Husqvarna.....alive, well and thriving

[dirt dame 561]

I recently had a rare opportunity to go a press event at The Ranch at Anza. Last Friday, Husqvarna USA brought all of their new 2012 models out for members of the moto journalist community to test.

As many of you know, there have been a lot of shake ups happening with Husqvarna in the past few years. First BMW took them over, then they got a new president and moved from the east coast to Corona. Getting to spend a day with all the head honchos and the latest models gave me some insight into just what might be possible for this marque.

First of all, Kris Odwarka is at the helm of Husqvarna now. A moto enthusiast who grew up racing off road, his heart is still in it now as much as it was then. I don't think that you could find another motorcycle company who's CEO would preside over a press day, sit and eat lunch and ride all day with everybody. An easy to approach, personable fellow, Kris is the man with a vision. I got a chance to have a one on one chat with him and discuss things like marketing,and the future of two strokes. I think that Husky fans can sleep peacefully at night knowing that this man is in charge of everything.

The new face of Husqvarna leadership.

Besides getting to meet the prez, plus the marketing director Corey Eastman and Andy Jefferson who was in charge of all Husqvarna accessories, I also got hang out and ride with some racing legends like Gary Jones, Larry Roeseler, Jim Gibson and a gaggle of moto journalists (including friends Karl Kramer and Dennis Cox) and other moto promotional sorts. Gary LaPlante was there too. It wasn't a very big gathering, probably less than 20 people....and we had the whole riding park to ourselves to test new models. And around noon, a catering company rolled in with plenty of delicious barbecue buffet. Heck, I would have shown up just for the food.

Jean Turner clowns around at the buffet table.

Lunch break.

Dennis "Ketch" Cox of Dirt Illustrated and racing legend Gary Jones.

Okay, enough of this relaxed frolicking around. I'll talk a little about the 2012 line up now. We had a singletrack course and the Carlsbad Replica track to use for our rides, so I rode both with a few machines.

Husqvarna offers up 13 different models for the U.S. market this year. The TE250, TE310, TE449 and TE511 for the dualsport crowd. Gone from the plated line up is the TE630. Track bike offerings consist of the two four strokes; TC250, TC449 and one two stroke, the CR125. Cross country models (all with electric start) include the TXC250, TXC310 and TXC511. For all the hard core two stroke fans, Husqvarna still makes the WR series in three sizes; 125, 250 and 300. They were all gathered together right in front of me on that hot Friday morning.

First a little background on my riding abilities, for those who don't know me. I have been riding for about 41 years, but by now my speed and competence on the race track (or the trail, for that matter) are long gone by about 20/25 years. Still, us old pokey dirt riders need to know what's out there for us.

Second, since all the manufacturers set the suspension up for "average" weight riders, which is to say around 180/190 pounds, I knew that the suspension on all these new bikes wouldn't be working with me....so I would have to just do the best I could to make any evaluations of the machines that I rode. One thing that I could tell about the suspension on all the models, is that the dampening curves were all much improved and none of the new bikes exhibited any of the old deflection (forks) in the choppy stuff

I would have liked to have tried all thirteen bikes out, but as the day wore on, I became tired and waterlogged with Gatorade, so I only rode the WR125, 250, 300, TXC310, TC250, TE250 and the TE449. I was still contemplating riding the CR125 and the TC449 before I ultimately called it a day. It's sort of hard to make any really definitive evaluations on bikes that you are spending 20/30 minutes on at a time. Of course, I am a die hard 2 stroke fan, so the WR series made a huge impression on me, whereas the 4 strokes were harder to say nice things about in an unbiased way.

Because I own a 2007 TE450, I had to ride the new TE449. It felt really different than my bike and handled differently as well. I'm not sure if it handled worse or better. The big difference that I liked was in the powerband. The fuel injected engine put out smoother power overall and much more bottom end punch than my old carbed model.

I had to ride the TE250. This year, Husqvarna made this model 2 inches lower than previous year models. This will be a big plus for women looking to get in on trail riding and any short men as well. I think that this bike will have the Japanese 250s beat hands down in features that it can deliver to the true dirt enthusiast in terms of weight, suspension, handling and especially in the power department. The smallest street legal Husky has some really snappy power right out of the box.

The TXC310 was developed just for the American market for those riders who want to race or play on a midsized machine. The bike has a broad powerband and handles really well. I rode it on the MX track, but it felt the teeniest bit top heavy to me (probably because I had just gotten off of a two stroke model just before that). I'm sure this machine will find it's way into the hands of GP and enduro riders, as well as serious trail riders.

I have had very few opportunities to ride modern 250cc four stroke MX bikes, so I hopped aboard the new TC250 and gave it a whirl. The only other bike I rode that I could compare it with was a 2009 KX250F. The TC felt lighter and had more responsive power and handling. I couldn't seem to get the hang of kickstarting it though and had to have Karl Kramer give me push to get it going. Of course, I couldn't get the hang of kickstarting my KLX300 for a while either when I brought that bike home.

