2023 Husqvarna Norden 901 Expedition Confirmed

[Hugh Janus]

The standard Norden 901 (pictured) will get a sibling in 2023 with longer-travel, uprated suspension, and more hardcore components. (Husqvarna/)

It was last July that news of a more extreme “Expedition” version of Husqvarna’s Norden 901 broke when dealers were given a private showing of a prototype of the bike. Now it’s been confirmed for the US market in 2023, with technical details emerging thanks to European type-approval documents.

The first sight of the Norden 901 Expedition came via social media, including videos like this one on Facebook, but there had been no official announcement yet. Details of the bike are believed to include uprated suspension with more travel, with the leaked images showing that while the normal Norden 901 is based on KTM’s 890 Adventure, the Norden 901 Expedition uses the 890 Adventure R as its basis. As such, it gets a WP Xplor 48mm inverted fork with 9.5 in. of travel, rather than the WP Apex 43mm that has 8.7 in. The shock is also a WP Xplor unit rather than the Apex used on the standard Norden.

The new Norden 901 Expedition will be based on KTM’s 890 Adventure R. (KTM/)

The European type-approval confirms that there’s no change to the engine, which is the same 889cc KTM LC8c parallel twin as the standard Norden 901, with 103 hp at 8,000 rpm. However, the wheelbase is longer, up from 59.6 to 60.2 inches thanks to the extra-long fork, and the bike’s weight increases from 483 pounds to 505 pounds (both figures include 5-gallons of fuel). The wheelbase increase is reflected in a growth in overall length from 88.7  to 89.6 inches. While the bars are no wider on the Expedition, so the overall width is unchanged at 36.5 inches. The taller suspension and a higher windscreen mean the new model is more than 6 inches taller overall, coming in at 60.9 inches compared to 54.5 inches for the standard Norden.

The standard Norden 901 picture here uses WP Apex suspension, while the Expedition model will use the more stout and longer travel Xplor units. (Husqvarna/)

Visually, the Norden 901 Expedition stands apart from the base model thanks to special paint and graphics, detachable soft luggage and alloy shields protecting the low-slung, side-mounted fuel tanks and the engine’s oil pan.

Husqvarna fans on the nordenforums.com site report that they’ve already been able to place orders for the Norden 901 Expedition, and that dealers tell them the bike will come standard with heated grips and seat as well as a GPS mount, center stand and the “Explorer” riding mode that’s optional on the stock Norden 901.

Source

[Buckster]

I've seen a few around, they seem more popular than the KTM they are based on.

[Pedro]

15 minutes ago, Buckster said:

I've seen a few around, they seem more popular than the KTM they are based on.

That's mostly because Husqvarna is a cooler brand that bothers with making an effort that their bikes don't look like a mosquito's ass.