2025 Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 Review

New for 2025, the Vitpilen 801 is Husqvarna’s first-ever twin-cylinder streetbike*. We took it for a spin to see if the specs stack up.

Photography by Kevin Wing

I’m sure you noticed the little asterisk in the subtitle. That’s because while the sentence is true and correct in that the Vitpilen 801 (and Svartpilen 801, for that matter) is indeed Husqvarna’s first twin-cylinder streetbike, there are a few of you I’m sure who will remember the Norden 901 that’s been out for a few years that, yes, you can ride on the street.

The difference is that the Norden is an adventure bike with its 21-inch front and 18-inch rear wheels, while the Vitpilen naked bike and Svartpilen scrambler can lay genuine claim to being the first 17-inch-wheeled Husqvarnas for the street.

I only rode the Vitpilen on the test, not the Svartpilen, although they are basically the same machine bar the Svart’s higher handlebar, single headlight and blocky Pirelli rubber. Both bikes raid the KTM parts bin for the motor in the 799cc parallel-twin that Husqvarna (not Husqavarna, for crying out loud) claims will deliver 105 horsepower at 8000 rpm and 64 lb-ft of torque at 6500 rpm, which is pretty stout for the little twin.

Back when Chris Fillmore and I were teammates at Pikes Peak in 2018, Chris’ KTM 790 Duke—the exact same motor that sits between the Vitpilen’s frame rails—had exactly 105 horsepower at the tire with an aftermarket race exhaust, intake work and a different fuel map, and the consensus at the Vitpilen launch was the rear wheel horsepower would be around 95-98.

That’s more than enough for a bike weighing a claimed 397 pounds, but that’s measured without a 3.7-gallon tank of gas. Add said gas, and you’re probably looking at around 420 pounds ready to ride. Again, nothing to sneeze at.

Our test bikes came fitted with the Dynamic ECU map, which is a $420 extra from your Husqvarna dealer. Sadly, this does not include the $350 Easy Shift quickshifter for the six-speed gearbox, which, trust me, you’re going to want as it gives one of the slickest gearshifts I’ve used for quite some time.

The Dynamic mode gives you access to the 10-stage traction control (levels one to nine plus Off), five-stage wheelie control, Motor Slip Regulation, a fourth different throttle map in Dynamic (the full beans throttle), plus the increasingly sedate Sport, Road and Rain throttle modes the bike comes with as standard. Should you not go for the Dynamic mode, traction control and wheelie control are just an on/off affair.

A couple of extras we didn’t have fitted include the $289 optional cruise control and the $237.99 switch to make it work. Yes, you read that right; if you buy the cruise control (which is already built into your Husky’s electronics, all the dealer does is turn it on), you then must buy a new switch block so you can actually use it. That’s a bit lame, in my humble opinion. However, you do get turn-by-turn navigation on the five-inch TFT dash for free via the Husqvarna app, so that’s a nice little add-on from the Austrians/Swedes.

My test bike had the aftermarket Akrapovic slip-on muffler, the billet brake and clutch levers that felt oh-so-nice, and the billet brake fluid reservoirs fitted, although I have been unable to get you prices on these parts at the time of writing. The exhaust made zero difference as far as I could tell—it even sounded the same as a stock exhaust because you can’t take the baffle out of it, but it looked great all the same.

Looks-wise, the Vitpilen is a spunky little motorbike, I must say. After riding the 400s late last year **(https://www.cyclenews.com/2024/10/article/2024-husqvarna-svartpilen-401-vitpilen-401-review/),** I wasn’t that enamored with the aesthetic. I felt it missed the mark somewhat, but the same can’t be said for the 801. It is a thoroughly good-looking bike, especially with the funky hollow LED headlight and LED indicators that are now legal in America, even if they are a little fatter than what the Euros get.

I’m happy to say that the performance matches the looks, especially in the engine department. It’d been a long time since I’d ridden a KTM 790 Duke, so I’d forgotten just how sprightly the parallel-twin motor really was.

Like everything these days, engine performance is not straight engine performance. It’s a mix of electronic intervention and motor mechanics, and once I’d sampled all the throttle, traction and wheelie control settings, I settled on the Sport throttle map, level two traction, wheelie control turned off, and the ABS switched to Supermoto mode that allows the rear brake to lock up but keeps ABS on at the front end. Front ABS can never be switched off.

Once these settings were settled, the Husky and I got on rather well. The 799cc motor has two distinct personalities, that of below 5000 rpm and that of above 5000 rpm. Below 5K gives a cruisy demeanor, and if you never ventured north of this mark, I’m sure you’d be just fine. Low-speed manners are very good from the twin-cylinder, and you can dumb it down even further by selecting Road or Rain mode if you fancy.

However, give the Vitpilen a kick in the midsection, let it roar past 5000 rpm, and it’s a different bike entirely. The Vitpilen becomes a right little brat, offering jumpy, almost nervous performance that sees you ripping toward the redline way quicker than you might expect.

Given there’s 64 lb-ft of torque on offer, that may not seem like a lot, but it’s spread pretty wide across the rev range. However, it’s way more fun keeping the revs in the reds and having a sparring session with the Vitpilen rather than holding hands on the beach.

As you’d expect, Husqvarna has outfitted the Vitpilen with sister company WP’s flashy forks and shock, although they are not fully adjustable at either end. What is cool, however, is WP has drastically simplified the range of adjustment with five clicks of compression and rebound damping on the fork, and eight clicks of rebound damping on the shock, but with adjustable preload. These clicks are down from upwards of 25 for both compression and rebound, meaning each click gives a far greater degree of adjustment than before.

Even when the Vitpilen’s suspension is in its base settings, the ride is comfortable and compliant, although upping the pace will likely have you upping the preload on the shock and the compression damping on the fork to keep everything on the straight and narrow.

Aiding this is the surprisingly good Michelin Road 6 rubber, allowing you access to the snappy characteristics of the chassis. The combination of the suspension and allotted rubber allows the Vitpilen to turn on a dime in a very similar style to that of the king of agile middleweights in the 790 Duke. We had tremendous wind and cold weather on our test ride in Southern California, and the Michelins especially worked well in those cooler temps, even if ultimate high-speed and heavy-load cornering performance is a little lacking.

The Vitpilen’s ride is let down slightly by the brakes, in that while ample for most situations, the ByBre four-piston calipers and master cylinder require a good handful to haul you up while riding at high speed. Rear brake performance is fine enough, but it’s never a big talking point. You’ve got lean angle-sensitive ABS here as well, so the braking package will get you out of almost all the trouble—almost—you get yourself into.

The $10,499 Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 comes to the game in probably the busiest time ever for the middleweight class. Not only does it compete against its housemate in the $9499 KTM 790 Duke, it’s also against the $10,595 Triumph Street Triple 765, the $9399 Honda CB650R and the $10,799 Yamaha MT-09, a bike that comes with everything the Husky does and more but doesn’t make you pay extra for cruise control and a quickshifter, at least not separately.

I guess it comes down to what flavor you like your naked biking. The Vitpilen is a statement bike, no doubt. It’s a stylish, uber-cool steed that looks and sounds different from its competitors, and if you don’t mind cashing out for a few extras, all the power to you.

As far as the ride itself goes, it’s a good one indeed and should prove to be one of the surprise packages of 2025. CN

VIDEO | 2025 Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 First Ride

2025 Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 Specifications

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