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Will a DS be important for the new KTM based huskys?

Should KTM/Husky offer plated models?

  • Total voters
    84
Motosportz

Motosportz

CH Sponsor
Staff member
Sorry about all the polls. I see a lot of info flying around and just want to get a feel for different aspects of the new KTM based huskys. I think this might also be valuable info for KTM/Husky should they choose to read it and see what their potential customers might like.

So one question that keeps popping up is street legal bike. This poll is for that.
 
It will only be important for sales, otherwise it is a non issue. In some states a plated dirt bike is the only way to go for access and linking riding.
 
Doesnt matter to me since I am in washington I can plate any bike. If I was going to buy say a ktm 500 I would buy the xcw because its already desmogged without all the funky attachments that I would remove anyway.
 
From a business perspective it would be the logical thing to do. Why lose an existing base of current DS Husky owners or at least retain a percentage of them, especially when KTM already have a line of bikes they can re-badge for little expense. Why not also provide that option for the current KTM owners.
 
I can plate anything for less money then it would take to make a street legal run right but I'm not selfish, they should offer them :). I'm actually really excited about some street models. Maybe a 690 Dakar/adventure Husky? :)
 
LandofMotards said:
I can plate anything for less money then it would take to make a street legal run right but I'm not selfish, they should offer them :). I'm actually really excited about some street models. Maybe a 690 Dakar/adventure Husky? :)
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Any bike probably can be plated in CO but we all don't live there.:D
 
Xcuvator said:
Any bike probably can be plated in CO but we all don't live there.:D
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That's why I said I'm not selfish. I based my decision on all of you and voted yes for dual sports :). I'm sorry guys but you're all welcome to move here. No such thing as to many riding buddies :)
 
Consider many older riders are considering riding again and where they chose to live offers trail access a few miles from home. Or I'm on a ride and the gas station I need to fuel up is 5 miles down the state highway. A dual sport/plated bike then is top of their list for requirements of a new bike.

For me was simple... a street legal dirt bike at the lowest possible weight and with the right suspension and components out of the box. Husky offered that and was not the most expensive and was not painted orange (I hate the color orange... the bike I'm sure is fine). Having a plated bike is nothing new and neither is meeting EPA and other standards world wide for 4-stroke emissions. Strange is my only reaction to not fielding a street legal model, esp., in CA. I mean come on... It's almost 90 degrees today in mid November! If there were plated bikes sold... Rolling live billboards for the bikes would be doing free promotions on every hilltop and canyon.

Sure you can have top level racers winning but if the public won't buy the bike because it isn't appropriate, WTF. $10k+ is crazy for a dirt bike but then again Specialized gets $10,500 for a new S-Works sans motor, SUP manufacturers trying to steal $4500 for a "race" SUP. In the end it's the customer that decides what they want and what they can afford. As we get older we get wiser and even though some may have the capital to buy a new Husky, reality and common sense tend to overrule irrational exuberance. I think long and hard about purchases so Husky may do fine this year but with plates they'de do a whole lot better, if simply to offer the public what it wants and needs.
 
Motosportz said:
Sorry about all the polls. I see a lot of info flying around and just want to get a feel for different aspects of the new KTM based huskys. I think this might also be valuable info for KTM/Husky should they choose to read it and see what their potential customers might like.

So one question that keeps popping up is street legal bike. This poll is for that.
Click to expand...
You should start a poll asking if you are posting too many polls..

Yes they should offer DS models. See my post about them metaphorically shooting themselves in the foot. I don't really get it. I guess they are testing the water?
 
The trails I ride in Northern Wisconsin are only open to plated bikes. If Husky doesn't make some I am headed another direction(Beta), simple as that.
 
I voted yes. It would be nice to have a bike with top notch suspension, light weight and a plate. Something between Honda's XR600 and KTM's 690.
 
There is a big difference between dual sport and plated dirt bikes. My WR is plated, definitely not a dual sport. I like to have my bikes plated, I do not care about (or really want) a dual sport. I see no reason why the new huskies can't be plated.
 
I'm in Commiefornia, so there are a lot of nice riding areas that require a street plated bike to go off roading, like the Anza Borrego Desert State Park. My nearest dealer is mostly a street oriented enthusiast shop, and almost all of his Husqvarna sales were the plated models. He doesn't have the customer base already groomed for serious off road sport bikes. I'm not sure if he will be picking up the new line, unless they are going to be having plated models in the near future.
 
If you are gonna be a major player in the MC world today, looks like have to dabble in all aspects of biking as a hedge if nothing else ... You would not wanna get caught behind the power curve on any aspect of bikes ...
 
GreenDew said:
I voted yes. It would be nice to have a bike with top notch suspension, light weight and a plate. Something between Honda's XR600 and KTM's 690.
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The 690 with a more comfy soft seat, softer suspension, a rally raid fairing and a decent stock luggage rack would make an excellent DS adventure machine. It would be great if they venture into something like that in blue and yellow
 
ray_ray said:
If you are gonna be a major player in the MC world today, looks like have to dabble in all aspects of biking as a hedge if nothing else ... You would not wanna get caught behind the power curve on any aspect of bikes ...
Click to expand...

You say that, but none of the Japanese giants have offered a decent dual sport for many years, and they seem to be doing just fine.
 
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