Husqvarna Vitpilen 250

Platform sharing isn’t really a new thing; brands have been doing it for years and rightfully so, because it saves them a big chunk of time, money and R&D effort as well. We have seen brands like Hero and Harley-Davidson do it with the Mavrick 440 and X440, and KTM do it with Bajaj for the Dukes and Pulsars.

Similarly, the Husqvarna Vitpilen 250, is a result of platform sharing. It is based on the same tenets as the KTM 250 Duke. We have already reviewed the 250 Duke and here is our review of it. But even though the Vitpilen 250 borrows a bunch of parts, and the engine from its Austrian cousin, the little Swedish motorcycle is quite a package in itself. But how so? And why you should you purchase this? That is what we have tried to find out in the few days that we could spend with the bike.

I strongly feel it from my heart that the Vitpilen 250’s design works in its favour. It has just the right proportions, ample road presence, looks slightly bigger than a 250cc bike and even though it has old school elements like the round LED headlight and the mirrors, it stands out of the crowd easily.

I remember pulling up to the red light and the bike got all the stares. We even had a few people come and ask me questions on if this was an imported motorcycle or if it was a 500cc bike. Husqvarna has got the design box checked. My favourite bit on the Vitpilen 250 has to be the long sweeping single-body panel on the sides. And then, it looks quite neat since there isn’t a lot of branding on the bike and nor does it have loud colours or stickers. It makes sense if the rear fender doesn’t blend with the overall theme but the fact that it is purposeful, especially now in the monsoon season, makes it an essential element. But once the rains are gone, you can get the tail setup done and the rear profile would look just as sleek as the front.

Husqvarna has ticked the quality box too on the new Vitpilen 250. Its plastic quality, welds, switchgear feel and feedback, panel gap consistency, and the seat material, feel quite upmarket, thereby giving the bike a premium and feel-good factor.

The Vitpilen 250 appears and exudes a proper old-school naked motorcycle feeling. It gets a tubular handlebar, rear set footpegs, and an adequately long flat single-piece seat. You would ideally sit slightly crouched, thanks to the distance between the handlebar and the rider seating portion. But neither does it feel cramped nor is there any odd pressure on your wrist or elbows. In fact, the handlebar is wide enough to give you ample control and command.

The seat too is quite spacious for you too move around if needed, even with a pillion. The width is proper and you get good under-thigh support without having to struggle for flat footing. The Vitpilen 250’s 820mm seat height is quite accommodating and makes it easy to get both of your feet on the ground. Overall, the Vitpilen 250 makes for a commendably comfortable motorcycle regardless of riding it in the city for short distances or being in the saddle for long hours when munching kilometres across states.

On the performance front, the Husqvarna Vitpilen 250 replicates the KTM 250 Duke since the duo shares the 249cc single-cylinder liquid-cooled motor. It makes nearly 31bhp and 25Nm and gets a six-speed gearbox with a bi-directional quickshifter. And boy! We love the quickshifter. It amps up the riding experience as you can bang through the gears with the throttle pinned if the roads allow.

Moreover, what’s fascinating is the change in the exhaust note after about 5,500rpm. It becomes raspier and louder, thereby making you want to accelerate even harder. Not to mention, the engine also packs a good punch from the low revs followed by the mid-range and it then tapers off in the higher band. The Vitpilen’s engine feels tractable and you need to just modulate the light clutch when crawling in the city traffic. A quarter-litre motor ideally doesn’t heat up a lot and neither does the Vitpilen 250’s engine.

We had the chance to ride the Vitpilen mostly in the city and found the bike to be extremely nimble and agile. It would cut through the traffic at high speeds effortlessly and felt very easy to manoeuvre in tight bumper-to-bumper riding conditions as well. The turning radius and the wide handlebar make it easy to take a full U-turn without having to roll back and front. It is monsoon time right now and most of the Mumbai roads are broken. So, naturally, we could put the Vitpilen’s suspension to a proper test and found out that the front forks are set up plush enough to absorb the bumps without losing composure. However, the monoshock felt a little stiff in the beginning but after a day or so of riding, we figured it responded better at higher speeds. The spring would absorb most of the bumps without transferring much to your back. At city riding speeds, you might feel a slight kick when going over a pothole but that can be mitigated by reducing the speeds, if possible.

The only bits that we found slightly strange were the braking and high-speed stability. The bike that we received had barely clocked 1400km and after just 100km more, the front brake pads had completely worn off. While we then got the pads changed, it felt as though the brakes needed to be bled better and maybe with the front disc scratches, the bite wasn’t up to the mark. Moreover, at around 115kmph and more, the Vitpilen started vigorously shaking at times. We checked the air pressure and even switched to a smoother road to rectify the same, but the wobbling was still very evident.

Another area where Husqvarna has impressed us is the features department. You get full LED illumination, an LCD, bi-directional quickshifter, ABS modes (road and supermoto), and a USB charging port as well. Not to mention, the console packs a bunch of necessary readouts like the speedometer, odometer, trip meter, tachometer, fuel level readouts, gear position indicator, and more. All of these are laid out quite neatly and are easy to navigate while riding. However, we still wish that the brand employed smartphone connectivity too for SMS and call alerts and turn-by-turn navigation. But its absence isn’t a deal breaker.

During the BikeWale fuel run, the Husqvarna Vitpilen 250 returned 34.8kmpl of mileage. It was ridden in various traffic conditions including the city and highway. With its 13.5-litre fuel tank, you can expect an average range of 470km. But the figure could differ slightly as per your riding style and conditions.

As we mentioned in the introduction, the Husqvarna Vitpilen 250 borrows a bunch of bits from the KTM 250 Duke. However, it still feels and rides like a completely different motorcycle, and we aren’t complaining. Moreover, its old-school styling gives it a separate identity, not only from its Austrian cousin but also from the competition. The design is new, clean, and seen very seldom on the road. It is further complemented by the good build quality which we are fond of. That said, a few reasons why Husqvarna motorcycles haven’t been very popular are brand awareness and the comparative road presence among other 250cc bikes.

The Vitpilen 250’s performance is also engaging and keeps you entertained throughout. Its ability to be ridden stress and hassle-free in city traffic or being gunned at high speeds makes it versatile and easy to live with. The heat management is on point and so is the handling as well as the comfort. The quickshifter on the Vitpilen 250 is a cherry on top and bumps up the riding experience multifold. Even the ride quality on this motorcycle has been well taken care of which adds to the brownie points.

Apart from the strange wobbles at high speed and the front brake pads wearing off mysteriously, we haven’t found any other issues with the Husqvarna Vitpilen 250. That said, we are also waiting to hear back from Husqvarna on this. However, these issues could be a one-off case and may not exist for all the other units. So, we think the Husqvarna Vitpilen 250 is an absolutely worthy purchase at Rs. 2.19 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). For the said price, you are purchasing a lot of fun, an engaging rider experience, a well-built product, and a head-turning motorcycle.

Photography by Kaustubh Gandhi