I try to stay out of bike bashing threads, which it seems this has turned in too but I feel compelled to counter some of the generalizations of the BMW with real experience. I am good friends with a guy who rides a BMW 450X. He races the bike in our local AMRA series.He has been an A rider forever and is usually in the top 5 of most races. He has put well over 1000 miles on his bike riding in just about all kinds of terrain including week long trips to Colorado on the knarliest trails. He had the forks revalved and added a stablizer and handguards and pipe. Had valves checked once, they were fine. Still on the stock clutch. Never had a DNF or mechanical issue to date. I have ridden the bike on numerous occasions and it does have some minor quirks in terms of ergos but it rides just like any modern 4stroke and if it werent for the fact you cant get a Rekluse for one and lack of a bigger tank I would have bought it instead of my Husky. Did you know it has a 3 year warranty? I know, not if you race. Most dealers will work with you on that. And for the record Juha has never trashed the bike. He has won WEC test and overalled on it though. How else would Knight explain why he was leaving a team and didnt win without putting any blame on himself? Easy blame the bike. He rode it before he signed his contract, he seemed to think he could win on it then. Eric
I bet Everts didn`t stop asking if KTM couldn`t build a "Yamaha" with a linked suspension. Until they did. And now it is the biggest invention on the earth. I bet KTM also have builded the Pyramids in Egypt.
I was just reading more about the '10 Shercos. They have Aluminum brake discs. Interesting. They have a great website. Up to date. Lots of great info. Umm....that pic of the 450 Bustqvarna is really harshing my mello...but that pic of the Sherco 300 right above it is cool.
He's also struggled on it and not been anywhere close to as dominant as he was on a KTM. Neither DK nor Juha performed on the BMW like they did on another brand. But, your right, they've made progress and I wish DK was as good a guy as Juha to work through the issues. I read that Juha had some stark comments about the bike in the WEC 09 video from offroadchampions.com I didn't see it myself, just read it on a website. Juha comes across as a much more classy guy than DK so it would surprise me if he said anything close to what DK did.
Yeah because Knight only wins on the best bike. I think what he accomplished on a Kawi after leaving BMW was proof that it was the BMW that was the problem. Knight's crappy attitude did not help anything but at the end of the day the bike sucked. So figure out what was wrong, fix it and move on. Don't bring BMW problems to the doorstep of Husky.
Guys, no one is saying anything horrible, but these negative posts are really not making my day so to speak. When typing things you can assume they are being seen in many places. It would be nice if the comments were worded in a way so people you are discussing would feel welcomed to join, as opposed to feeling compelled to join to dispute the statements being made. It is a cycle. People start up a topic on a standard forum then everyone piles on. The people being discussed feel compelled to join and give there input/defending themselves. Thing is, I'm trying very hard to have something a little more upscale than a standard forum, so they would be more inclined to give their input if they did join. How would the people being discussed feel if/when they see this thread?
This monster is gonna sink Husky. Like a feraekin topedo. Why would anyone buy one of these things? This bike failed as a BMW, and thats with millions in marketing, and the novelty, and the built in BMW crowd. As a Husky? Sorry Coffee, i just dont know how to present bad news without being negative. And this is VERY bad news, imo. If we have an open and honest discussion, we might be able to save Husky. Doubtful, but its worth a shot. Personally i would be in favor of a petition sent to Husky with a couple thousand e signatures, begging BMW not to do this.
Sorry if the truth hurts. Perfect punctuation and fuzzy words will not change the fact that BMW needs to figure out the BMW bikes without tarnishing the Husky image. A great image that is growing at a very fast rate. Putting a Chrysler engine in a BMW doesn't improve the image of Chrysler. It hurts the BMW. I really hope BMW figures out how to improve the BMW because I would love to see that brand stick around our sport. But not at the expense of Husky.
From what I gather, it's not BMW forcing the engine on the HSQ R&D team as much as HSQ Italy sees a golden opportunity to pick some fresh fruit and help it ripen a little faster. I'm pretty sure the few folks at Husky's R&D are pleased with their new package. If you bought a Husky because of it's engineering and style, I'd give them a little more breathing room and credit as this isn't a case of forced coersion but more of a position of choices for HSQ IT.
