Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 Review: The Dark Horse of the Middleweight Naked Class

• Distinctive Design – The Vitpilen 801 stands out in the middleweight naked class with futuristic styling and premium components.
• Punchy LC8c Twin – The 799cc parallel twin produces 105hp and delivers strong mid-range drive perfect for backroad riding.
• A Dark Horse Contender – With quality suspension, sharp handling and a superb quickshifter, the Husqvarna is a serious rival to bikes like the Triumph Trident and Yamaha MT-09.

Radical styling and a punchy LC8c twin make the Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 one of the most distinctive middleweight nakeds on the market. We take a spin on a modified example to see whether the angular-styled streetfighter delivers where it matters most – on twisty backroads.

Husqvarna’s take on KTM’s LC8c middleweight platform hasn’t really set the world, well, NZ alight, with the whacky, futuristic styling possibly a step too far for the typically reserved, dressed in black, average Kiwi motorcyclists. And that’s okay, because the Vitpilen 801 isn’t your ‘average’ naked middle-weight motorcycle. Well, this one isn’t anyway.

The bike I got to test is Nick Kampenhout’s personal ride, one-half of the ‘NV’ in NV Motorcycles in Morrinsville. The well-respected team features Triumph, Moto Guzzi and Husqvarna brands in their stylish shop, situated a short ride from Hamilton, with a mix of road and off-road models on the shop floor to cater for a mix of customers. And while it is Nick who is the Husqvarna fan – he campaigns a Vitpilen in the Pro Twins class with impressive results – it was actually Nick’s wife, Vicky, who suggested I borrow the angular machine and take it for a spin after dropping back a far more reserved Triumph Trident 800 we’d borrowed for our ‘World First’ test.

Being Nick’s personal machine and with the fact that Nick is one hell of a fast rider going through the back of my mind, I wasn’t surprised when I noticed a few mods had been made to personalise the Vitpilen for the Morrinsville racer. Nothing too dramatic – just a few tweaks here and there to set it up for him, as it’s the bike he uses when he takes the monthly shop ride or goes for weekend blasts with mates. And he just LOVES it!

For some reason, Nick doesn’t care too much about what’s going on behind him (probably because he’s always so far in front…), so he’s done his usual mod of removing the mirrors and adding a small bar-end set-up from Oxford. And, to be honest, it’s useless. That is, until you take your hand off the handlebar and crank your head round, when you can vaguely see if there’s anything behind you. Essentially, I reckon it’s only for checking if there are flashing red and blue lights behind you, and that’s about it. And on that note, there’s a mount for a radar detector, and he’s fiddled with the clickers to make the Husky sit a bit more composed when pressing on.

Running me over the rest of the bike, Nick mentioned that he’d swapped the rubber out for some Chinese CST ‘sporty’ rubber. I was puzzled by this, as Nick, being a racer, is someone who’s usually quite particular about the black round things that keep him up on two wheels at serious lean angles. Well, he reckons they actually work alright. And as they’re approximately half the price of anything more mainstream, it doesn’t hurt the wallet quite so much when he smokes another set of hoops. Although after riding the Husky, I imagine it’s only the rear that ever needs replacing, as the front can spend a decent amount of time hanging in the breeze.

The final mod, and arguably the most important, is the exhaust. The SC Project muffler looks incredible, but doesn’t exactly live up to the ‘muffler’ part of the name. It’s raucous! You know those boy racers with open pipes on their cars that bang and cough on the overrun. Yeah, that’s pretty much what the 801 is like with the SC Project. Great for when you’re out in the back of beyond. But setting off from home at 5am… not so much.

The Ride

It’s been a while since I’d been on a KTM Duke and even longer since I’d been on a Husqvarna, so I was surprised at how relaxed and comfortable the riding position felt. There was actually room to move around, and the saddle didn’t feel like a plank. The dash is KTM through and through, meaning that I was familiar with my way around it, and the 5-inch TFT layout is nice, simple and intuitive. You can also see very clearly what settings and modes you’ve got engaged, with Sport for the mapping and Supermoto for the braking displayed on the dash as I turned the key on, showing that this had been optioned with Dynamic ride mode giving extra adjustment of the TC and the ability to lock the rear wheel into corners. Yep, Nick was obviously the last one to ride this.

