Husky Press and Demo Ride for the new 2012 Bikes Date Friday Sept. 9th Location The Ranch Anza So Calif What is so important to realize is this is only Sept 9th and Husky has ALL of it current US off road bike here in Southern Calif for this test. Most of all the major motorcycle journalist and industry people were there to inspect, photograph and ride the new 2012 bikes. Before we all took off to ride the bikes we got to hear from the ALL new staff of Husky North America Kris Odwarka Pres.Talked about Husky new commitment to the brand. Corey Eastman marketing manager talked about new goals in sales and Andy Jefferson talked about after market sales Now why was I there? Well Cafe Husky was invited to come check it out and report back to you what we saw. This report is based on my personal feelings. As a 55 year old Magum expert racer who has raced everything from Baja to Motocross and owns the following motorcycles 2010 WR300,2008 Wr 250,2008 CR 125 and a 2006 TE 510 Dual sport. I brought along my two favorite bikes WR 300 and CR 125 to compair to the new bikes. First as I drove into the Ranch I thought what a great place to test. Why? Because the Ranch has everything. Motocross tracks, miles of single track both easy and hard and a few two track sections for some high speed testing. As I rounded the corner I saw 3 box vans and all the new 2012 bikes lined up and ready for testing. Charlies and Brent, factory mechanics, were there to help with bike set up. 2 Strokes CR 125 ,Wr 125, WR250 and Wr 300 4 Strokes Motocross TC 250 ,TC 449 and TC 511 4 Stroke off road TXC 250,TXC 310 ,TXC 449 and TXC 511 4 Stroke Dual Sport TE 250 ,TE310,TE449 and TE511 As a 2 stroke guy who will race motocross BUT really likes to do the National Hare and Hounds Why not test as if I were to be racing it where I liked. The Nationals are close to being a GNCC or short WORC race so you East coast guys can relate. I did do a few laps around the motocross track but felt I could do a better story about the bikes on the trail. Husky had set up about a 6 mile super tight single track test up in the trees that only had a few high speed sections. It was close to being what I like to ride on. There is also going to be a Enduro qualifier type race here at the Ranch next weekend,so that made it even better. First Test CR 125 As I took off toward the single track the bike felt like a 144 because it had more power then my 125. I rode it hard thru the 6 miles and felt right at home. Remember we all set up our own personal bikes to fit our needs and all these bikes were as delivered. So the main test would be about performance and if the suspention was close you can always adjust to fit your needs. Fun factor was high and power was great. The bike would stop and turn on a dime. The bike really did work great and handled well. The motor would pull hard everywhere but you had to remember it is a CR motocross bike and needs to be ridden like you stole it. When I got back I asked is this really a 125 and was told yes. Second Test My personal CR 125. Why not ride it back to back against a new 2012 bike, I went back on the same track and came back thinking the new bike is as good as my bike which i have spent time getting it all dialed in. So the new bike with some correct set up for my needs could be better. Third Test WR 300 As I took off the first thing I noticed was the performance. The motor with the new Ducati Ignition acted like my 2010 Wr 300 which has the older Cr ignition. In fact as I hit the first set of tight turns it was better. Maybe because it still retains the heavier flywheel so the botton end pull was stronger. I love the 125 but if you can hang on the 300 its worlds apart and only 13 pounds heavier. The bike flat rips from turn to turn, it is next to impossible to stall so no need for a electric start. Only problem I have is the clutch pull is harder then most not bad but still hard. So if you are in a tight section where you are pulling in the clutch a lot your left arm will soon start to hurt. If the track or trail is more open it is not a problem at all. Forth Test My personal 2010 Wr 300 Once again why not test back to back against my Wr 300 which has had a lot of set up. Plus it has the older Cr ignition in it . Once again came back thinking this new WR300 is really close to my bike and I could race it as it is. So with a little set up it would be even better. Fifth Test TC 250 The long awaited new TC 250 is here. Being a 2 stroke guy I really wanted to ride this bike. Could it make me convert? Well off to the single track with a motrcross bike. The TC 250 acted like a pumped up CR125 which was a good thing and we soon were getting along fine. Power is better every where over a 125 so my corner to corner speed was faster with less effort. The TC 250 is a light weighted flywheel 4 stroke so you had to keep it reved up. Not alot but if you let it fall off the power band you had to start all over again. Handling was great and the clutch pull was easy. I felt i could race this motocross bike in the trees and trails all day. It is a motocross bike so you had to ride it like one, no time to be lazy. Sixth Test TXC 310 This is a all new bike for 2012. As soon as I let the