Street Legal KTM Freeride, Husqvarna Pioneer Electrics Coming for 2025
Vitpilen 801 to join Svartpilen
KTM AG is preparing to launch new street legal electric models for both its KTM and Husqvarna brands. Confirmation comes to us via a new vehicle identification number decoder guide released by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which mentions both models, as well as a new Husqvarna Vitpilen 801.
The VIN decoder confirms both models will be street legal, the first roadworthy electric models from KTM since the Freeride E-SM (pictured above), which was only produced in 2015 and 2016. The new KTM model will continue to carry the Freeride branding, while the Husqvarna version will be called the Pioneer.
The Freeride and Pioneer will share the same motor, claiming an output of 5.54 kW (7.4 hp), though it’s unclear if that is a peak or sustained output. Both models will also share the same lithium-ion battery and 660W on-board charger.
UPDATE: Aug. 6, 2024
KTM North America's homologation and compliance manager (who is responsible for submitting VIN information to NHTSA) reached out to clarify that the 5.54 kW figure is not the power output but rather the battery capacity. He further says the actual rated output will be between 26 to 33 hp, which would put the street legal Freeride and Husqvarna Pioneer at about the same level as a KTM 250 Duke.
If 7.4 hp doesn’t sound like a lot, that’s because it isn’t. Nor is it surprising that KTM would be producing low-powered electric models. KTM boss Stefan Pierer himself made that pretty clear in an interview with Alan Cathcart we published last March, explaining the challenges of high-powered electric two-wheelers. Pierer explained how the earlier 320V Freeride models required more investment, for both manufacturing and for dealers, to meet safety requirements.
“But 48 volts like in the bicycle industry you can also use on a motorcycle or a scooter up to 11kW,” Pierer said. “As soon as you step upwards beyond that, you are heading towards high voltage, and then you have restrictions on production, logistics and dealers. So 11kW is the ceiling we’ll go to.”
Pierer also confirmed in that same interview that a next-generation Freeride will be coming this year, but the VIN decoder is the first evidence that it will be street legal, and will be joined by a Husqvarna version. The fact the VIN details were submitted by KTM North America further implies they will be sold in the U.S.
What we don’t know is what either the Freeride or Pioneer will look like. Previous Freerides shared a similar off-road styling but there’s nothing forcing KTM to stick to that formula.
As for Husqvarna, the brand did show an electric E-Pilen concept in 2021, which was said to use an 8 kW (10 hp) motor. A lot could have changed since then, and besides the Husqvarna branding, there’s little to link the Pioneer to the E-Pilen concept.
Husqvarna also showed a Vektorr low voltage electric scooter concept in 2021 with a claimed 4 kW (5 hp). That’s not too far off from what we know about the Pioneer, so that remains a possibility. In the Cathcart interview, however, Pierer downplayed the possibility of a KTM electric scooter, and it seems unlikely Husqvarna was afforded an exception.
The Husqvarna Vitpilen 801 is a bit more straightforward. Husqvarna used to offer both a Svartpilen 701 and a Vitpilen 701, and for 2024, it introduced a new Svartpilen 801. Officially, there’s been no mention that it would be joined by a Vitpilen 801, but the VIN decoder confirms that it is on the way.
A few weeks ago, KTM AG outlined its plans for EICMA, including an “exciting new motorcycle” from Husqvarna that “underlines the brand’s forward-looking vision,” which could quite easily describe either the Vitpilen 801 or the electric Pioneer.
Become a Motorcycle.com insider. Get the latest motorcycle news first by subscribing to our newsletter here.
Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.
More by Dennis Chung
Comments
Join the conversation
UPDATE: A spokesperson from KTM reached out to clarify that the 5.54 kW refers to the battery's capacity, and that the actual power output will be between 26-33 hp. That would be similar to the output of a KTM 250 Duke.
Price it like a Grom and you have a deal. Otherwise it's an overpriced joke.