Husqvarna is really killing it right now. 

"Decay buys too many beaters" (decay) 03/21/2019 at 14:56 • Filed to: unnecessary moto shopping with decay, Decay's Beaters, Two Wheels Good, husqvarna, Ktm

4

47

Just saw some pics of the new Svartpilen 701

No one else out there is doing road legal concept bikes like Husqvarna. I know it’s just a re-skinned and marked up KTM 690 Duke...

but I don’t care. It makes the motorcycle hipster in me feel all funny inside.

Back before I bought my 701 Supermoto, I tried out the Vitpilen 701, which is a modern cafe racer and also just a re-skin of the 690 Duke.

My only real complaint about the Vitpilen, was comfort. The clipon handlebars are real low and would become tiring quickly on a long ride. The Svartpilen solves this complaint by adding higher handlebars and slightly more relaxed ergonomics to the Vitpilen. Thankfully for my wallet... they gave it an 18" front wheel which severely limits the availability of sticky tire compounds (17" is the standard of all sport bikes). Otherwise, I might have been tempted to trade the Triumph and the Supermoto for one bike that seemingly could fill both roles.

I still think $12k for a single cylinder is madness, but the LC4 motor is an absolute peach. I’m about 1500 miles into my 701 supermoto and they somehow managed to give it all the good characteristics of a single (responsiveness, torque, simplicity, lightness, TORQUE) without any of the downsides (vibration, lack of top end, short maintenance intervals).

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:10

1

I just hope that they depreciate like a BMW 750i

Decay buys too many beaters > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 03/21/2019 at 15:14

1

Dear god.

It’s currently cheaper to buy a used late 2000's   750i than a H usqvarna of similar vintage.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:16

1

Oh no. I hadn’t seen this yet. I didn’t need to see this. I shouldn’t see this.

I really like the 401 twins. But they need more power. If this were under 10 I'd be going and riding one ASAP. Not to buy. Or at least that's what I'll tell myself.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:17

0

Yeah, which is why a 12k bike is hard to swallow.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:19

1

NUT.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:22

1

that 701 on the tank

made me think turbocharged direct injection

and i was all like ooo turbodieselbike

noice

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 15:24

0

Yeah, I think 10k is where they need to hit to make these these fly out of showrooms. I love the styling, but at 12k you need to be aware and comfortable with the fact that you are actively choosing style over substance *cough* triumph triples exist * cough*. The same doesn’t really apply to the 701 because, while it is expensive for what it is, it doesn’t have any competition. The midsize sport segment is a lot more competitive in the US  right now.

razorbeamteam > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:26

1

I only know them because they make my dad’s power washer (which is great btw). Didn’t know they made bikes but I’m not a bikey boi. 

Decay buys too many beaters > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 03/21/2019 at 15:27

1

I wonder what a TD cruiser would be like?  Probably similar to how gas harleys are :) 

Decay buys too many beaters > razorbeamteam 03/21/2019 at 15:30

1

They’ve been making motorcycles for about 100 years, but the last 20 or so have been rough for them. They were sold to MV A gusta in the late 80s, again to BMW in the 2000s, and then again to KTM in the 2010s. The current bikes all use KTM engines and chassis, but are packaged by Husqvarna.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:32

1

*pictures loud pipes on a td*

yep...harley

Decay buys too many beaters > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 03/21/2019 at 15:34

0

Absolutely, especially in that segment. At that price they directly compete with

the Duke 690 ($3k cheaper)

Triumph 765 Street Triple (~$1k cheaper)

Ducati Hypermotard (~$1k more expensive)

and that’s just the stuff for euro snobs, if you open it up to Japanese bikes there is a LOT out there. 

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:37

1

$9, 399.00

bob and john > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 03/21/2019 at 15:39

0

yea, but the shiver is a pile of junk

nerd_racing > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:42

1

One of the welders at work has a husq varna and he likes it a lot. It looks really cool too.

Decay buys too many beaters > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 03/21/2019 at 15:45

0

Oh yeah, A prilia too!

Although I’m not sure that competes directly with anything else on my list. the Shiver is at least 40lbs heavier than the heaviest of those, and if it’s similar to the Shiver 750 I had as a long term loaner, it feels heavy too. 

Decay buys too many beaters > nerd_racing 03/21/2019 at 15:46

0

Lol, m y first read was

“one of the weirdos at my work...”

Decay buys too many beaters > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 03/21/2019 at 15:52

0

Oh, and this for $500 less tha n the husky  too

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:53

1

But to argue your triumph point... What competes with a triumph triple? On every level? Riding d ynamics, sound, style, reliability, price... Nothing except an XSR900. All other Japanese bikes are painful to look at and sound as bad as Subarus. German and Italian stuff is more expensive and/or less reliable. American stuff? HA HA HA! KTM? Iffy, depending on year, in every category. Unless I'm forgetting something.

nerd_racing > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 15:56

1

He is also very very weird. 

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 16:10

0

Maybe the new 790 duke? But I don’t like the styling, but from what I hear the dynamics are there and KTM twins seem to be relatively reliable.

But yeah, the right answer to the question is this, anything else is illogical. 

