Juha Salimen to ride Husky (sort of...) in 2010

[Bobby]

My oh my, now we're getting into the good stuff!

I know very little about the BMW motor but what I do know is that the countershat (yes, misspelled intentionally, indicating past tense of "shit") position isn't good for woods suspension. And the little I know of the clutch makes it suspect from the start. They tried to do something different and I give 'em kudos for that, but it hasn't worked. And it sure seems like they're trying to salvage something now.

When the top two riders in the world verbally trash the bike and one of 'em walks away from a large contract, it says a lot to me.

Where this will end who knows ......glad I ride a 2 stroke

Go change another water pump seal on your 950

Seriously though, you respect Crane's opinion and from everything he's told me he has nothing to bitch about with the G450X, but maybe that's just to me. It definitely gets better traction as a result of the rear setup and the smooth power pulses. However it hasn't been expressed exactly that the countershaft sprocket is in the exact same pivot as the swing arm of this new prototype Husky, it may be off 10-15mm which is half way between where the original G450X was intended and all the other bikes out there. They tried different offsets towards the end of WEC rounds and with positive results. I believe they might also be testing an linkage type rear shock set-up as well, but all rumor for now,........or is it? hehe

 

[robertaccio]

the clutch thing that is point for them to work on or out, the countershaft thing is a chassis set up issue see how they have moved that around to dial the feel in.

patience we will soon see what's the deal!!

 

[Bobby]

clutch modulation has been addressed to keep old school and new school fellers alike happy, this comes from first person account to me.

Countershaft thing allows for phenomenal traction in consistant settings, I think they are finding that the countershaft orientation on the swing arm pivot may actually be a major benefit in MX when combined with linkage, but that intel is a little fuzzier. Cool thing with the design is that the engine can be utilized with the concentric pivot, but doesn't have to be.

 

[robertaccio]

PS note the extreme enduro guys have been doing well with the G450X in the super ugly stuff, Romaniacs/Erzberg,,, Letti and others are really pushing that thing to the limit through super gnarley stuff and finishing,,,,,where most riders are on 2 strokes ,,, so .......

 

[Bobby]

Exactly Robert!! And Andreas Littenbichler won Romaniacs on a production G450X with stock suspension re-tuned to his liking and not some works bike as most would immediately want to argue.

 

[pvduke]

I do all the work on my stuff.
I won't go with stuff that's a nitghtmare to wrench on.
Aint never turned a wrench on the BMW thingy but... at first glance? Pass.

5 min. gearing changes and 15 min. valve adjustments are gonna be hard to beat (current Husky ).
I also don't want/need EFI on any of my off-roaders, or a freakin' giant price tag.

Also have yet to see a 450X on the trails or street out here. And they've been out two model years now?

I do not like the BMW, in part or in whole. From gearing to brake pedal to gas cap to price tag. Don't even care how much power it has.

If Husky is reading this, and they take the "rebadge" route with their new stuff? I predict a major meltdown of the following faithful.

Aint nothing on the G450x I'd like to see on a Husky, at all.

Just my .02

 

[ARod2000]

Seriously though, you respect Crane's opinion and from everything he's told me he has nothing to bitch about with the G450X, but maybe that's just to me. It definitely gets better traction as a result of the rear setup

No doubt Crane said good things about the bike. More importantly he rode the piss out of it at the BofA. And I'll buy that it gets better straight line traction but cornering....it just doesn't make sense that it would be anywhere near as good in a corner. And it seems like it would affect the front end in a very different way that would probably take quite a while to sort out. If they're committed to the bike and tweaking things to make it work well then great. But what I'm hearing makes it sound like they've admitted defeat for that design. Granted, I haven't ridden it and I do applaud BMW for doing something different, but like I said when DK and Juha said very negative things about it that speaks volumes.

You're going to make me ride your bike the next time I see you out, aren't you?

 

[NWRider]

If Husky can use the BMW engine and save a ton of R&D I say go for it. How long did it take them to get the new 250 into production? I seem to remember seeing pictures of it back to at least 06. I know many here love that bike but from a business perspective I think they took way too long as the 250f bandwagon is long gone. At least when I look in cycletrader it appears that you can not give a 250f of any brand away anymore.

I don’t think Husky should spend another 5 years creating a new 450. For all we know the market could move to 350s by then. Also there are so many 450 enduro bikes out already I don’t know if a new bike will grab a big enough piece of the market to make it all worthwhile. If Husky can’t even put out the funds to create oversized tanks I don’t want to see them dumping millions into another 450 power plant. If they can get a good motor from BMW it should take much less effort to refine any weaknesses and put it in a nice Husky chassis.

I also don’t want Husky to short change the 2t R&D for several more years because they are again putting all their effort into a new 4 stroke. This is my biggest concern as I have no need of a 450 but really like my Husky two stroke.

