-pot Svartpilen 701, the 801 uses a 104bhp, 799cc, LC8c parallel twin with a 75-degree crank to give the sound and rumble of a V-twin. Despite its aggressive looks and fruity power the 801 is surprisingly mellow.

With 105bhp to play with the 801 it isn’t slow, especially with just 181kg (wet, no fuel) to push along. It performs perfect off-the-clutch wheelies in second gear, too, but despite its playful performance the Husky doesn’t jump out of your hands like a supermoto when you twist throttle and instead it gallops along with a smooth spread of power and a friendly throttle response.

With its 75-degree firing order the parallel-twin growls deeply, but few vibes reach the rider thanks to its twin balance shafts. It’s a superb engine, although not the most inspiring.

It should be cheap to run with a claimed 63mpg and 193-mile range from its bigger 14-litre tank and service intervals are every 15,000kms.

As-new build quality and attention to detail is excellent. It’s too soon to say how reliable the Svartpilen 801 will be, but since it shares most of its mechanicals and electronics with the 790 and 890 KTM Duke, they give us an insight.

Early 790 Dukes suffered their fair share of reliability and finish issues, but it seems the Austrian manufacturer have dealt with them. MCN owners’ reviews of the later 890 Duke and 890 Duke R are glowing with no reports of any major problems.

In terms of direct, retro/scrambler/knobbly-tyred rivals, the Husky doesn’t really have any. The cheaper £9995 Ducati Scrambler Icon, £9699 Fantic Caballero 700, £8266 Yamaha XSR700 or £5999 CF Moto 700 CL-X Heritage have a similar scrambler flavour but aren’t as powerful. So, you need to compare the Svartpilen 801 to a conventional middleweight naked to place it, like the popular 118bhp, £9795 Triumph Street Triple 765R and 117bhp, £10,106 Yamaha MT-09 triples.

A Svartpilen 801 offers riders something unique and that starts with its austere, minimalist scrambler style. Its bodywork is finished satin black and set against its gloss black frame, swingarm and wheels looks suitably sinister. The exposed cast aluminium subframe forms the slimline rear tail section, the tank cover has a crazy paving join down the middle and out of the crate it’s all very well made.

It's pricey though, especially if you add the £361.51 Dynamic pack that lets you into the settings to adjust the wheelie, traction control and engine brake control. Cruise control is an extra £252.79 and there will be 19 official accessories available when the 801 goes on sale in June. But right now, Husqvarana are offering stonking finance deals, so you can ride away on the Svartpilen for just £89 a month.

Standard equipment is plentiful, though: adjustable suspension and steering damper, radial brakes, a colour dash, LEDs, adjustable ali tapered bars, an up/down quickshifter, slip and assist clutch and lean-sensitive traction control and ABS with supermoto mode.