• 4 Stroke Husqvarna Motorcycles Made In Italy - About 1989 to 2014
     TE = 4st Enduro & TC = 4st Cross

  • Hi everyone,

    As you all know, Coffee (Dean) passed away a couple of years ago. I am Dean's ex-wife's husband and happen to have spent my career in tech. Over the years, I occasionally helped Dean with various tech issues.

    When he passed, I worked with his kids to gather the necessary credentials to keep this site running. Since then (and for however long they worked with Coffee), Woodschick and Dirtdame have been maintaining the site and covering the costs. Without their hard work and financial support, CafeHusky would have been lost.

    Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been working to migrate the site to a free cloud compute instance so that Woodschick and Dirtdame no longer have to fund it. At the same time, I’ve updated the site to a current version of XenForo (the discussion software it runs on). The previous version was outdated and no longer supported.

    Unfortunately, the new software version doesn’t support importing the old site’s styles, so for now, you’ll see the XenForo default style. This may change over time.

    Coffee didn’t document the work he did on the site, so I’ve been digging through the old setup to understand how everything was running. There may still be things I’ve missed. One known issue is that email functionality is not yet working on the new site, but I hope to resolve this over time.

    Thanks for your patience and support!

2010/11 TE450 Buying Advice

N

novaboy

Husqvarna
C Class
Hi folks,

I'm new here, and I'm taking the lazy way out and gonna ask you folks for some buying advice instead of spending the whole day searching through all the threads here.

I am contemplating getting a new TE450, but I want to make sure I'm making the right decision. I plan I using the bike for woods, and trail riding, and for commuting to work 2-3 times a week (18km). I want a nice light bike that can still run up the short stretch of highway at 90-100kph. I may even try an odd hare scramble or two.

I am 40 years, 6ft and 180lbs. I have very limited off road riding experience, other than some easy dirt roads and trails on a BMW G650X-Country (which I'm selling, can only have one bike) I do have a lot of mountain biking experience.

I've done a lot of road riding, and I'm getting bored of it, plus I'm getting tired of being on the road with the cages.

Also what are the service intervals like on this bike, and is it something that can be easily done by myself since there is no local dealer. I have no trouble changing oil and filters, but have never checked valves before, however I have knowledgeable and skilled friends that can help me.

Thanks
 
The 010 / 011 models are completely different... The later is the new bmw version ... Lots written here about it .. Search for 449 ... Good luck on deciphering the info ... I can't see how it is not going to be a good bike but this is really Version 1 of the bike ... It is ~about a forgone conclusion the EFI is much better on the 011 ...

Both models, as all Huskys < 600cc, are street legal but to not have tall top gears ... Both will be very good in the dirt ... The 010 seat is hard but for ~18Km, you will be ok here ...

The valves on the 010 model are very easy to check ... I would have never purchased a 4t if I had to re-time it or pull the head for this job ... See the link at the bottom ... Not sure about the 011 model on valves ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uf0AKO-_tI4
 
Mate the 310/449 and 511 wil undoubtably be excellent bikes, however all are new and just coming to the market now. In light of what you do and have ridden in the past I would suggest you think about the TE630. It is a genuine 50/50 road/ dirt bike, more power and dirt orientated than your BMW but capable of all day tarmac rides at 120Kms.
Just a thought. The others will easily do the 18 km commute, however they are really full on dirt bikes with a plate.
 
Thanks for the advice folks,

ghte, the 630 is on my list too, however I interested in doing some hare scrambles next year, and I think its too big for that. I'm actually going to look at a 630 this week, a Husky rep has a demo for sale. I've always wanted a full on dirt bike though, not quite sure why I waited til I was 41 years old. Work, kids, other hobbies maybe.
 
The more you ride off road, the more you will like the 310.

I switched from a TE450 to a TXC250 with a 310 kit. The 310 is a much better bike in tight off road terrain than the 450 imo. It has enough torque that you could gear it to run at 90 km/hr reasonably comfortably for your commute and still have a useable 1st/2nd for tight off roading.
 
What kind of service is required on a 450, for say moderate trail riding? I know the BMW450X has a major service at 70hrs that is pricey, these similiar?
 
The 450 can be a handful. I would go with a 310 or 250 if you want to do tight stuff and not get wore out.

At some point it is about the rider more than the bike, but if your trail skills are wanting, the smaller bike is the way to go, you won't likely outgrow a 310 anytime soon unless you start doing desert or high speed forest road stuff as your primary ride type. I can barely use the power and throttle range available the 450 has, way more than trail riding needs, but can be fun at times. I rarely get past 1/3-1/2 throttle, combined with a small travel hydraulic clutch, makes for a very tight range of control and many stalls. Have to gear down a lot. Now if you were 220+lbs, the 310 may seem underpowered. The turning radius on the TE450 is not so great, wheelbase is maybe longer also? The smaller bikes or TE449 may offer more on these points.
 
If you could get a test ride on almost any bike, then report what you like/dislike, we could probably give better input.

The difference between the 610/630 and the 250/310/450/510s gearboxes is significant for instance. I am not sure the size of the engine is really that important anymore, compared to all the other aspects.
 
Hi Novaboy,

I'm 100% with Coffee on this one, till you ride one, all you end up knowing is the that other people like the bike they went with. Its tough to get a test ride though unless you have a nice dealer right by. I tossed the dice and went from my CBR F4 600 to a TE510. I'm perfectly happy. Its a light dirt bike that can go on the high way at 70 mph just fine. Its got all the power I want for hill climbing. Sure it isn't a nimble 250, but compared to when I was moving on a heavy sport bike, the 510 feels like a bicycle so I'm perfectly happy. But again, that's the bike I chose and am happy with. Before you lay down the 8K for a new Husky, its worth a road trip if you can get a test ride just to see.
 
Hey Fellas,

Unfortunately the closest dealer is a days drive, however a Husky rep, who is also manager of the Canadian race team is in town and I'm going to look at his demo 630 tomorrow, and hopefully take it for a spin. So a ride on a 450 is out.

I'm still sitting on the fence on whether I really need a full blown dirt bike, or is DS a better fit. Even though I've always wanted a dirt bike. Unfortunately I can only have one bike. Decisions, decisions.

I can get a fairly good deal on either one, $7999 for the 450, and $9300 for the 630. (Canadian pricing)

Squidman, how are you finding the extra maintenance on the 510 as compared to the CBR. I had 1995 F3 and 2000F4.

Thanks for all your replies.
Indecision may or may not be my problem.:D
 
if the only road riding you plan to do is an 18km commute I would take the drive and test ride all of the bikes you are intrested in. there is nothing worse than buying a bike and two months later regretting it.
 
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