clutch out I could feel the power. From down low to up top the motor pulled like a 450 but felt light like the 250 I just rode.The bike did everything the TC 250 did but only better. Remember i was on a tight 6 mile track with only 1 1/4 mile straight where high speed could happen. This bike REALLY impressed me and if I wanted a new 4 stroke I would get this one. This was just a stock bike and I really liked it. The only problem is for Calif it is a red sticker bike so some areas will be off limits part of the year. That is only a Calif problem so the rest of the country is ok. Their is talk of getting that problem fixed for next year. For now there is a way around it, but it might cost a bit more. Buy a TE 310 and then convert it into a TXC. See the picture of the bike with the # 9 on it. That is Andys personal race bike it is a TE 310 which works better then a stock TXC 310. Seventh Test TXC 511 This is the biggest and baddest off road bike in Husky fleet . As I took off and gassed it I said WHY? Why do you need this much power, where could you use all of it. I did ride it on the single track but soon had to slow down for fear of getting hurt. Once I rode with in my means we got along fine . For a big open class bike it does work well has tons of power. It is not the bikes fault it was mine that we went slow. If you are a big or a strong person who wants more power then you can use then TXC 511 will work. For me I had more fun on the 310. Eighth Test TC 449 For some reason I wanted to ride the fastest motocross bike Husky makes. If you think a TXC511 is fast then you will really want to ride a TC 449. But once again I am a off road guy who likes tight trails and this bike was made for motrcross. It was just to much bike for me to handle like it should be ridden. Now I know why the pros go by so fast. Ninth Test Wr 250 Since I had tested most of the bikes I felt lets ride the Wr 250. Lets see how it compairs to the WR 300 i already rode. The new 2012 Wr 250 also has the Ducati Ignition and as I took off I could tell as it pulled harder then my stock 2008 Wr 250 I had at home. The 250 did everything the 300 did except the 300 had just a little more pull. Once again the bike is next to impossable to stall and works great. The only problem is the clutch pull is a little hard and will soon wear you down if you are using it in super tight places. Other wise it is not that bad. The 250 and 300 are close so if you want to race in the 250 class then get a 250. If you do not care about class or do a lot of trail or play ridding the 300 is the bike to pick. Tenth Test Wr 125 For years I have raced a CR 125. I have never ridden a Wr 125 and wanted to see what it was like. I would see stories of WR owners complaining about the bog or other problems. I would give them a hard time asking why do you buy a Wr and then try to make it a Cr. Well the Wr 125 I rode ran great in fact in the super tight between the trees action the added flywheel weight of the Wr made the bike easier to ride.Yes it was a bit slower but the fun factor was still there . This is a off road bike not a motocross bike like the Cr so for most people ridding off road they might like the Wr better. Power was smooth and pulled from the bottom on up, the bike still handled like the Cr but you could get a bit lazy and not get in trouble. This bike could work for a beginner or expert if set up to fit your needs. If you are only going to race then maybe a converted CR/WR might have a advantage. Bikes I did not test. TXC 250 felt it would be a cross between the TC 250 and a TXC 310. Once again if class did not matter and if you were going to race it most people would go 310. I did not test any of the dual sport bikes because of time. The TE line up is really a street legal TXC and I did ride those bikes . So if the TXC worked well then the TE should also. When it comes to Dual sport dirt bikes there are really two choices Husky and KTM . Husky was first and started the dual sport street legal dirt bike. In closing which bike was best? Well remember I tested all the bikes on the same track some were really not made for the type of ridding I was doing. Also I tryed to ride them as if I were in a race. Yes all the bikes were as delivered and all of them could have been set up a little different to meet my personal needs but this was a test to ride the bikes as delivered. None of the bike i felt would need much adjustment to be race ready. The only way to pick one is to ask yourself what am I going to do with it? Am I a 2 stroke or 4 stroke person. Small bore 2 stroke if you are only going to race then go Cr if you will do a little of both then WR125 Big Bore 2 stroke the only reason to get WR 250 is if you want to race in the 250 class. If class is not a problem then hands down go Wr 300. 4 Stroke If you ride motocross then a new TC 250 in the 250 class is a great bike. If you want more power then you can use and you are a big strong person hang on to a TC 449 if you can. Offroad I really liked the TXC 310 and felt it was the BEST all around off road 4 stroke. The 511 was just to much .If you live in Calif you might want to look at a converted TE/TXC. In closing, what did I see or learn. Well since 2006 when I got my first Husky I have seen a complany try to do better every year. Since BMW took over I have seen it start to speed up. Heck it is only Sept. and we are talking about the 2012 year bikes. The bikes I rode were better then last years models. 