Now come the two stroke rides..... I was very curious about the WR series because I have read so many less than positive threads on forums about previous year models. Comments usually had to do with complaints about the Mikuni carbs that came on them needing to be thrown out and replaced with Keihins, or people moaning about how the bikes don't seem to get enough upgrades each year. It does seem that while the four stroke lines get generous upgrades every year, the poor WR series never even got a hydraulic clutch. I think that Husqvarna doesn't want to invest in further development of the two strokes until they see exactly where they can go with the future of the bikes as far as broadening the market for that type of engine. I can assure you that the present models are state of the art in their functionality.

The WR125. It's hard to believe that Husqvarna packed so much power into such a tiny mill. The little bike has enough useable low end to get up any silty, rocky incline, even out of a first gear hairpin turn. Then, with no flat spots or bogging, the RPMs move right along up to a ferocious top end hit. The bike felt a little bit nervous in some of the whoops, but I'm sure I could have gotten that feeling ironed out with the proper suspension set up. I have never ridden any 125 that had that broad a powerband with that much top end. It was a great machine. A lot of guys that weigh more than 200 pounds own and ride them, and ride them hard through nasty woods stuff, hills and all, so that says something about the performance of it right there and why it is still being offered. And if the owner needs a little more low end grunt, a complete 144cc top end comes stock along with the bike.

The WR250. I rode this model too. It was a good machine, much like the 300 but with a softer low end hit and less power overall.

It is said by some that opposites attract, and so it was love at first sight and a match made in heaven when I rode the WR300. This was the bike most likely to be stuffed into trunk of my car and snuck home. It was the first bike that I picked to ride in the morning, and maybe that was a bad thing because every other bike had to be compared to it afterwards. For me, the WR300 was the perfect match. I rode it on the singletrack and and the Carlsbad track. It was as good on the track as it was on the trail and could easily replace two or three bikes that I have in the garage right now. I wish my KX250 performed and handled like the WR300. The power can only be described as a perfect blend of brutal and smooth....all over. I was screaming "Woo hoo" all the way down the access road as the bike offered to wheelie through the gears. This model received a brand new Ducati ignition (as did all the WR models) which proved to work very nicely with the powerplant and exhaust. Even though the clutch was still cable operated and a little harder to pull than some of the hydraulic units, the clutch was very smooth. In the singletrack the bike proved to be just as easily flicked and controlled as the it's smaller brothers, and through deep sandy whoops, on chopped up straights and around muddy slick corners it was a stable as anything I have ever ridden. Definitely a bike for all off road occasions. Did I mention how fond I was of it?

Sigh....bike of the day for me. I just got back from some singletrack and then a lap or two around the Carlsbad Replica track with my new best friend, the WR300. Andy Jefferson discusses the machine with me.

Anyway....there's my impressions of the day. I am really grateful to have been able to attend the event and would like to thank Husqvarna USA and all the people who made it happen, and I'm looking forward to a bright future for new models from this company.

[christi20 0]

Very interesting and informative article Mimi. Loved it.

So, is there another bike in your near future?

[socalhodaka 104]

Very interesting and informative article Mimi. Loved it.

So, is there another bike in your near future?

I agree with Christi, more then a write up that's magazine stuff right there. Great job Mimi.

[dirt dame 561]

Very interesting and informative article Mimi. Loved it.

So, is there another bike in your near future?

Thanks. And I wish! No new WR300 in my near future. Something else new though, probably around 4 o clock this afternoon.

[dirt dame 561]

I agree with Christi, more then a write up that's magazine stuff right there. Great job Mimi.

Thanks, but I see that I need to to proofread my writing better before I post it. I keep finding boo boos that I have to go back in and fix.

[Spyder 2]

Mimi, you should be writing for a publication whether in print or online. Your excellent knowledge base allows you to make a variety of comparisons. Always a good read.

Well done.

S

Edit:

Your pictures are great too. Not very many have the knack for both.

[dirtdiva 0]

JEALOUS!!!!!!

I'm not sure which made me salivate more, the pictures of the food or the pictures of the bikes (they are definitely the sexiest bikes around!).

Thanks for letting us live vicariously thru your awesome writeup!!!!

[Goat_locker 0]

Nice write-up! Looks like a ton of fun. I've been wondering what Husky was going to do for 2012. Too bad about the TE 630 being discontinued. I'm just glad I got one before they were gone for good.

[dirt dame 561]

Nice write-up! Looks like a ton of fun. I've been wondering what Husky was going to do for 2012. Too bad about the TE 630 being discontinued. I'm just glad I got one before they were gone for good.

Husqvarna probably has another similar sized machine on the drawing board. It's an important size. And I didn't see any SM models in the product guide either.

[bigwvjumper 0]

Thanks for the nice write up Mimi!

[daijones 0]

Great write up Mimi, the 310 certainly seems to be a sweet bike but the bigger (BMW based) 4 strokes seem to be a bit too different and not so easy to adapt to, maybe too big a step. Not that the bikes will hold you back as in last weeks D37 enduro with Husky 1st with Nick Burson on 449 and 3rd with LR on 310.