Interesting analogy, but it reminds me that BMW helped the Mini Cooper brand in a big way with what they did. Of course, Ford did a huge disservice to Jaguar. Examples abound. I'm optimistic because it sounds like there's more that's been planned than just slapping an engine in a frame. I want to hear more about this revolutionary rear suspension.
I wouldn't call it "revolutionary", but it's a different application of existing technology. My bet is we'll see a TC450 first with the new 450 engine which may or may not be similar to what's being raced for '10 WEC and then it may be a few months to a year before we see a TE platform with the new 450 gen engine which is not as far ahead in development at current, much like the TC250 to TE250 time scale with the new XLite. I'm pretty sure whatever they put Juha or Marko on will be the R&D mule for the TE series though.
So where are you gathering from? You privileged to the VP meetings? Forced coercion? That is a pretty strong term and totally not necessary for any company to set guidance to its employees when setting company policies and direction. These words sound like Husky engineers had no future plans and they are saved now ...Maybe that is why caviga got rid of them and this lovely company is saving the brand and not attempting to ride off their reputation built in past days...And at the same time I can understand changing path if a better one comes up. It just appears from the outside where we are that changing to path that has not shown much fruit in the recent path is a little strange and only a business decision. What does the info gathering say as to why caviga dropped the product?
I started this thread as interesting fodder for discussion, it is winter, many of us are relegated to typing instead of riding. I am very surprised by some of the narrow minded fanatics on this site, it reminds me of the "kool aid drinking" people that had been dominating ktmtalk for years . Luckily that website seems to be calmimg down, the fanatics either have quit or toned down the rhetoric. Is there anyone on here with some objective thinking? Do you really think Husky does not need some help? Do you believe that Husky's ancient 2 stroke is that "cutting edge" it can carry the company forward for years? Just look at the newest 250cc 4 stroke, how many years and how many cubic dollars did it take for little Husky to bring it to market, how has it been received by the press and buying public? Now park it beside the 450/510/630 and see just how outdated Husky has become. The market is a brutal place, Husky has an outdated lineup, they are in need of serious money and serious help, they need lots of money to modernize the fleet or perish. They are LUCKY they have a big brother with bucks to help them develop much needed new product to save them from extinction. Husaberg (owned several of those things) has been on the ropes, many said left for dead.... enter KTM, they dumped in cash, all of a sudden Husaberg is bike of the year, the prom queen, everybody wants one. Husqvarna is about to have a brand new product launch, (what could be more exciting??? it has the potential to be huge for them, it could breathe some much needed life into this brand. and here we are, the company loyalists, standing in line to spit on it and destroy it before we know even 1% of the relevant information about it. Can anyone else see just how narrow minded and ignorant that is??? This is crazy talk! How the heck do you think progress happens? change... oooo scarey! Risk.... oooo not for me! I would rather ride a 20 year old design bike! I am real disappointed in the replies on here, if we have to wait for Husky to design new motors/chassis for the entire line up, raise capital for all that new tooling, bring it to market, the original concept will be outdated before it hits the market. BMW took the G450x from concept to market in less than 4 years, Husky is not capable of that (go back and read up on their 250cc 4 stroke development lead time again before you post), they NEED money and help. Big brother will do that for them. Just like Husaberg was saved by KTM. (and yes, the same kind of fear was all over the Husaberg/KTM marriage, guess what? they are still in love, happily married with some great looking kids!!) I am very excited for my first look at this new model, I am not afraid of change BRING IT ON!!! and for god's sake atleast ride this thing before you declare it a worthless piece of crap, other wise you just make yourself look ignorant
It's great to hear a fresh approach on all this. Without stepping on to many toes I'm in agreement with most if not all of your comments. We really should be glad BMW took our favorite brand of motorcycle under its wing. If they want to venture out and try a couple of new ideas fly at her. Change is good for all. And Husqvarna is next in line.
