Got supermoto? If you’re looking to add a lot of slide into your ride, the Husqvarna FS450 is back again for 2021, with some updates.

Overall, the bike mostly looks the same. The engine? Still a 450cc liquid-cooled SOHC single, with slipper clutch from Suter and five-speed gearbox from Pankl. Peak output is supposedly 63 horsepower, definitely enough to grab your attention when you consider the 226-pound dry weight. This isn’t a bike for high-velocity highway runs, but around-town or on a su-mo track, you’ve got plenty of jam for a machine this stripped-down.

As you’d expect from a Pierer Group-owned company, Husqvarna uses WP suspension on the FS450. Up front, you get XACT forks, with 285mm travel. In  back, there’s an XACT shock, with 266mm travel. Both the forks and shock received some mild re-design for 2021 (“AER technology and a new mid-valve damping system that ensures a more consistent front-end suspension performance,” up front and “new, low-friction linkage seals” in rear, the presser says). As well, Husky reduced the forks’ offset by 7mm, to sharpen turning radius, and there’s also a new 22mm front wheel axle that’s supposed to improve fork response.

Photo: Husqvarna

Elsewhere, Husqvarna put on a high-grip seat cover to improve control. The 2021 model has a four-piston radially-mounted Brembo brake caliper and master cylinder up front, and a 310mm disc. Stoppies shouldn’t be a problem, then. There’s a single-piston caliper in rear, with 220mm disc.

Husqvarna wants $11,299 for the 2021 FS450 in the US; Canadian customers will pay $12,699. The machines should be in dealers this October.

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