That sounds like it may be next years 2 stroke - rebadged Husabergs/Ktm until the new - state of the art 2 strokes come out maybe in 2015? Hopefully he will leave the 125 alone until 2015 What will happen to Husabergs then? Anyone know what Husqvarna have been up to with new two strokes? Someone on here must know...
I am going to be a little blunt here but the KTM 125/150 motor is a piece of fine china looking for a place to break. The factory prepped 150 that lead both moto's at the 2 stroke race in Glen Helen self destructed in the 2nd moto. Pulled really well until it blew. It is far too complicated and will never build a following like the husky 125 simply because it isn't bullet proof. It can make great power but at what price. I won't own that motor. I need a motor that will take me back 30 miles from nowhere and get me out every time. A break down that far back in the crap means the bike is virtually a total loss.
My Husqvarna WR125/150/165 is as good as it gets. Powerful and reliable. Great handling also. Wouldn't mind PDS rear suspension though. Not better not worse, just simplier. I could make a KTM PDS suspension as good as any Honda. Correct spring rate and sags are the key. Maybe Linkage is better on a MX track but PDS works as good or better offroad.
Maybe SP is referring to this.... http://www.cycleworld.com/2012/08/13/two-stroke-resurrection/?utm_source=rss
Man, I hope so. Yes, that's an old article with an "imaginary" bike, but it's COOL AS HECK AND I'D LOVE TO HAVE ONE!!!
http://www3.varesenews.it/lavoro/fiom-husqvarna-blocchera-la-produzione-da-agosto-260671.html bad news... r
Guys next time you ride behind a KTM observe the rear wheel action. They buck left and right over rocks and roots. The PDS does not soak up as well as a linkage imho.
Translated Fiom: "Husqvarna block the production from August" The union warns that after the meeting with the new owners Ktm. The company will ask from the first of August the extraordinary layoff for partial termination of the activities Bad news from the meeting between the company and unions to Husqvarna, the motorcycle factory, 250 employees, which is based in Cassinetta Biandronno, which was sold by BMW to Ktm in February. The company announced its intention to seek the extraordinary layoff since August, for a partial cessation of activities. According to sources Fiom, the new owners have basically said intentional that the market is going wrong. The production will hang from August 1, would remain active while the sales department, which will have to dispose of the 3,500 pieces that are expected to continue to build. STATEMENTS "The news is certain is that in August the plant stops - says Nino Cartosio Fiom of Varese - when we asked if there are day plan to re-open bonfire, we were told:" We do not know, we're thinking about. " In fact, the KTM has taken over a month, you could not hope that they had a business plan ready, but it is a bad news, because the cashier to ask for a partial cessazone is a pretty clear message. " Cartosio is realistic: "The company has in storage in warehouses, in total, at least 11 thousand motorcycles. The extraordinary layoff will be asked for a year, and we do not know how many people will cover. The company also said that it will not close, but our questions, whether there are plans, there has been given an answer. Tomorrow we will be meeting with workers at 8 am, we need a strong mobilization. " The news of the sale to Ktm had been learned from the workers on Jan. 31. The Austrian KTM had also previously announced a shift in its operations in India, home to the largest minority shareholder, and immediately the unions had feared a hallway. The factory was opened in 2009 with great fanfare by the BMW. 17/04/2013 Roberto Rotondo - Twitter: @ robertorotondo roberto.rotondo @ varesenews.it
This could mean a few things... - clearing existing stock, restructuring the business, retooling for the bikes SP wants to build Or - moving production (think Husaberg) If BMW invested heavily in tooling for the Nuda, TR650's, 449/511... Then KTM has alot of restructuring and retooling to do... That takes time and would require production to cease temporarily. One thing is for sure.... Unfortunately, build quality will suffer when the factory staff have low morale from all this uncertainty.
"At least" 11,000 motorcycles in storage? That's a year's worth of stock. Can't sell 'em, can't afford to keep 'em, daren't give 'em away. My thoughts are with our brothers and sisters at Varese.
Although I really have no idea, it sounds to me they are seeking permission from regulatory people to alter the staffing. At my location, they do that frequently - just to have the option in case they want to choose a certain direction.... because getting that permission takes time.
Here is one in English http://www.twowheelsblog.com/post/32619/husqvarna-stops-production-in-italy?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed: twowheelsblog/en (twowheelsblog) News Galleries Videos Login / Register Husqvarna stops production in Italy Published on 18 Apr 2013 by Toni M. 0 Comments from Readers Ads by Google Discount Honda's Okanagan www.BannisterHonda.com Best deal,price,service & selection $200 Cash referral bonus available KTM’s acquistion of Husqvarna from BMW last January is already having consequences at the Italian plant (inaugurated in 2009) located in Cassinetta di Biandronno. The factory will be laying off a part of the 250 workers for a year, under the nation’s emergency welfare redundancy fund (CIG) next August, due to a partial closure of the company’s activities. According the Italian trade union FIOM, the new owners have said that international sales market are not going well, so production will be blocked in the month of August, while sales will continue to clear out the 3.500 remaining bikes that still have to be manufactured, to add to the at least 11,000 motorcycles that are in their warehouses. The trade union also said that the company has reported that they do not intend to close, but they also have not reported any future plans for the plant. 0 comments A total of 14,500 bikes to be sold. That means deep discounts. Partial closure may mean the TR650 line remains in production. BMW created this situation and their solution was to cut and run to avoid corporate embarrassment. SP needs to sell off discontinued inventory and get new models rolling off the lines. Husky may stay in Italy but it will likely mean union concessions. Howard V
SP stated in one of his interviews that the assembly line was staying but the design and sales was going to Austria. Is he asking permission to do this with staffing ?
Direct injection 2 stroke.. that got my attention. The Australians came up with a version that was clean enough to pass emissions. I understand they licensed that technology to an outboard motor manufacturer here in the US, forgot which one. The prospect of a clean, tough, light, easy to work on two stroke makes me tingle.
SP ought to be familiar with the inventory issue.... KTM dealers around here all have old new stock on their floors (and more in the back room). A smart move might be to push as much as they can into untapped markets (India? China? Indonesia? Phillipines!?(for Ray-Ray)) to penetrate those markets with low priced product. Since BMW already paid for it, SP can afford to give it away, but giving it away in established markets creates other issues...though I would be happy to buy a spare for each of mine for a couple grand each :-)
Be careful what you wish for. I don't think DFI is going to make anything lighter, EZer to work on, and for sure will be more expensive and have lots of wiring, ECU's pumps etc. DFI take really high pressures and is not EZ like typical EFI. Expect then to be expensive and complicated and add weight. IMHO I just weighed a Lectron carb i have sitting here, 1 pound 2 oz, the pump, plumbing, injector and associated electronics and stuff must weigh all of that I would think.
I had one of those Mercruiser engined DI 2 stroke boats.... it was very powerful and efficient and the engine itself was overwhelmed by all the plumbing and electronics. Those electronics are becoming much more compact, but I doubt that this pencils out as an economical alternative to a modern 4-stroke. I think Kelly is right.
Husky was going to use dual stage injection, like the new Arctic Cat 600 snowmobile engine, much simpler than BRP direct injection.