I look at how KTM has no trouble clearing out their 2t models. They are rarely ever discounted. But KTM still has to deeply discount the thumpers and leftovers are easy to find. I know KTM thumpers are popular but there is just a lot more competition.
Huskys main market is off road and 2 strokes are still popular for this market. KTM and Gasgas recognize this but Husky seems to think we all want four strokes. I guess they want to be the Honda of Europe! Husqvarna does OK with what they offer but from a business perspective their 2 stroke lineup is really weak. They have a 125 enduro, which I think is awesome, but the fact is that not many people are looking for a 125 woods bike. Then they have the 250/300 which are nice bikes but it has not changed much in over a decade. The bottom end of that motor is even older. If they could just compact and lighten that motor I think they would sell very well. Also if they took their existing 125 and made a 200 or even a 150 I think they would do well. The R&D for this has to be a fraction of what a new 450 motor would cost to get into production. And instead of competing with the big 5 + Husaberg, Sherco, Beta, etc they would basically only have KTM and Gasgas as competition.

But this is all just the opinion of a guy who knows nothing about what it takes to run a profitable motorcycle company.

 

[ARod2000]

I also don’t want Husky to short change the 2t R&D for several more years because they are again putting all their effort into a new 4 stroke. This is my biggest concern as I have no need of a 450 but really like my Husky two stroke.

AMEN to that! When it comes to woods racing I believe the majority prefer a 2 stroke even though the mfg's are force feeding thumpers down our throats. To Husky's defense, they did come out with the 300 recently. KTM does well with the offroad crowd because they know their client better than anyone. And that means they offer a great selection of two strokes. Many copy what Husky has done over the years on their bikes. I'd like to see more copy what KTM has done with their product marketing.

 

[Coffee]

...But KTM still has to deeply discount the thumpers and leftovers are easy to find....

Did that include the ones with the 50 state license plate?

I believe there are 3 categories

1. 2st (off road)
2. 4st off road
3. 4st with license plate

 

[gestion01]

Aint nothing on the G450x I'd like to see on a Husky, at all.

I may keep riding a 2t husky, but not a 450 with this poor idea.

Maybe the kill switch on the g450x would be ok...with a 36 month warranty on said kill switch. I will pass on it without the warranty.

Looks like I may have to go to a Japan option. The Husaberg Fx450 would be ok but the ktm suspension been there blaa. Beta 450RR with the new engine looks nice but too much of a pure enduro bike for my use. KTM, everyone has one, Berg is much better anyways. Very tempted with the new YZ450. My kids ride kx85's, good little bikes, Kx450?

UNLESS HUSKY MAKES A X-LIGHT 450

 

[Bobby]

Want a new and improved 2t powerplant? Be careful what you wish for, it's not long before we see a fuel injected 2t out of the good Italians

But the next latest and greatest will be a new 450,.....call it an X-Lite 450 all you want, but it will be fairly recognizeable to some

 

[guscycle]

What caused Knights poor showing on the BMW? ...then he jumps on a KAW and wins...that must have givin' BMW a real slap in the face...but then this German(I think) Littenbichler wins Romaniacs.Just wondering.
:ride:Guscycle

 

[ARod2000]

Knighter said it was unstable at speed and the team couldn't fix it.

 

[pvduke]

Husky has a winner with the new 250F. If their 300/400ccF lines follows suit those will be leaders too.

SoCal sells more bikes than pretty much anyone put together in the US. Still aint seen one of those G450X's. No one I've talked to want's one, or any part of one.

It's another Cannondale.

I know folk that test rode it and it's a pile.
Good luck clearing a fouled CS sprocket.
Gas cap, where?
How many nuts and bolts hold it together?
Where's the frame? I'll never have an off-road bike that has no lower cradle, I ride rocks, not grass.
How much it cost?
How small's the tank? (good luck puttng on a bigger one)

They re-invented the wheel, again, and none of that thing needs to be anywhere near a Husky. It's bait for their street riders and, that's about it.

Also- ever deal with a BMW motorcycle dealership?
The dealer's rep's here preceded them. I won't go near one. They are rude, stuck up, never have parts and act like God made their bikes. Most of their riders follow suit.

Husky is just now catching on out here. They are expanding on a great rep we've help spread buy riding and buying them and, doing a lot of market exposure for them. Their dealers are carry-overs from the first buy-out and still love the brand.

I also aint no pro rider/racer, I don't get my bikes for free and don't care who does what on which model. I'm a trail rider that buys 2-4 bikes each year.

For BMW to start BORG'ing up the current Husky's would be a slap in the face for current Husky owners and dealers hoping for the next generation of even bad'er-ass'ed Husky's. If anything BMW ever ends up on my next Husky, other than financing , you won't see me on one.

 

[Bobby]

Husky has a winner with the new 250F. If their 300/400ccF lines follows suit those will be leaders too.

SoCal sells more bikes than pretty much anyone put together in the US. Still aint seen one of those G450X's. No one I've talked to want's one, or any part of one.

It's another Cannondale.

