Back In The Spotlight

Two thoughts occur in quick succession, up in the hills north of Barcelona, as the Vitpilen 701 slices through another set of bends with thrilling ease and accuracy. The first is a question, but provides an answer in itself as I momentarily find myself wondering whether any other street bike would have dispatched that sinuous section with quite as much panache as the light, taut and flickable Husqvarna single.

- Roland Brown

 The second thought is simple recognition that this is the Vitpilen’s natural habitat: twisty, flowing, traffic-free tarmac – not the choked streets of the Catalan capital, where we’d begun the ride; and certainly not the glittering exhibition halls and city-centre boutiques where the Vitpilen’s striking lines seem to have been endlessly displayed and discussed in recent years.

In other words, the Vitpilen is a light and sweet-handling machine that is at its best on fine motorcycling roads, rather than merely a less practical KTM in an expensive designer suit. Though if you had a cynic’s desire to prick the bubble of hype that has been inflated around Husqvarna’s street bike renaissance, you could argue that it’s both of those things.

What’s for sure is that the Vitpilen and its equally stylish, soon-to-be-released Svartpilen sibling (‘Black Arrow’ in Swedish, to the Vit’s White) have done a great job of highlighting the old Swedish brand’s relaunch following its Austrian takeover in 2013. Both models have already managed to give Husqvarna an edgy street bike image – softer than KTM’s ready-to-race ethos – despite sharing most parts with orange models.

Husqvarna’s development team must be commended for creating a production-ready Vitpilen 701 that remains faithful to the concept bike unveiled in Milan in 2015. The distinctive tank shape (it’s actually a plastic cover), minimalist seat and clip-on bars give a modern take on the old café racer theme. The prototype’s retro-style paper air filters are gone, and the slash-cut silencer has grown in length, but the bold Vitpilen look has barely been diluted.