FE/FC My subframe is coming apart - better check yours!

21 hours on my FE350s, and the left part of the subframe is coming loose from the main part. This opens up a gap that lets water and dirt enter the airbox from the rear wheel. Not too happy about this.

Lots of chatter about this on KTMtalk.com: http://ktmtalk.com/showthread.php?489093-2013-te-250-sub-frame

Anyone else seeing this on their Husky?

Can you post a picture?

I saw the thread a while back as well. The earlier bergs had this happen but my 2014 fe 501 has nearly 200 hours and it's still good. I added a dab of silicone to fill the small gap to avoid getting mud into the airbox but I never actually got any in there prior. Wouldn't hurt to monitor the subframe from time to time though. I'm nearly 250 in riding gear and sit allot so you'd think mine would be jacked up if it was going to happen. It may just be a material quality control issue? Who knows.

I just had the subframe off my '15 TE125, when doing the 150 conversion and it looks fine. This is after a full season plus of racing and trail riding.

I put a trouble light in the air box to shine through the gap, and photographed it from the rear of the bike. The gap is about 1/16" right now. I'm concerned that over time it will expand. Some of the pictures on the KTMtalk thread had a gap that looked like an inch or more.

Is it reasonable to expect this type of problem shouldn't occur on an $11K bike? I weigh 230lbs but I certainly am not riding this thing hard.

I had the exact same seam and for good measure used some black silicone to seal it. I have over 200 hours now and it hasn't changed and I ride this thing hard, so I'm not worried anymore. I have trashed aluminum sub frames before and this one seems to be durable IMHO.

What year and model of bike? FE501?

2014 FE501 non S model. 3900 miles and around 200 hours. The new Husky sub-frames are all the same from what I can tell, doesn't matter the model.

So long as you maintain your air filter I dont think this will be an issue

My 2014 fc 450 does the same I just run a strip of black duct from top to bottom and it seems to work.

Dealer says there was a design change in 2016 where a screw was added to the left side piece of the subframe to strengthen it. Also found this video where a Husqvarna product manager talks about making it stronger in the 2015 models. (1 minute 39 second point)



So there is a gap between the parts, but it looks like they won't actually come apart on the newer bikes.

You need a well placed screw to hold it together and some black silicone RTV. Solved. Ride and enjoy your bike. You can seal the remaining seams inside the box for good measure. OR take it back to where you purchased your bike for the same general fix.

I think I'll try just the RTV and some duct tape for now. With these new design changes I think the subframe is stronger than it used to be and won't fly apart, so I just need to seal the gap to keep stuff out of the airbox.

can someone snap a shot of the 2015/16 additional subframe screw so I can add one onto my machine.

So do the 2015 models have this screw(s)? I will look at mine tonight when I get home (keep forgetting).

No

2016 and up. My 15 came apart in the first 5 hours. Again, a small well placed screw, I used a rivot and black RTV... Perfect all seadon. Including 10 GNCC rounds and over 15 local hare scrambles plus countless hours of practicing...it's reall on that big of a deal in the grand scale of possible bike issues. They all have something or another you can easily improve sponsored.

OK 2016 mod. pic anyone?

Here's a page from the 2015 manual. I don't have documents for other years unfortunately.

The 2016 parts breakdown hasn't been released yet.

We need someone who actually owns a 2016 Husqvarna to post a picture of the underside of their rear fender well so we can figure out how to add a screw to the earlier models.