2 stroke fans will be glad to hear that Husky is committed to the future of the 2 stroke and is working on a few new ideas. I heard that from the top . I was also promised that the long over due Husky Gear is almost here. All the Husky staff had it on so i did see it. I did not take alot of picture, their were alot of other magazine people doing that. I wanted to ride and report. I tried to think I am just like most of you here on the type. love to ride and race so report back as such. If anyone has any questions please type away I will try to answer them. Also next weeken at the Ranch there is the Husky Dealer Meeting and also a Enduro Race held by a Dist 37 club VCMC. So either come out and watch or race and maybe seek a peek at all the new 2012 bike at the Dealer Meeting same bike will be there. Thank you Husky and Cafe Husky for letting me come test the new bikes John Kearney
Either you took notes or you have one hell of a memory. Thorough report, without being excessively long. Each bike report was fairly brief and to the point as well as well considered. Nicely done report. The TXC310 isn't too different from my '11 TE310, so I was happy to hear that you really liked it.
Yes From what I saw and also from what was posted in the current catalog it is the same as last year. The bike from what i was told will not come with lights either.I also looked and saw no extra plug where you could wire up lights.I am sure you still could wire up lights if needed ,my CR has has the stotor rewired and it will produce 40 watts.So last years anolog ignition put out more than thatstock. The bike I rode did run well and had no bog as some people use to talk about
Thank you i did a little of both. This is the first time I was asked to report back on test rides so I tried to be thorough. As far as the 310 goes did you see the 310 with the #9 on it? That is Andys worked over TE 310 I saw people ride it on the motorcross track and it did not look like a TE out there.
I like the report on the TC449....... short , simple and sweet. Riding my 2005 TC450 and also a 2009 / 2010 Honda CRF 450 makes me think it may finally be time to start looking at a new TC449. Would be interested in knowing how you felt the TC449 "Turned"? any thoughts? I regret that I was unable to attend this demo. Glad you went and tested them John! T
It was a wonderful media event for me. Not only did we get to ride all the new models as much as we wanted, but we had barbecue for lunch and I got to see old friends and make new ones. Racers like Jim Gibson, Gary Jones, Larry Roeseler were there, along with some of my journalist friends. I also got to learn a little bit about the people who are at the helm of Husqvarna now. I doubt that there are very many other motorcycle companies whose president goes to a press day to introduce the new models, then has lunch and goes riding with everybody. It's good to see firsthand that somebody with the same enthusiasm as the rest of us is guiding the company. I had a little one on one chat with Kris Odwarka about marketing, two strokes etc, and he seems like a guy with plenty of vision. On the clothing front....almost all the company honchos were wearing the new gear. It will soon be available and is in transit to the U.S. right now. Thor is the manufacturer of it and the line is based purely on input from Husqvarna, so does not resemble the "branded" Phase models used by other OEM manufacturers. Though pricing is not set at this time, the gear will be competitively priced and you should be able to get a pair of pants and a jersey for well under 200 bucks. I wanted to ride everything that they had there, but only managed to ride all three WRs, the TXC310, the TX250, the TE449 and the TE250. After that, I was too tired and too full of Gatorade to slosh around on another bike, although I was contemplating the TC449 and the CR125. First off, as you all may know I am not a racer by any stretch of the imagination. My days of being competent and fast on the track (or the trail for that matter) are about at least 20 years behind me. Second, because I am short and not near the "average weight" that most of these models are intended for, they obviously don't work very well for me right out of the box. So I have to make evaluations the best I can on the models that I rode. I am also a raving two stroke nut, so I am never going to be able to give any four stroke model a fair shake (unless it performs like a two stroke). They say that opposites attract, so when this bleary eyed pokey trail rider suited up and scanned the row of gleaming red and white, it was love at first sight for me and the WR300. I have read so many less than enthusiastic posts about the WR series over the last couple of years, (mostly griping about how the bikes didn't seem to have very much updating,and the need for a Keihin to replace the MIkuni) that I just didn't know what to expect from them. It became apparent shortly after I got the WR300 