Actual news on the KTM purchase of Husqvarna

Bottom of lake Varese. Look out for water dripping from the swingarm in a few months.

I was just reading that SpeedBrain & Honda HRC are having a joint venture. Weird stuff happening.
Apparently the following link say's Barreda, Paulo Goncalves. Helder Rodrigues and Javier Pizzolito with HRC.

My translation foo is weak, can someone translate.

http://www.worldrallyraid.com/blog/2013/05/hrc-dice-no-a-despres-ma-dice-si-a-barreda

Finally some direction. The only unknown quantity will be how Bajaj 48% well effect the marketing decisions.
The inside line is that the new 390 being produced by the India factory has high marks for QC.
Hopeful that the R&D departments work separately KTM and Hurqberg. Keep you fingers crossed.

Red Husaberg's. I'm ok with that. They are nice bikes. They will be even better with "Husqvarna" written on the side.

So.. the new Husqvarna FE501 will really rip, but it will over heat and break gears. Hey, that plastic sub-frame looks cool...

More aftermarket opportunities, FST.

red Husaberg>
read Red Ktm as was the original concern here
he is right about a lot of the ancient product line but not completely
a small manufacture line sure won a lot of titles

...and some plastics are much better strength to weight than aluminum and without the corrosion or stress cycle issues.

I´ll try not to be "so negative or tiring all the time", but Pierer´s pronouncements (and I can read German) do seem to be a load of hot air. Think we´ll just have to wait and see (and hope for the best but expect the worst).

I am a big fan of the Berg's. if they handle the marketing well, then this change will go without a hitch.

Cafe Husky is kindof the husqvarna brand 'tribe'. We are all true fans and well connected to the brand. We have organized our own culture here, around a brand which we all feel we belong to, and it belongs to us. Unfortunately, the brand doesn't belong to us, it belongs to KTM.

I we did a poll right now asking who would buy a berg rebadged as a Husqvarna, I bet over 50% of us would say yes. And, even if none of us said we woud buy one, I bet half of us still will. It doesn't matter where it is made or who owns the company, we all identify with the brand and most of us will keep identifying with it.

while it is true what you say, yes I had a KTM in the middle my brothers own one or both, so Ok with looking
but, back to the point, this is Café Husky and as such people come here to discuss them, there are other forums
still I look at other brands none of them are perfect including Husky, oops did I say that
now the reason I personally like them is,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, where was I
oh yeah the trait I like is the stable handling, the shock is not perfect and neither are the forks
that said live with whatever you like,
back to the thread a KTM engine in a husky seems like sacrilege but mine has a Cagiva engine, yes it is a Cagive even though they have used it for years it is still a Cagiva engine, if you want to be impressed try a KTM/ Husaberg 300, case reed smooth power just prefer the Husky handling
if they leave the chassis similar and shove the 300 power plant in it (electric start too) you have a winner, 6 speed, smooth power, great handling, read world beater as is his hopes, not necessarily in motocross but certainly off road as in endure first

so the Husky brand tribe has seen one engine replacement on the 2 strokes and I hear they also sell 4 strokes not sure though never had one
on that note those are someone else's engine too
yes I like my bikes and no I personally am not brand stuck but these are my thoughts

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Not being negative but I don't think the Husky 250/300 owners would want the KTM engines in their bikes. From what I've seen and read they sometimes overheat and e-starts aren't very good. I know I wouldn't buy a Husky 125/144 with a KTM 125/144 engine in it. I really think Husky owners, most anyway, feel it isn't just the Husky ergo's/ handling that better but the Husky engines too. Do KTM have good engines and bikes.....yep...but I for one feel as a package the Huskys suite me better.

The best Husky's ever were made 1979 through 1982. Painting them white in '83 killed the Swedish bikes, and they have never been the same since. A lot of Husky dealers went KTM after the refrigerator white bikes. They went from not being able to keep enough '82s in stock to having a showroom full of '83s they couldn't sell. The Italian bikes were nice, but the 2-strokes were getting a bit long in the tooth. You can only resist change for so long before the competition overwhelms you, and from what I have read, the old tooling was on its last legs. With regard to 4-strokes, the X-Lites are nice race motors, but marketing them as TE dual purpose bikes has put a bad taste in some buyers mouths and limited sales when folks realize the maintenance that comes along with them, along with a transmission that is useless on the street. That and they run like crap unless you remove all the junk that makes them street legal in the first place. Go ahead and grieve and be nostalgic if you want, but an infusion of technology and modern production is, in my opinion, exactly what Husky needs. BMW failed because that is not possible in the labor environment in Italy. The choice was either KTM or the death of Husqvarna. At least this way we get parts support.

I have yet to own one (hope I will someday) but the x-lites BMW brought to life...awesome as we all know. I have briefly rode a x-lite TE 310 and loved it. I bet 800 Alessi could have put the 310 on the podium in SX, as the KTM 350 couldn't/didn't do it. The x-lite TE 310 really is the only bike on the market that I would want to buy atm. If the platform goes away and gets replaced with a Kato 350 motor, I would have to say pass and go to MotoXotica for a plated RS 400 Beta. Has anyone else noticed the beautiful Up-Tite skid plates adorning the Beta's?

The TE310 may not be the best suited dual sport bike for serious road work but in California it allows you to take a great dirt bike and run it year round in our highly regulated trail system. It's a good compromise, at a great price, as long as you don't need to run it down the highway. If they can graft a wide ratio gear box from the Husaberg lineup into the TE310 you would have a winning combination. I'll keep my fingers crossed.