A Svart move: Latest Husqvarna Svartpilen looks to be getting a serious overhaul

Spyshots have emerged that show Husqvarna are working on a replacement for the Svartpilen 401.

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The dinky retro has been a hit with new riders and those looking for smaller bikes to dart around town on since it arrived in 2018. But with stiffening competition, Husky think it’s due an update.

At the heart of the bike is a new engine, which outwardly appears to be the same one we’ve seen in spyshots of new KTM Duke 390 and RC390.

It’s hard to tell from the outside what has gone on inside, but all the cases appear to be new, suggesting either a major overhaul or a ground-up redesign rather than a little tickling around the edges.

It’s possible there has been a small bump in capacity, perhaps to offset any power losses from an update to Euro5, but it’s unlikely there has been much of an increase in power. The 401 (and 390 it’s based on) are designed to be A2-licence friendly, which holds them to a max of 47bhp.

The new engine sits inside a new steel trellis frame, which is visually more interesting than the old assembly. There’s also a matching trellis subframe, which was hidden on the previous model by extensive bodywork. The frame on the test mule is finished in white but is more likely to be blacked (or svarted) out on the finished bike, sadly.

Bolted to the back of the frame is a new alloy lattice swingarm, which looks visually lighter than the existing model’s and also bears similarities to the one seen on the KTM machines.

Away from the main components of the bike you can see smaller changes including a new radial front brake caliper for improved stopping and a neat little fly screen, which should improve long-distance comfort and weather protection.

It’s hard to tell because of the screen but it appears that there’s a new dash, likely a full-colour TFT unit with smartphone connectivity. Fans of the current bike will also be happy to see the tank styling remains.

So far there’s been no official word from Husqvarna about the arrival and price of the new model but given the unfinished nature of this mule, we wouldn’t expect to see a finished machine until 2022. The current model costs £4849 and we think Husky will be keen to keep the new one under £5000, too.