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 16:26

1

The KTM's aren't exactly attractive. Some look neat, some are ugly, but I wouldn't call any of them stylish. So yeah, that little tree is very accurate. But used triples are getting cheap as you know!

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 16:31

0

True, they are starting to hit sub 6k pretty regularly now for the 675s, but still the number of $1000 SV650s I found for friends LAST YEAR was >4. 

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 16:44

0

Oh god... this is how much of a fringe group we are

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 18:35

1

But the triple is 6 times as good!

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 18:35

1

That is both sad and awesome 

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 18:42

0

Oh I agree! But that money gap will always exist. I could argue that if you can’t afford a $1000 sv650, motorcycling might not be for you. B ut to spend 6x that on a used British sport bike, you have a little more cash to throw around.

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 18:44

1

It brings back memories of the best single post  I ever read on Oppo

https://oppositelock.kinja.com/i-used-to-take-it-as-a-given-that-an-interest-in-vehicl-1464717649

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 19:02

1

I think triples will get below 3k in 2-3 years. Which basically means there's no more use for SV's.

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 19:17

0

I don’t know, even the early ones aren’t really depreciating much at this point. 

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 19:19

1

They’ll get there. Everything does.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 19:23

1

The first time I read that post it took me a minute to figure out it was allegorical. It really is the best oppo post.

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 19:26

0

To do it though, there needs to be something that competes favorably against it directly at it’s current price bracket.

I just don’t see anything getting there any time soon.

Nothing desirable ever hits zero, I  think bottom on the 675 market is in the $4.5K range for a clean high mile example. (based on how much depreciated trash I buy) 

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 19:41

1

What competes against the SV to bring it so low? Itself and the fact they made a bazillion of them? FZ's and  XSR’s are getting cheaper. Older Ducatis are down in that range, and everyone loves a monster.

Decay buys too many beaters > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 03/21/2019 at 19:53

1

Exactly as you said, the FZ.

The dawn of the $4( ish) K Fz07 has created the sub $2k SV, they’re still holding out around $3k for most of them though.

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 20:46

1

KTM looks better IMO

Decay buys too many beaters > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time 03/21/2019 at 20:51

0

The KTM just looks like a motorcycle, people wouldn’t even look twice at it parked in front of a coffee shop. That’s the main use  for euro bikes after all.

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 21:00

0

I notice a KTM immediately when i see one. No extra plastic to muck up the styling.

Husqvarna imo looks like every hipster bike in my town already

Longtime Lurker > Decay buys too many beaters 03/21/2019 at 23:41

1

Great now I want to see a vacuum cleaner race.

razorbeamteam > Decay buys too many beaters 03/22/2019 at 09:43

0

Shows what I know, those bikes are pretty enough to get me to consider the two wheel thing. 

Mercedes Streeter > Decay buys too many beaters 03/22/2019 at 15:04

1

Oh man, I keep saying my first ever new bike will be a Triumph, but I keep getting reminded that these pretty bikes exist. Mmmm...

Decay buys too many beaters > Mercedes Streeter 03/22/2019 at 15:28

1

I keep saying, we’re absolutely spoiled with choices right now. Totally unlike cars, motorcycles are in their golden era right the hell now . Across the board they have never been lighter, faster, more efficient, more reliable, or safer. Who knows how long before they have to start taking away from lightness or power, in service of efficiency and safety. I can walk into any dealership and find something that is absolutely “my shit”, that’s really saying something.

I’m not  excited enough about anything with 4 wheels to walk in and buy new with my own money, but there are countless bikes right now that I’d buy if space and dollars permitted.

Mercedes Streeter > Decay buys too many beaters 03/22/2019 at 15:43

1

I absolutely completely agree. Likewise, it seems to be pretty hard to get an actually terrible bike (save for mail order Chinese bikes). Even Hyosung is making good enough bikes that it’s not necessarily silly to cross shop them anymore .

I legit don’t even care what’s in the pipeline for smart nowadays, but I am following the motorcycle industry closely.

Decay buys too many beaters > Mercedes Streeter 03/22/2019 at 15:54

1

You know what? Even some of the mail order china bikes are getting a following. Some have solid US support and warranties. Like for instance, if I wanted a street legal bike to simply beat to death on trails, a hawk 250 would be tempting at $1300 shipped

Mercedes Streeter > Decay buys too many beaters 03/22/2019 at 16:10

0

The Zongshen RX3 is also really popular on the Chinabike forums.

And of course, there’s always the Chuckus, which continues to amaze me how much of a following they have. If I quickly clean mine up I could probably make a really solid profit on it.

Decay buys too many beaters > Mercedes Streeter 03/22/2019 at 17:04

1

But isn’t that quite a bit more? It might be solid (and maybe this is just my preconceived notions of Chinese quality doing the talking) but I’d have trouble buying something new from china for the same price as something used and Japanese .

The Ruck and Grom clones seem to be ok, I’ve been tempted to get a grom in a box for wheelie practice. I don’t have anything cheap enough to drop learning any more. 

Mercedes Streeter > Decay buys too many beaters 03/22/2019 at 17:13

0

No idea...I just know they’re pretty popular bikes. But yeah, that price is a hard sell for me. lol