I know folk that test rode it and it's a pile.
Good luck clearing a fouled CS sprocket.
Gas cap, where?
How many nuts and bolts hold it together?
Where's the frame? I'll never have an off-road bike that has no lower cradle, I ride rocks, not grass.
How much it cost?
How small's the tank? (good luck puttng on a bigger one)

They re-invented the wheel, again, and none of that thing needs to be anywhere near a Husky. It's bait for their street riders and, that's about it.

Also- ever deal with a BMW motorcycle dealership?
The dealer's rep's here preceded them. I won't go near one. They are rude, stuck up, never have parts and act like God made their bikes. Most of their riders follow suit.

Husky is just now catching on out here. They are expanding on a great rep we've help spread buy riding and buying them and, doing a lot of market exposure for them. Their dealers are carry-overs from the first buy-out and still love the brand.

I also aint no pro rider/racer, I don't get my bikes for free and don't care who does what on which model. I'm a trail rider that buys 2-4 bikes each year.

For BMW to start BORG'ing up the current Husky's would be a slap in the face for current Husky owners and dealers hoping for the next generation of even bad'er-ass'ed Husky's. If anything BMW ever ends up on my next Husky, other than financing , you won't see me on one.

Ok so you've never seen one let alone ride one, but you know of a BMW dealership that has a bad rap and therefore anything and everything BMW is crap,...........yet they own your ass, err your brand at least. Jordan Brandt took a 4th overall at last weekends District 36 race, that's SoCal isn't it? And a guy named Jason has been doing fairly well campaigning on in SoCal all last year, enough so that he's trying to put together a race effort for the G450X this year.

Sorry, but I don't see a valid point you've made yet. Try getting a tank larger then 3gallons for a current day EFI'ed Husky, not happening either, yet there are 4 options for large Dakar displacment BMW G450's albeit a tad expensive but at least the option is there.

So they came out with a totally new bike and didn't win every single race it entered, but they did win a few and have learned some lessons along the way, much like anyone with half a brain.

No doubt I like the G450X, enough to sell my TXC510 to keep the G450X because the G450X did everything but buck me off (TXC tried that regularly) Anyhow, G450X can stand some improvement as could HSQ's current line up and every other single bike out there, it's called evolution, something some folks are afraid of evidently.

 

[gestion01]

Of the 2 gs450x owners I know, one I can't say for sure and he will probably not say because he was sponsored but I have seen him dnf a race most likely because of the engine. And the other I know well and has 5 rebuilds this summer on his gs450x. He just traded it and bought a wr300.

100% of the owners I have seen so far (2 bikes) have engine problems of some sort. Why are we expected do think this is a good thing in a Husky chassis?

 

[robertaccio]

more info from Marko's site

http://markotarkkala.com/wb/pages/posts/marko-tarkkala-changes-to-class-e237.php

 

[pvduke]

Ok so you've never seen one let alone ride one, but you know of a BMW dealership that has a bad rap and therefore anything and everything BMW is crap,...........yet they own your ass, err your brand at least. Jordan Brandt took a 4th overall at last weekends District 36 race, that's SoCal isn't it? And a guy named Jason has been doing fairly well campaigning on in SoCal all last year, enough so that he's trying to put together a race effort for the G450X this year.

Sorry, but I don't see a valid point you've made yet. Try getting a tank larger then 3gallons for a current day EFI'ed Husky, not happening either, yet there are 4 options for large Dakar displacment BMW G450's albeit a tad expensive but at least the option is there.

So they came out with a totally new bike and didn't win every single race it entered, but they did win a few and have learned some lessons along the way, much like anyone with half a brain.

No doubt I like the G450X, enough to sell my TXC510 to keep the G450X because the G450X did everything but buck me off (TXC tried that regularly) Anyhow, G450X can stand some improvement as could HSQ's current line up and every other single bike out there, it's called evolution, something some folks are afraid of evidently.

I've seen one, seen one torn down to nothing too (guess where I work? No, not Husky). Had a chance to ride one and passed too. Why? The other's that rode it before me, that are way faster, better technical riders etc. than me, said it all.

One can get nice, large tanks for the EFI husky's too...call P3.

Missed my point? Sorry- it was pretty obvious. And again, to reiterate, I don't race, don't care who does what, on a free bike or otherwise. Re-read my post.

I can ride any bike I want here at this bike manufacturer. But I ride Husky's, I work on Husky's, they work for me and on the cheap too. My dealers are super nice and more than helpful, too.

The G450X is a load. You can have it. Sorry if I hurt your feelings. You seem pretty passionate about that brand/model. In the real world it can't hold a candle to a Husky or any other make.

Also, BMW's evolve along their own lines. Regardless of what actually works. I don't like their bikes, never have or will. They can evolve into flying pop-corn mahinces for all I care. It's not a practical, competetive or cost effective design.
Period.

When BMW make's a bike as wonderful and practical as the new TXC 250, call me. I'll be the first to buy one and I'll fly to your dealer to get it.

 

[robertaccio]

you guys got way too wound up on this.