Husqvarna rolls into MY2022 with a significant addition to its lineup. Launching the adventure-bike sector, Husky introduces its ambassador, the Norden 901. Built with an off-road bias, the dual-sport “901” is nevertheless street legal to give it all-around globetrotting capabilities. A powerful, 899 cc engine delivers the goods with over 100 horsepower on tap, and comes partnered with a top-drawer electronics suite for safety, comfort, and control.

2022 Husqvarna Norden 901 Performance and Capability

The fandanglery is prolific in the new Norden 901 drivetrain. It starts at the ride-by-wire throttle control that feeds rider demand to the Bosch EMS.

A stock Ride Modes feature manages the traction control and power delivery through a trio of modes: Street, Rain, and Off-road. The first two sport lean-sensitive traction control and anti-wheelie protection, but all the fetters are cast off for the off-road mode so you can tackle the technical work with all the necessary tools.

Power comes from a parallel-twin engine. The Norden 901 produces 105 horsepower at the top end and 73.7 pound-feet of torque. Power flows through a slipper-style clutch that delivers anti-hop protection for the rear wheel ahead of the six-speed transmission.

Here we find some more fandanglery in the Easy Shift feature. Easy Shift lets you switch gears both up and down the range without ever having to bother to roll off the throttle or so much as touch the clutch.

The liquid-cooled plant runs with a 90/7 mm bore and 68.8 mm stroke for its 889 cc displacement, and boasts a pair of balancer shafts to take much of the shake from the twin right out of the equation. The Norden 901 top speed of 130 mph should put it well into all-around utility for street or offroad.

Design

Husqvarna teased us with the Norden 901 a few years back, but after years of refinement, it's finally ready for the showroom floor. Unmistakably a Husky product, the Norden still manages to hit many of the usual design points that typify the genre.

Right out of the gate, a high-side front fender manages the front-wheel fling. It adds minimal unsprung weight to the front end and protects the swept area of the inverted forks.

A round cyclops headlight comes complete with an integrated DRL ring. The lights come braced by a pair of fog lights, all with high-visibility LED projectors for top-end lighting performance.

The lights ride recessed in the blunt front fairing that itself comes topped by a rally-style flyscreen for some protection for the pilot and instrumentation. Plus, there's a taller version of the screen available through the optional accessories if you think you need it.

A color TFT screen serves as the instrument cluster as well as acting as a rider interface for the electronic safety package. If you pony up for it, the optional Connectivity Unit brings navigation, communication, and music entertainment to the mix.

The hump from the fuel tank has less of the visual impact that is usual for the genre, but under that subtle swell lies a five-gallon tank that gives the 901 a range of around 250 miles (400 km). That's obviously road miles and so the actual mileage will depend on some combination of terrain, elevation, and riding style. Oh well, got to start somewhere as a baseline, ya' know.

A molded bench seat accommodates both pilot and pillion. The passenger benefits from beefy J.C. handles that double as anchor points for some bungee-borne baggage when riding solo.

LED taillights and turn signals ride high and well out of harm's way while the rear fender is vestigial at best. Most of the fling protection comes from the license plate rather than the actual fender. The swingarm-mount hugger and subframe underside take care of the rest.

While the stock version is clean, there are a number of soft luggage options to boost your cargo capacity ex-sale. Overall, it does carry itself like you'd expect an adventure bike to do, and it does so with an efficiency and ruggedness that's forged in some of the most inhospitable geography imaginable.

Chassis

Powder-coated, chrome-molybdenum steel is the material of choice for the tough Trellis main-frame section on the Norden 901. To limit the size and weight of the frame, the engine is a stressed member to make the frame realize its final stiffness.

The steering head establishes a rake angle of 25.8 degrees from the vertical for agility with inverted, 43 mm WP forks ahead of a WP APEX Monoshock. Up front, the forks rock adjustable compression- and rebound-damping values with 8.6 inches (220 mm) of travel. You can tune the rear shock for spring preload and rebound damping for easy setup changes to accommodate variable cargo/passenger weights.

The brakes come from the racing world with a quartet of opposed pistons in each of the dual calipers and large, 320 mm brake discs up front. A twin-piston rear caliper and 260 mm disc complete the ensemble.

Corner-sensitive ABS prevents either wheel from breaking loose when braking in a turn. You can set it to “Offroad Mode” to allow the rear end to slide, or turn it off entirely for raw braking performance.

Laced wheels, ever the favorite of off-road riders, round out the rolling chassis with a 21-inch rim up front and an 18 incher out back. Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR hoops come with a stealth-knobby tread that pulls double duty as both an off- and on-road design.

2022 Husqvarna Norden 901 Price

The 2022 Husqvarna Norden 901 costs $13,999. It only rolls in a single color package that's pretty much a dark gray with yellow and white trim, and you'll need ex-sale bags before it's ready to strike off on any sort of proper adventure. If you're looking for a Norden 901 for sale, they're in showrooms now.

Competitors

There's no shortage of worthy competitors in the liter-ish adventure-bike bracket. Among my favorite is the base model Africa Twin from Honda.

Honda Africa Twin

Honda fits the adventure mold to a “T” with features that are a bit more dramatic than the somewhat subdued bodywork on the Husky. Loud, red, white, and blue bodywork draws the eye while the tall tank hump and p-pad form a swale that isn't deeper than the Norden's, but the apex in the tank hump occurs further aft to change the flyline just a skosh.

Long-stroke suspension and stock ABS joins with Honda's Selectable Torque Control to leave the Honda at a bit of a disadvantage in the electronics. The Africa Twin carries a 1,084 cc, parallel-twin engine that fails to capitalize on its greater displacement. It generates 101 horsepower versus 105 horsepower, and that's from a smaller mill. Ouch. To compound the pain for Honda, the $14,399 price tag does it no favors against a more-powerful and less-expensive foe.

He Said

“The Norden manages to strike a decidedly adventure-tastic pose with undeniable ADV DNA, but also with a decidedly Scandinavian finish. Husky makes a point of going North in its sales pitch, but this bike will clearly be happy going anywhere the going gets rough, even if you have to be going on the road some to get there. Definitely a solid first effort from Husqvarna.”

She Said

My wife and fellow motorcycle writer, Allyn Hinton, says, “It should come as no surprise that the engine in the Norden 901 is the same engine as in the KTM 890 Adventure R. The parent company shares a lot of design, technology, and systems with Husky so while it may be new under the Husky banner, it's a proven performer from KTM.”

“I like that Husky joined the adventure market. I think it's jolly well about time, but I have reservations about that seat, though. It looks and feels like an offroad seat that would have my butt aching trying to go the long-haul adventure route. I dunno. Maybe I just need more padding.”

Further Reading

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