SWM Motorcycles

How did SWM come to be?

SWM, short for Speedy Working Motors, is an Italian motorcycle brand founded on July 11, 1971, by two off-road enthusiasts: Piero Sironi and Fausto Vergani. The original acronym, SV.VM (Sironi Vergani Vimercate Milano), was quickly replaced by the catchier name we know today. The founding idea was straightforward: build competitive enduro bikes at a time when Italian manufacturers were struggling to keep up with foreign two-stroke machines in off-road competition.

Production started in 1972 at a factory in Rivolta d’Adda, Lombardy, with 50, 100, and 125cc models powered by Sachs six-speed engines. Competition success was immediate: in 1972, Afro Rustignoli won the Italian 125cc motocross championship. Pierluigi Rottigni earned a bronze medal at the European 125cc enduro championship and shone at the International Six Days Enduro (ISDE) in Czechoslovakia. The small Lombard brand was already making waves far beyond Italy’s borders.

The golden age: trials, enduro, and the Silver Vase

Between 1973 and 1975, SWM racked up competition victories. In 1975, the Italian team won the Silver Vase trophy (the national team award) at the Six Days on the Isle of Man, with SWM machines leading the charge. This achievement would permanently shape the brand’s identity. Production reached around 10,000 units per year, and the range expanded to include 175cc models.

In 1976, SWM diversified into mopeds and scooters using Minarelli engines. But the real technical turning point came in 1977: after a disastrous experience with new seven-speed Sachs engines, the brand switched to Austrian Rotax rotary-valve powerplants. This proved to be a game-changing decision. Developed with input from trials legends Sammy Miller and Charles Coutard, the Rotax engines powered SWM’s entry into the trials world with the TL125 and TL320 models. Marzocchi suspension and Acerbis plastics completed a high-quality, all-Italian package.

In 1979, the iconic yellow and black models appeared, followed in 1980 by Girling Gas shocks and Betor forks. SWM attracted top riders of the era: Martin Lampkin, Bernie Schreiber, John Reynolds. But the absolute peak came in 1981: young Frenchman Gilles Burgat won the Trial World Championship on an SWM 320 TLNW. That same year, the SWM team won the Six Days team competition. It was the brand’s sporting zenith.

Decline and liquidation (1982-1984)

Unfortunately, sporting glory alone couldn’t guarantee commercial survival. The failure of the SWM 124 RZ, an attempt to break into the street bike market, weighed heavily on finances. In 1982, Bernie Schreiber finished second in the trials world championship, but the off-road market was in decline. SWM launched the XN 350 and 500 four-stroke enduro singles and signed an engine supply agreement with Tau. None of it was enough: financial difficulties mounted.

In 1984, SWM first closed its racing department, then its factory. The brand entered liquidation. In a remarkable twist, British firm Armstrong bought the rights to the XN Tornado (350cc and 506cc Rotax-powered enduro) and developed a military version with CCM, the Armstrong MT500. It was so successful that Harley-Davidson purchased the manufacturing rights in 1986. SWM’s off-road DNA survived in the most unexpected way.

The Shineray resurrection (2014)

Thirty years later, SWM’s resurrection came about through an almost providential convergence of events. In 2013, BMW sold the Husqvarna brand to KTM. The historic factory at Biandronno, near Varese in Lombardy, was left orphaned, along with its skilled workforce and tooling. Chinese industrial group Shineray, China’s leading off-road motorcycle manufacturer, seized the opportunity: they acquired the SWM brand, the factory, and the rights to about ten Husqvarna models from the BMW era.

Leading the technical side was Ampelio Macchi, a legendary engineer who had worked at Cagiva, Husqvarna, and Aprilia, credited with 46 world titles at Husqvarna and five at Aprilia. SWM Motorcycles S.r.l. was officially established in October 2014, and six models were presented at that year’s EICMA show in Milan. The first bike, an RS650 R (essentially a 2009 Husqvarna TE610 with updated fuel injection), rolled off the line on July 8, 2015.