warmed up, that we were made for each other. Working through the gears produced no end of power, a strange but absolutely perfect mix of brutal and smooth acceleration throughout the powerband. The new ignition worked in perfect harmony with the carburetion, engine tune and exhaust. There was no bog, no flat spots....only power on demand and the kind of power that would lend itself to any offroad situation. It was as easy to ride on the singletrack as it was on the motocross track. I imagined that one bike replacing two or three machines that are in my garage right now. It felt light and was quite manuverable in the tight trail stuff. Clutch action, while somewhat stiff was quite smooth and the awesome power made the bike a breeze to blast through sand mud and lift the front wheel on the rocks if needed. Though the bike was oversprung for me, I could tell that the damping curves were much improved over older models. Deflection was about non existent. Besides being a flickable trail bike, it worked great on the Carlsbad track. The chassis is very stable and secure feeling on chopped up straights and through whoops. Rear brakes on all the WR models were a bit touchier than I am accustomed to (mostly in the tight, slow stuff), but not really a problem. The WR300 was like a match made in heaven for me. There wasn't much that it needed to be fun ready in my opinion. Just fork and shock springs. I screamed "Woo hoo' all the way down the access road while it wheelied with each gear change....and I don't do wheelies. I'm tellin' ya, I was trying to figure out how to stuff it in the trunk of my passenger car. I also rode the WR250, which was about the same in many ways as the 300, just a bit softer off the bottom. A good bike....I wouldn't kick it out of bed....but the 300 has the sexy powerband. The WR125....after riding Woodsie's 144 WR up at Troy Meadows, I can honestly say that I loved the brand new 2012 stock buck and a quarter WR right out of the box. It felt like as light as a potato chip in the whoops. In the tight sections of single track, it performed with as much oomph as necessary to attack rocky, silty uphills while having zinging top end performance. It felt a little twitchy on the straights, but overall was pretty well planted. If I spent more time on one set up for me, it might dethrone the 300 for my purposes. Again, no bog, no stumble, broadest useable powerband for a tiddler I've ever experienced, it was a ferocious small bore. The much vaunted TXC310 was on my list of must rides. Of course push button start is always welcome by me. It's sort of hard to be unbiased when I am such an unabashed two stoke kisser, but the 310 was a very nice bike. Power was smooth and the handling was predictable. The bike felt light enough, but a little top heavy after having just climbed off the WRs. I think that the TXC310 will become a very popular offroad model this year. Next up was the TC250. I didn't get the hang of kickstarting it (I couldn't get the hang of kickstarting my KLX300 when it was new either) and so Karl Kramer offered to give me a push. Once on the track, the bike felt great. The only other bike that I have ridden lately that I could compare it to is a 2009 KX250, and the TC250 definitely felt lighter and more responsive by quite a bit. Since I own an 07 TE450, I had to swing a leg over the new TE449. The new bike had much better low end response and the powerband was smoother overall. It handled differently also....not sure if I felt that it was better handling....just different. The suspension was better out of the box than my 07 was. This year Husqvarna is offering an enduro model for the ladies or shorter guys. The TE250 is about two inches shorter than the it's bigger brothers. I rode the 250, and can say that it is very easy to touch the ground on for me at 5 ft 5 in. height. Unlike it's Japanese counterparts, you can expect snappy power and responsive handling from the TE250. This is another model that I expect will have a bunch of Husky converts for new owners. A friend of mine was up at the track, looking at the lineup. Although she hadn't ridden a dirt bike yet, she already decided on the TE250 for her first trail bike. She is presently learning to ride one of her boyfriend's mini bikes for starters. I really have a lot of praise for the Husqvarna crew for putting on a great event and I am very thankful that I got attend and learn new things about the fine bikes and people of this company.
good reports, from the 2 inmmates, from 2 very different points of view (very important), both from riders with lots of years of experience. Thanks
It's great to hear that Husky is heading in the right direction. Thanks to Cafe Husky for having boots on the ground, or on the pegs, and giving us first hand reports. It looks like there is a good future for Husky owners....
Ha ha, need to enlist the Chic-fil-A cow for a "Ride Mor" commercial. I'm leaning towards a TE 310. For me nothing else makes sense if and until they get the direction sorted for a new 600+cc. DS bike.
What was the power difference between the TXC310 and the TE310? I know both can be made the same, just looking to hear if any real differences the EPA road items took away.
