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| Test:
Husqvarna TE250 |
Story
& pics by Tony Kirby
In the pics: AJ Roberts |
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June - July 2005 #54 |
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Good, meaty,
flexible power
Slide
in, hit the berm, power on |
Reprinted
with grateful permission
On
a tight, rutted, muddy, single track, it
takes a truly great bike to shine.
Put your sunnies on...
 n
the split second before 1 hit the log, I flashed back to my
thoughts two laps earlier.
" Wonder what would happen if I forgot that was there?"
 Not that the log was
a big one. At about 400mm you could bump over it quite easily in
second, but the blood was up, I was having a hammer, and it sat
in the middle of a flowing single track. There wasn't much I could
do. Already standing, I simply moved my weight back and gave the
Husky more fuel - braking was suicide. What happened? Nothing. The
TE rippled over it at about 40kph, without even acknowledging its
presence. Ta-doof, smooth as you like, then down on the seat to
nail the rut in the right-hander straight after it.
Well, now I knew, and
the incident pretty well summed up the much-improved 2005 TE250.
The stiff suspension has been banished, and the package is now an
absolute gem on a tight trail.
 Up
the Revolutions
The power is almost
perfect for a 250cc four-stroke. There is enough there to float
the front on demand, but there isn't the over-abundance that these
days points to a shorter engine life. You have to approach the TE
as an XR250 on steroids, meaning that for best results you have
to work the revs and let the engine spin. Typically Husky the 250
has a much broader rev-range than you first think, and the engine
will rev way past what you thought was red-line.
The bottom-end is great
for working a hill, with the grunt you'd more commonly expect from
a 300cc engine. There's a lot less clutch required on hills than
with the previous model, and the bike will trickle along quite happily
in low gears. The midrange is surprisingly punchy. It's not going
to snap the back out, but in the greasy conditions in which we tested
the TE, this was a distinct advantage. The back could be slid with
precision, even in the black gloop, because the engine wasn't overpowering
the rear tyre.
Giving the Husky the
berries up top was addictive. The engine was never going to rip
your arms off, but acceleration was very impressive given the proximity
of the trees. In the odd spot where we could rev the engine out
the speeds built as fast as it does on many bigger bikes - again,
this comes down to getting drive instead of wheelspin.
The
only negative was the lowish top gear, something Husqvarna has gone
for across the range over the last couple of years, and which has
few fans. The TE will transport reasonably happily at 90kph, so
you can live with it, but a wider spread of ratios between fourth
and sixth would definitely be an improvement.
Clutch? Lightish, good
pick-up and disengages cleanly. The TE will start in gear, but we
don't like the starter cut-out switch that the fun-police have decided
should be activated by the clutch lever. It's un-ltalian.
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Small,
sharp
package |
Plenty
of
plumbing |
Great
seated
postion |
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Well balanced during flight
No
need to pause
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Hot
Favourite
Okay, someone
will write in to say they're all the same, but of all the
current TEs, we like the 250's suspension the best. It's supple
over the small stuff, takes a hit with amazing ease - that
log! - and is very sensitive to adjustment. After several
laps of the tight enduro track we used for the test, I decided
to experiment with the clickers. AJ produced a screwdriver,
and I suggested going one faster on the rebound on the forks,
and one slower on the slow-speed compression on the rear.
I'll give you
two clicks on the rebound," declared AJ, with a youthful
rush of blood. Young fellas should listen to their elders.
I went 100 metres up the track, turned around and came back.
"Has it
gone a bit squirmy in the front?" he asked with a grin.
I thought it might." Two clicks on the Marzocchis equate
to five or six on Kayabas.
With the mild
adjustments done, the TE became an absolute gem. The suspension
was instantly beautifully balanced front-to-back, and the
bike streaked through the bush with the plushness of a Daimler
coupled with the accuracy of an F1 race car. Rare, exquisite
suspension, and a set-up that won't tire a rider on a long,
hard run through the bush.
