Should I get a Husky?

[Ryan Wallis]

Probably a stupid question around here but I'm looking for some input on a proposed purchase. I've just joined this forum to get some answers from people that use the bikes and know...

I haven't had a bike for over 20 years but recent got my L's and want to get back onto a bike for some fun and as a second vehicle thats cheaper than a car.

I'm looking at the TR 650 Strada and can't see anything else that really interests me. Mainly doing road riding and I've always liked off road bikes but prefer something that is safer on the tarmac, with this bike it seems that I can do a bit of off road stuff as well.

So I guess my question is things like the practicality of this bike as my first in many years in terms of weight, handling and as a learner generally. Whats the cost of spare parts? I'm buying new so I assume I'll be covered for most things that might go wrong.

Thanks for any input...

 

[bigmo]

I have a garage full of bikes - only one Husky (my favorite bike now). I do love the Terra, however. Had it been out when I bought my BMW, I would not have bought my BMW. That being said the Terra is a road bike. Sure you can do some gravel roads - some dirt roads - but throw in any actual trail or god forbid mud and that 400+ pounds gets to be a big handful.

I have grown to love the Husky I have (a new TE449) it is a brilliant bike with a few odd quirks. I started riding KTMs in the late 90's before everyone had one. I got a 1999 KTM 200 brand new - and that thing stood out in a sea of Japanese bikes. Now, 90% of the offroad crowd rides an orange bike. I like being different and my TE gets a ton of trailside attention.

My opinion is that Husky makes (made???) some really great bikes. You just need to decide what you want. A TE511 with two sets of wheels would be an excellent offroad machine and a tolerable on road machine. A Terra makes a GREAT all around road bike of any surface, but sucks offroad. Here is a short clip from me and a buddy on our BMWs - me a 650, he an 800. These are direct competition for the Terra and my BMW dealer and friend says about 1% of the BMW owners really do this to their bikes. His first question when he sees my bike is "...what the hell have you done to this thing?!?!" The two of us here are both pretty decent dirtbike riders - but these fat bikes get to be a PITA the deeper you get in the bush. Still fun nonetheless - digging this bugger out of a DEEP mud hole was the highlight of the trip for me. Different strokes you know. Typical rocky road in Arkansas - FUN!

View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFqANk7ovQA


On a dirtbike, we wouldnt even have paid attention to a water crossing like this. Miles can click by REALLY slowly on a big bike.

Best of all good luck with whatever you buy. That 650 Rotax is a brilliant motor - I really love it. I can run down the highway at 80 smooth as silk and get 70 mpg! I can then thrash it in the woods - semi-successfully...but it is NOT an offroad bike.

Here is a funny bit I caught him trying to pick up his 800 (400+ pounds) - it went down LOTS when the roads get muddy. NOT fun!

View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkIPunoHqNo

 

[Ryan Wallis]

Thanks bigmo...not sure what I want really but the Strada (not Terra) really caught my attention. I like the Kawasaki KLR650 as well but then I think maybe a simple KLX250 is a good way to start and will give me a lighter bike to do both on and off road stuff

 

[Coffee]

I wanted a bike with good ergos and a low center of gravity, and as long as decent tires are on my terra, it is a lot of fun for simple offroad stuff. It certainly eats up rough roads that would cause a normal vehicle with 4 wheels to be under 10mph.

 

[ghte]

I think a good second hand TE 610 or 630 is a better all round proposition. The terra is made to a lower spec/price scenario and is great value for money but a bit more limited in is capabilities c/w the 630 imho.

 

[Kyle Tarry]

It would be helpful if you could be more specific about what you want to do with the bike. On the street, will it be highway or city, short trips or long? Offroad, will it be well-maintained dirt roads, jeep roads, or trails? Do you like to go fast on performance machines, or go slow and "enjoy the scenery"?

I would never recommend a KLR to anybody; their gigantic size, horrible suspension, and lack of power ruins the motorcycling experience, IMO. For street-biased use, a naked standard like a SV650 is always a good choice. For dual sporting, a DRZ400 is hard to argue with as a starter bike. The Terra/Strada would be good bikes as well, biased towards the pavement side.