The strategy was clear: offer European-quality bikes at prices 20-30% below KTM, by sourcing 20-25% of non-critical parts (plastics, levers, engine cases) from China while keeping design, assembly, and testing in Italy.

SWM today

Today, SWM offers a diversified range that extends well beyond its off-road roots: enduros (RS 300 R, RS 500 R), supermotos (SM 125 R, SM 500 R), scramblers (Silver Vase T 650), neo-retro roadsters (Gran Milano 500, Hoku 400), adventure bikes (SuperDual T and X, Versante 550), cruisers (Custom V1200 Stormbreaker), and even urban scooters (C-Fly 125). Headquarters and the factory remain in Biandronno, in the former Husqvarna premises.

At EICMA 2025, SWM made headlines with the Versante 550, an adventure bike powered by a 550cc parallel-twin engine, along with two concepts: the Bumblebee (a sporty cruiser) and the Nomader Hybrid (a sustainability-focused prototype). For 2026, SWM has announced the Super Six, a model wearing the brand’s historic livery.

SWM’s positioning remains that of a clever outsider: bikes with aggressive value for money, authentic Italian design, and ruggedness inherited from decades of off-road competition. The main challenge remains brand awareness and dealer network density, still limited outside Italy and a few European markets.

In summary

SWM is the story of a brand born in Italian off-road racing in the 1970s, crowned Trial World Champion in 1981, gone by 1984, then resurrected in 2014 through Chinese capital and intact Italian expertise. This unusual journey makes it a brand apart, speaking equally to classic trials enthusiasts and today’s riders looking for a credible alternative to major brands without breaking the bank.

SWM 320 TLNW (1981)

This is THE bike that wrote SWM’s greatest chapter. In 1981, Frenchman Gilles Burgat won the Trial World Championship aboard this machine, defeating the dominant Spanish bikes from Bultaco and Montesa. Powered by a Rotax two-stroke rotary-valve engine and fitted with Marzocchi suspension, this 320cc trials bike was renowned for its light weight and exceptional agility. It symbolizes SWM’s golden era and remains a highly sought-after collector’s piece in classic trials circles.

Silver Vase 125 7V (1975-1976)

The “Silver Vase” name directly references the team trophy won by Italy at the International Six Days Enduro on the Isle of Man in 1975, with SWM machines leading the effort. This 125cc Sachs-powered enduro, recognizable by its trapezoidal tank and amaranth chassis, became the brand’s icon. The name was revived in 2015 for the modern Silver Vase 440 scrambler, then the Silver Vase T 650, carrying forward the historic lineage.

SuperDual X 650

The flagship of SWM’s current adventure range, the SuperDual X is a direct descendant of the BMW-era Husqvarna TE630. Its 600cc single-cylinder engine (marketed as 650), developed by the same engineers who created it at Husqvarna, delivers raw mechanical character and bulletproof reliability. At 351 lbs dry weight with long-travel suspension and genuine off-road geometry, it’s a real trail bike built for serious dirt work, not a heavy road tourer in adventure clothing. With Marzocchi/Sachs suspension and Brembo brakes, it punches above its price tag. It embodies the SWM philosophy: mechanical simplicity, light weight, and authentic off-road capability, at a price well below a modern KTM or Husqvarna.

Gran Milano 500

The neo-retro roadster that opened SWM to a wider audience. Originally launched as the Gran Milano 440 in 2015, it evolved into a 500cc version with generous standard equipment (ABS, fuel injection, connectivity). Its clean urban design and aggressive pricing (around 5,000 euros on promotion) make it an attractive entry point for new license holders and urban riders. It proves SWM can do much more than dirt bikes.

Custom V1200 Stormbreaker

Unveiled at EICMA 2023, the Stormbreaker is the most ambitious motorcycle SWM has ever produced. Its air-cooled 1,200cc V-twin engine, developed by Shineray, produces 61 hp and 90 Nm of torque. Heavily inspired by the now-discontinued Harley-Davidson Sportster Forty-Eight, it fills a gap left by the end of air-cooled Sportsters in Europe. At 9,990 euros (roughly $10,800), it significantly undercuts a Harley Nightster while openly acknowledging its stylistic influences.