Getting acquainted with the Vitpilen and, despite the whacky outlandish looks, it’s surprisingly civilised. There’s plenty of power low in the rev range, with the fuelling slightly fluttery mid-throttle, which I put down to the massive exhaust exit, not exactly what the engineers had in mind. Switching to Road mode settled that down, and a rush-hour commute through town was easily managed, especially with the traffic hearing what must have sounded like a swarm of Harley-Davidsons heading up behind them. But that’s not the sort of riding Nick has got this bike set up for.

Eventually finding a dry day during this changeable summer, I headed to my favourite back roads for a bit of fun. There’s no doubt that people are going to hear you coming and know exactly what you’re up to, so it makes sense to find somewhere isolated before winding the throttle back and unleashing the power (and noise) of this 801. And when I did, it brought the most massive smile to my face.

Bring The Noise

I’m not usually a fan of loud bikes, but the noise from the parallel twin was addictive, with the revs rising and falling as I tipped through turns, pushing the CST tyres a little harder as I built up trust, and hoping that I didn’t come across any damp patches which could really ruin mine (and Nick’s) day. With the healthy bottom end grunting out of turns, the revs take off through the mid-range as the rev counter streaks across the TFT dash. And before you know it, you’re flicking up the box on what has to be one of the best quickshifters fitted to a bike – it’s epic. The beauty with the Husky gearbox is that there’s still feel from the lever as you’re shifting, rather than simply touching the lever and it jumping into the next gear. Downshifts are more fun, with the SC Project popping and protesting on the overrun. It can cause you to take your mind off the job in hand, and more than once, I was making the most of the radial-mount brakes and light steering to get me out of trouble as I approached a corner with a bit too much bravado, encouraged by the exhaust note to hang onto the revs just a fraction longer. It’s like a drug.

The Vitpilen, while having a funny name and a few funny quirks, is actually quite a civilised and competent motorcycle. It’s also a heap of fun, feeling much more lively than the specs would have you believe. With the 799cc P-twin putting out around 105hp @ 9,250rpm, it’s a bike that works best carving through twisting roads rather than gassing past stuff in a straight line, where it runs out of puff when the speeds start getting silly. Instead, the 801 revels in the sub-200km/h zone, somewhere it makes sense to live nowadays.

Verdict

A heap of fun, distinctive looks, and a reasonably affordable list price, considering the quality componentry, make the Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 a bit of a dark horse. It’s a bike that your mates won’t know much about, and that’s not a bad thing, as if they did, they might all want one, and then they’d become common. The Husqvarna is a great way to stand out without going exotic.

Okay, Nick’s few modifications have made this Vitpilen a bit more aggressive than standard, and while I don’t mind a bit of noise, I probably wouldn’t go to this extreme. Still, what surprised me the most was the easy manners and practicality of what is a radical-looking machine. The KTM LC8c powerplant suits the style of the naked middleweight perfectly, with the instant punch matched with a sublime quickshifter, making the Vitpilen a heap of fun in the twisties. It isn’t even particularly uncomfortable, with the saddle good for a few hours attacking corners.

If you’re in the market for a naked middleweight, while the Husqvarna might look like it’s radical, it really isn’t. So it should be on your radar when checking out the other contenders in what is a burgeoning segment. And there’s a reason why so many manufacturers are making mid-capacity parallel twin nakeds – they’re simply really good fun!

If you want to check this particular bike out, it’s a demo at NV Motorcycles in Morrinsville, Waikato. So make sure to give Nick, Vicky or one of the team a call on 07 889 1007. Or head to: https://nvmotorcycles.co.nz

Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 Specifications

Publisher/Editor

Paul

Paul is the owner, publisher and editor of Bike Rider Magazine, a role he has had for over two decades. He has been BRM’s primary test rider throughout that time, riding and reviewing everything from learner machines to high-performance superbikes. After cutting his teeth with Superbike Magazine in the UK, Paul moved to New Zealand in the early 2000s and has since dedicated his career to delivering honest, rider-focused motorcycle journalism.