You say you will be buying new, but Husqvarna does not offer the Terra or Strada any more, so unless you can find a leftover, you'll be buying used.

 

[bigmo]

It would be helpful if you could be more specific about what you want to do with the bike. On the street, will it be highway or city, short trips or long? Offroad, will it be well-maintained dirt roads, jeep roads, or trails? Do you like to go fast on performance machines, or go slow and "enjoy the scenery"?

I would never recommend a KLR to anybody; their gigantic size, horrible suspension, and lack of power ruins the motorcycling experience, IMO. For street-biased use, a naked standard like a SV650 is always a good choice. For dual sporting, a DRZ400 is hard to argue with as a starter bike. The Terra/Strada would be good bikes as well, biased towards the pavement side.

You say you will be buying new, but Husqvarna does not offer the Terra or Strada any more, so unless you can find a leftover, you'll be buying used.

Some good points for sure.

One bike that gets left off lists for some odd reason is the DR650. They are cheap, plentiful - and one can find used garage queens for $3K all the time with almost zero miles on the clock. They are quiet capable offroad and are pretty darn sweet on the road too. They arent as high tech or sexy as some of the European offerings - but they flat out deliver. Based upon the OPs requirments - that bike should be at the top of the list.

 

[Kyle Tarry]

I think that the DR650 is "best of the worst;" in other words, of the inexpensive big dual sports (KLR, DR, XR), the DR is the best. They need some help in the suspension department, but that's not too expensive.

They make a great dirt road bomber, and can be ridden on pavement, but I wouldn't buy one if the primary use was going to be pavement. Something like a SV650, Honda 599, or even a GS500 makes a better road bike.

 

[Ryan Wallis]

It would be helpful if you could be more specific about what you want to do with the bike. On the street, will it be highway or city, short trips or long? Offroad, will it be well-maintained dirt roads, jeep roads, or trails? Do you like to go fast on performance machines, or go slow and "enjoy the scenery"?

I would never recommend a KLR to anybody; their gigantic size, horrible suspension, and lack of power ruins the motorcycling experience, IMO. For street-biased use, a naked standard like a SV650 is always a good choice. For dual sporting, a DRZ400 is hard to argue with as a starter bike. The Terra/Strada would be good bikes as well, biased towards the pavement side.

You say you will be buying new, but Husqvarna does not offer the Terra or Strada any more, so unless you can find a leftover, you'll be buying used.

 

[Ryan Wallis]

Fair questions...In all honesty I don't have all the answers! I'm getting a bike because my wife has just passed her driving test (she left it late in life) and suddenly I'm finding that the car is no longer available when I want it...so rather than get a second car I've decided to get my riders licence and get a bike...cheaper, more fun and fulfilling a long plan to get my full riders licence...

So I don't really know to what extent I'll use it...probably around town/city initially but with the potential to ride about an hour from home via normal roads and then hit a few 'non tarmac tracks' and home again, so like a three hour trip. In the long term maybe a 2 hour trip via the highway/freeway/motorway, but I doubt I'll do that often...a trip to the driving range (room for two golf clubs?) and local rides to see mates etc etc

My off road interests extend to fire trails or gravel tracks that are made for driving/riding on, so I don't want to climb mountains or go exploring, just hit a few roads that are off the beaten track rather than off road if that makes any sense?

I' not planning on riding fast, but I guess when I get more confident that could change.

The Strada is very much available here in Australia. Maybe old stock I don't know, but I can get one locally for $8000 Aus $ or as low as $6000 Aus$ from another State...

Today I window shopped/sat on...

Suzuki Vstrom 650 - very big/heavy, good height
Kawasaki Versys 650 - a bit heavy, similar height to Strada...tallest I'd be comfy with
BMW GS 650 - good height and weight
Honda CB500x - good height and weight

Appreciate the help guys

 

[rancher1]

The Terra sounds like a good choice for what you have listed for duties.