Go the Gloop
Mud; some people
love it, some just fall flat on their faces in it. The TE
rolled it under the wheels and spat it out, revelling in the
slop and never putting as much as a spoke wrong. That great
suspension was the major factor here, keeping both wheels
locked down on the surface most of the time and giving the
tyres their best chance to grip. But the geometry is right
on the pace as well.
There's no headshake
here; none at all. Successive small hits, smacking through
a ditch, floating over low whoops, even dropping off a 2-metre
bank at speed onto wet clay rock steady without a death-grip
in sight. The rider becomes progressively more confident with
the bike, until the point is reached where there simply isn't
enough room to cope with the speeds. Quartering deep water
ruts or slamming exposed roots at 80 or 90kph just isn't a
problem.
Despite the excellent
stability, the 250 tucks into a rut or berm with equal ease
- slide in, wait for the rear to latch on to some traction
and then blast on out. Even tight turns on loose stones failed
to upset it, and the bike does a sexy line of sliding through
turns.
If you can't
ride a TE250 fast through the bush, then it certainly isn't
the bike's fault.
Odds and Sods
 As with the
other '05 Husky four-strokes, you've gotta love the engine
access, particularly to the spark plug. After personal experience
in dismantling an '05 510 - hate those bullbars - I can report
that the bikes are brilliant to work on, with the emphasis
on common sense. They're built for getting the maximum out
of a 10-minute work period, and it shows.
Good stock
engine protection but we'd like to see it cover the frame
rails as well. 4mm off the ground clearance figures would
be a fair trade for a longer frame life.
Very quick
access to the big airbox.
The H-shaped
fuel cap is universally disliked because it's a mongrel to
use. And then there's the black tank ...
The riding
position is spot-on for a medium-sized rider. Apart from adding
handguards, we wouldn't alter a thing. |
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In
The End
Let's cut
to the chase. Husqvarna has always made great bikes, but
the factory's record is less than sterling. In the last
15 years it's had more owners than the average IT490,
and as many near-collapses as Pamela Anderson's cleavage
- both have required regular propping up. This self -destructive
cycle may have ended when the company passed to Malaysian
manufacturer, Proton, a couple of years back. While we
find the thought of the Malaysians and the Italians -
who still build the bikes - working together amusing,
in a culture-shock kind of way, it could be a strong blend
of talents. If the Asian business sense backs the Italian
flair, Husky can only go from strength to strength.
For the last
12 months the revamped company has been full-noise in
pumping out bikes, and is now consolidating this by improving
the spares situation. Australian importer, Paul Feeney,
has taken what can only be described as a bold step in
offering a two-year warranty on his Huskys.
"It's
what you have to do," said Paul when I put this to
him before the 250 test. "If the distributor doesn't
have more than three month's confidence in his bikes,
how can the customer?"
Good point.
And if the warranty comes with a rigid maintenance and
parts-replacement schedule, isn't that what you'd expect
with any race-based machine?
Politics
aside, the TE250 is something special. Yes, it needs a
higher top gear, but there are few bikes we'd rather ride
on a tight, hard track. None, actually. Good power smoothly
delivered, brilliant suspension and, dare we say it, light
weight, make the smallest Husky a hot favourite in snot,
slop and rock. |
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A
Word on AJ
AJ
Roberts, the man behind the bars in these pictures,
is currently cleaning up in enduro events nationally,
riding a Husky WR250. He's fast, focused and prepared
to work, but he's also a genuinely nice bloke with a
quick brain and a sharp sense of humour. Unfortunately
for him, when he raced our editor in the 400cc class
in the 2000 Safari, he got cleaned up. AJ set records
for passing our man - four times in one day ... - but
by the time he had his navigation skills on the pace
the race was nearly over. But get this, he was just
17, and rode the last few days of the event with a dislocated
shoulder. An heroic effort.
AJ is a
possible future world champ, something TK would dearly
love to see given that he could then prop up bars telling
all and sundry about how he once flogged him. We reckon
the editor was lucky; there'll be very few riders who'll
be able to make that claim in the coming years. |
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