5 Of The Best Husqvarna Motorcycles Ever Made

Husqvarna has existed far longer than the motorcycle, and while the company might be best known for its chainsaws and sewing machines in some markets, the Swedish marque gained a lot of traction in the U.S. thanks to its high-performance two-stroke racing motorcycles. Since then, the motorcycle manufacturing wing of the company has been sold and bought numerous times, most recently finding itself under the wing of KTM's parent company, Pierer Mobility AG and BMW before that. 

While operating as part of these parent companies, Husqvarna's role has largely been using existing motorcycle designs and adapting them. Sometimes these changes are minor visual revisions, and other times, they seem to be an easy way to spin off a new model in order to maximize profits and utility from already-proven designs and investments. 

While Husqvarna has previously been, and still is, famous for dirt bikes, many of the designs that have come from the Swedish brand have been drop-dead gorgeous street bikes. 

Husqvarna's Svartpilen and Vitpilen make up a family of motorcycles based around KTM's 373 cc (the Svartpilen and Vitpilen 401), and 690 cc (the Svartpilen and Vitpilen 701) motors. There's a 200 cc version as well, but those can be easily ignored by anyone looking for anything beyond a low-cost commuter with a bit of style. While they all mostly feature the same looks, they all appeal to different users.

Husqvarna's minimalist Svartpilen 401 urban scrambler and café-racer-esque Vitpilen 401 are based on KTM's Duke 390 platform, using the single-cylinder motor, frame, and suspension components from the Duke. At a hair over 330 lbs and pushing out 44 hp and 27 ft.-lbs of torque, the Svartpilen and Vitpilen deliver excellent performance for their size, while also equipped with creature comforts, like a quick-shifter and adjustable 43 mm WP suspension. At an MSRP of just $5,649, it's hard to beat the value offered by either the Svartpilen or Vitpilen 401, especially considering their head-turning looks.

Husqvarna Motorcycles

Stepping things up a notch, the now-discontinued Svartpilen and Vitpilen 701 take the spectacular looks of the Svartpilen and Vitpilen 401 and amp things up with KTM's iconic 692cc LC4 engine. Built around KTM's potent 690 cc LC4 motor, the 701 range was unveiled at EICMA 2018 to much fanfare. The Svartpilen and Vitpilen 701 take everything that makes the 401 family great and amplifies it. The same grunty, single-cylinder character here delivers up to 75 hp and 53 ft-lb of torque for an immense amount of fun. 

Two-stroke motorcycles are a bit of a dying breed, thanks to stricter emissions regulations. The engineers at KTM, who ultimately designed the engine that powers the Husqvarna TE 300 (also called the TE 300i in some markets), saw the new regulations as a challenge. For a while, things looked grim for fuel-injected two-stroke technology, but the more recent models, like the liquid-cooled 2023 TE 300, make use of a refined transverse port injection system, making the power delivery smoother. While a lot of the characteristic power band of the traditional two-stroke motor has been lost in the fuel-injection translation, the power-to-weight advantage remains a big selling point. Case in point, the 234-lb 2023 Husqvarna TE 300 produces around 54 hp — a number usually associated with much larger and heavier machines.

The key to the TE 300's success in a market dominated by heavy four-stroke bikes lies in how well the engineers nailed the oil mixing and engine management. The oil mixing system only provides the proper fuel-oil ratio, while the throttle mapping provides smooth power throughout the rev range. At the end of the day, the TE 300 is a two-stroke motorcycle with all the hassle and unpredictability conveniently removed.