 

[duggoey]

I would honestly recommend a ride on the Suzuki DR 650. It really is a do it all bike and does it with minimal fuss and maintenance. Good fuel economy, enough low end power for a learner on the road and would keep up your interest long enough to determine if you like on/off road riding again. They carry a decent re-sale value if you don't buy brand new - there are heaps of good 2nd hand units on the market and even more aftermarket bits and pieces that are made for it.

 

[Ryan Wallis]

Thanks guys...the DL650 is high on the list to check out duggoey

In fact the list is pretty much the Husky, the KLR650 and the DL650...whats the highest mileage/kilometres thats safe to consider for a second hand bike? 60,000 seems pretty high to me for a 2010 bike?

 

[Kyle Tarry]

Don't get a KLR. Thank me later.

60,000 km is a lot. It depends on the bike, but I would consider 20,000 miles or greater to be high miles. 10,000 could be high miles on a race/woods/trail bike.

 

[Ryan Wallis]

Thanks Kyle...Such vastly different opinions on the KLR...it seems to polarise the biking community. Some say its the best thing they ever did, others quite the opposite! I just thought for a learner it was a good option as its easy to manoeuvre and quite a simple bike...it seems a similar option to the Husky?

Regarding high mileage...I'm always worried about it but my experience is more with cars than bikes so I wanted to ask the question. Some people say that a DL650 is just getting broken in at 20,000! The bike I was looking at was the DL and apparently 90% of it was done on the freeway!

 

[Motosportz]

yes, get the Terra, strada or KLR. Dont get the V-strom, its not fun off road. The other bikes will make you realize most the fun starts where the pavement ends.

 

[duggoey]

Thanks guys...the DL650 is high on the list to check out duggoey

In fact the list is pretty much the Husky, the KLR650 and the DL650...whats the highest mileage/kilometres thats safe to consider for a second hand bike? 60,000 seems pretty high to me for a 2010 bike?

No, not the "DL" 650! It is not appealing to me at all in any way, low maintenance but a bit boring in many ways.

I was talking about one of these, a Suzuki "DR" 650.

 

[duggoey]

yes, get the Terra, strada or KLR. Dont get the V-strom, its not fun off road. The other bikes will make you realize most the fun starts where the pavement ends.

Agreed, nothing inspiring for me with the V Stroms them either.

 

[Kyle Tarry]

Thanks Kyle...Such vastly different opinions on the KLR...it seems to polarise the biking community. Some say its the best thing they ever did, others quite the opposite! I just thought for a learner it was a good option as its easy to manoeuvre and quite a simple bike...it seems a similar option to the Husky?

A KLR is not a motorcycle, it is an appliance. If your interest is having 2 wheels attached to an engine that can move you around, a KLR will work. However, they are huge, overweight, underpowered, terribly suspended, agricultural, clunky pieces of machinery. Compared to a Terra/Strada (of which I am not a fanboy, for the record), the Husky has better brakes, better suspension, more power, better chassis, better components, etc. And when I say better, it's not like 10% better; it's like 2X as good (and for the price it better be).

Something like a DR650 or XR650L suffers from the same issues as a KLR, but to a much lesser degree, and it's a lot closer to what I would consider a "good" bike. They are about 50 pounds lighter (from memory), much better suspension, better components. They need a little help to get to where I'd want them (suspension and carb mostly), but it can be done, and for not too much money/effort.

(Just my opinion.)

 

[Ryan Wallis]

Hmmm...thanks guys.

The Strada appealed to me the moment I saw it and I've always been a fan of that kind of bike. The main concern is the cost of having a european bike and the comfort factor. I'm not planning on any seriously long trips regularly but I would like to do a 2 or 3 hour round trip occasionally and I'm told the Strada/DR/KLR don't offer much comfort on a long ride. Plus I don't have the longest legs!

Thats why the V storm was suggested. Plus it offers more info like fuel gauge etc etc and that does appeal to me a bit, not that its a deal clincher/breaker at all.

$8000 for a Strada or DR650 brand new...very unsure about the KLR because of all the negative opinions I've seen, and as the Husky is a new model it worries me a bit! Maybe the tried and trusted DR650 is in with a shout...

I think I need to test ride some more.