Exclusive: Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 Spied In India: Launch Imminent?

The white arrow gets sharper

The next-generation Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 has been spied abroad a couple of times before, but never once In India, well, until now. This test mule spied on near Pune (home to Bajaj Auto) where they are made along with the smaller Husqvarna 250s are made reveals more about the motorcycle than we know currently from the last international sighting early last year.

In terms of looks, compared to the international sighting the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 looks fuller clad with new body panels and tank shrouds. That said, the test mule (just like the international test mule) dons a scrambler style design with much of its hardware appearing borrowed from the next-gen KTM 390 Duke. From what we could observe, this test mule gets a redesigned trellis frame, offset monoshock, upside down fork and wire-spoke rims shod with premium Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tyres. 

In terms of performance, Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 is most likely to get the new 399cc liquid-cooled motor as the next-gen 390 Duke. We are expecting the performance figures to be around the same as the current model - 43.5PS and 37Nm, but expect the engine to run less stressed and refinement to be far more polished.

While Husqvarna sells the Svartpilen and Vitpilen 401 abroad, in India it only offers the 250s. However, with the launch date of the new Bajaj-Triumph motorcycle announced, Husqvarna seems to have realised the potential for higher capacity motorcycles in India. We anticipate the Svartpilen 401 to hit the floor by June 2024 and cost approximately Rs 3.30 lakh. When launched, it will rival the upcoming Bajaj-Triumph 350 Scrambler and Royal Enfield Scram 450.