Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 Delivery Bikes Seen With Apollo Tyres Instead Of Pirelli - Here’s The Reason Why

Changes in government regulations are to blame for this. We also explain why there are no changes in the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401’s price

The Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 was launched in India in January 2024 for Rs 2,92,000 (ex-showroom Delhi), and back then, the bike was equipped with premium Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR dual-purpose tyres. However, now the bike has started reaching dealerships for deliveries, but it gets Apollo Tramplr XR dual-purpose tyres.

Many customers have been disappointed by this move because though the bike lacked comprehensive electronic aids like three riding modes like the KTM Duke 390, it still offered great value for money considering it was equipped with the premium, Pirelli tyres. We reached out to the brand for clarification and got to know that the brand had to swap the tyres because of a change in government regulations. 

The Directorate General Of Foreign Trade (an attached office of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry) announced a ban on importing tyres if the same size tyres are available from an Indian manufacturer. This has been done in a bid to boost the government’s ‘Make In India’ initiative. This move helps local tyre manufacturers to get more business from bikemakers by equipping their products with Indian tyres right from the factory. As a consequence, the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401’s 110-section and 150-section Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tyres had to be replaced with Apollo Tramplr XR tyres before deliveries to customers begin. That also means none of the customers received the Pirelli tyres on their new Svartpilen 401. 

It’s important to note that the ban on importing tyres is only applicable to bike manufacturers and not tyre dealers, at least as of now. So technically, you can go to a tyre dealer and get the tyres replaced with the Pirellis, although it will cost you quite a bit. Also, the ban applies only for two-wheelers meant for the Indian market, so the export-spec Svartpilen 401 continues to get the Pirellis, for now. 

As for the concerns regarding no change in pricing, we got to know that at the manufacturer level, the price difference between the Pirelli and Apollo is very minimal. This explains why the Svartpilen’s price is unchanged. 

Summing up, while the Apollos may not be as ‘premium’ as the Pirellis, it is still not a bad deal overall, considering they can handle weekend trails quite well. This suits Svartpilen's case as it is not a hardcore scrambler anyway. With a 70:30 on-road/off-road bias, you can easily commute with these tyres as well.