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Watch the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto Do Its Thang

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Maybe it’s because my supermoto season officially ended this weekend (without me, I should add), with our last scheduled sumo session at the go-kart track here in Portland passing by this weekend, or maybe it’s because we just want the Swedish brand to deliver the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto already…either way, consider our appetite whetted by this last video from Husky.

Finally giving us a showing of the 701 Supermoto on a proper race track — not that the ice course with spiked tires wasn’t cool (no pun intended) — we get to see the 701 at home in its natural element: hitting apexes, sliding tires, and crushing lean angles.

We imagine that the nearly as powerful, and considerably lighter Husqvarna FS 450 supermoto would be the better weapon on the track, but the 690cc power plant on the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto is certainly the better choice for a machine that will roll a tire on public roads…and that’s sorta the point of the machine.

We’ll be eager to see this Husqvarna hit showrooms in Europe this November, and thus being the long wait for it to come to the USA in February 2016. Could the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto be the ultimate city hooligan bike? Time will tell…we’re certainly eager to find out, though.

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Bikes

Husqvarna 701 Supermoto, Coming to the USA

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It seems our hopes have been answered, as the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto has been confirmed for the US market, for the 2016 model year. We already knew that the 701 would be available in Europe, starting in November 2015, but word for other markets was non-existent.

Now clarifying things, Husqvarna has confirmed that the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto will be at dealerships in the USA, as well as other markets, start in February 2016. Yes, that means you too can now own a KTM 690 SMC R, dressed in blue and white.

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Bikes

2016 Husqvarna FS 450 – Less Weight, More Swede

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The Husqvarna brand will continue with its FS 450 offering for the 2016 model year, though you would be wrong to confuse the 2016 bike with its predecessor.

Trimming the fat off the 2015 model, it is clear that Husqvarna looked for ways to make the FS 450 even lighter than before, for 2016, and the Swedish brand look successful in that endeavor, with a 232 lbs machine (sans fuel).

To hit that target weight and other benchmarks, the 2016 Husqvarna FS 450 needed a new chromium molybdenum steel frame, a potent 63hp, 450cc, SOHC, engine, and a bucket of weight-saving items.

Our press release says the new FS 450 will be out in dealers in September of this year, but we take that to surely mean European showrooms, not American. We hope this bike will come the USA though, as it sounds like two wheels of hoon for sumo enthusiasts, and a lighter option than the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto.

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Bikes

Husqvarna 701 Café Racer Spied

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The spy photographer who sent us these photos calls this mystery motorcycle a “Husqvarna 701 café racer” which honestly is as good of a guess as any when it comes to figuring out what the Swedish brand is doing with this machine, and its 2016 motorcycle lineup.

Based off the KTM 690 Duke, as is the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto, this machine promises to have a 70hp thumper at its heart, mixed with a short seat-height, clip-on handlebars, underslung exhaust, and an attractive trellis swingarm.

To our eye, the motorcycle in question looks like Husky’s take on the KTM 690 Duke – a naked street bike that’s equally at home in the city as it is in the twisties – more than it does a café racer.

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Bikes

More Details on the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto

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Husqvarna is getting ready to unleash a 690cc supermoto on the world, in case you’ve missed the Swedish brand’s marketing campaign and dedicated website. Unsurprisingly, the bike is based off a comparable KTM model, though that’s not to say the folks at Husky haven’t improved on the KTM 690 Duke for their purposes.

(Re-)Releasing some tech details this week, we again know that the Husqvarna 701 will feature a ride-by-wire throttle (with three engine maps), slipper clutch (because supermoto), premium WP suspension, and what Husqvarna calls “Supermoto ABS” that is really the Bosch 9.1 MP race ABS, which allows one to still lock-up the rear wheel while the front wheel engages the ABS.

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Dirt

Husqvarna Will Race in the 2016 Dakar Rally

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There has been a lot of movement in the rally raid scene lately. First, Laia Sanz jumped ship from Honda to KTM, then Marc Coma announced his retirement from racing and that he will become the new Sporting Director for the Dakar Rally, and now we get word that Husqvarna will enter the world of rally racing with a factory team.

The move is perhaps not that surprising, considering that KTM now owns the Husqvarna brand, and that the Austrian company is a fierce rally raid competitor, but this means also that the historic Husqvarna name will return to one of the most iconic races in the world.

Making a strong debut, the Husqvarna factory team effort is comprised of riders Ruben Faria of Portugal and Pierre-Alexandre Renet of France, who will in-turn race upon the the Husqvarna FR 450 Rally bike, which is likely to be very similar to the KTM 450 Rally race bike.

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News

Ducati Dealers Top Pied Piper Rankings, Again

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Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index (PSI) is one of the major ranking systems out there assessing the US motorcycle industry and its dealerships.

To give you a quick primer on how scoring works, Pied Piper takes into account a mixture of “mystery shopper” experiences, along with actual sales success for each brand, thus giving a mixture of subjective and objective measurement.

For this year’s assessment, it comes with little surprise that Ducati is once again taking the top honors, followed closely by Harley-Davidson and Victory — two brands that have high customer satisfaction, according to Consumer Reports.

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Bikes

Teaser Campaign Begins for the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto

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We’re not really sure why Husqvarna is creating a micro-site and teaser campaign for its soon-to-debut 701 Supermoto, after all the 690cc machine already broke cover at the 2014 EICMA show, after being teased in concept the year before.

Certainly a bike we are excited to see debut — please God, bring it to American soil! — the cat does seem a bit out of the bag at this point on the 67hp, 320 lbs, four-stroke thumper with its APTC slipper clutch, ABS brakes, WP suspension, and ride-by-wire throttle with riding modes.

That being said, the first installment sees the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto kitted out with some spiked ice tires, for some winter hooligan fun. Color us jealous…the video is after the jump.

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News

Husqvarna Sets All-Time Sales Record – 16,337 Motorcycles

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Just a year after being acquired by KTM CEO Stefan Pierer, Husqvarna Motorcycles posted an all-time sales record of 16,337 units. The tally is the most the Swedish brand has ever sold in its 111 year history, which is perhaps surprising considering the company’s tenuous history as of late.

With those record sales, Husqvarna also posted over €100 million in revenue, a key metric for the brand, as it struggles to grow into KTM’s more exclusive and upscale counterpart.

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News

Husqvarna 401 Concepts Will Be 2017 Production Models

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One of the more intriguing things to come out of the 2014 EICMA motorcycle show in Milan were Husqvarna’s two “401” concepts, the Vitpilen and Svartpilen. The café-styled bikes are based off the KTM 390 Duke platform, though you wouldn’t know it from looking at them.

Husqvarna said at EICMA that if there was sufficient interest, the Vitpilen and Svartpilen could go into production. With an overwhelming critical response from the press and fans, it should come no surprise then that our friends at Bike.se are reporting that Husqvarna intends to make the small-displacement machines a part of its 2017 model lineup.

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