Austrian made H'berg reliability

i'm not an owner but

yes they are more reliable.

no ignition is not oil bath(Jap KOKUSAN rather than SEM)

there are still some main bearing failures floating around - haven't heard much about CB bearing failures tho.

i'm sure each of these topics has been discusssed in greater detail.

Have Fun
Jeff

I've got 30 hours on a 05 450 with no problems at all. I don't ride much in the summer but lets see if I can break it this winters desert season :twisted:

Come on guys, Do the newer ignitions last longer than 25 hrs? $375 for a part I replace everyother valve adjustment. If I make the plunge and get a new one$7.5K, will it be more reliable than my 00?

04's , 05's and 06's are a new breed.....a new chapter

Of course I'm biased, but i also track warranty claims, and flog new models frequently.

The yellow and blue bikes come of the same production line as the orange ones, just with their own unique personality.

Since production has been in Austria we have seen significant quality control and reliability acheivements.

30 hours on an 05? shoot I'll have 30 hours on my new 06 FE450 by Thanksgiving. I ride every weekend Sat and Sun, being a single guy who has the FEVER to ride and living in weather good California means I ride a bunch. thats why I need two bikes. 8 months of Husky ownership = 2000 miles all dirt, 120 + hours. 4 valve checks and the valves have not moved. Husqvarna quality is proved to me, Now I'll prove the Husaberg quality yes, no or maybe. Stay tuned. I'm puttin some hours on this $8000 racing rocket..... you can count on it.

I have rode a 450 all summer and 4 enduros this fall, not one problem! That's over 700 miles, everytime I check the valves they check out good, oil changes and filter cleanings are it! I'm a believer. Now I want a 06 model

bergy said:

I have rode a 450 all summer and 4 enduros this fall, not one problem! That's over 700 miles, everytime I check the valves they check out good, oil changes and filter cleanings are it! I'm a believer. Now I want a 06 model

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so you have an 05? what about jetting? do you run the stock jetting or have you made changes, why and what altitude?

I'm at 800', so far I have went major rich with the pilot, I think stock is a 38, right now I am running a 48 with the clip in 3rd from top. This bike is for sell also, $5995.00!!!

Bergy and BB

When jetting the FE models you must remember that they are green sticker legal, consequently the needle is very lean. For better power and operating characteristics, run the FC needle, OBDVR. This will allow you to run a lean pilot which is better in hot start situations. A 40 or 42 will work in either the 450 or the 550 with the VR needle.

In terms of the 650, they list an OBEKR needle and I'm to understand they work well.

As far as clip postions, all models need a little fine tuning, but 3rd or 4th will work.

obdvr is the stock husky needle for green sticker, thanks for the tip.

I've sent JD a note asking if he has a kit for husaberg

bigbob said:

obdvr is the stock husky needle for green sticker, thanks for the tip.

I've sent JD a note asking if he has a kit for husaberg

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Our very own Dale Lineaweaver sells a jet kit for your Husaberg, and it is most likely better. I expect the JD kit he offers will be his KTM kit.

Brendan said:

bigbob said:

obdvr is the stock husky needle for green sticker, thanks for the tip.

I've sent JD a note asking if he has a kit for husaberg

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Our very own Dale Lineaweaver sells a jet kit for your Husaberg, and it is most likely better. I expect the JD kit he offers will be his KTM kit.

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Good to know. I'll try the dealer's jetting mix first, he says is good, then if I find I can't work it better I'll try Dales" how do I contact him? what's his deal is their a Dale needle? is it only jets and needles and clip position or other stuff...too like acc pump squirt duration , etc. ....oh no hurry Ill have time to post here and dial it in more.

but thanks and how do I contact Dale?

Dales kit was tested on a 550 and favors/requires accelerator pump removal.

Thanks and Sorry I hijacked this thread with jetting, bad habits from TT. This is an important topic the reliability thing ...so I'll get the jetting thing dealt with elsewhere here when I'm more ready and have a bike to play with.

now Back to the Topic> Husabergs are Tops in Reliabilty because I bought one and I know a good bike when I see it! That's why

Here's the straight dope on my 04 550e,

I have about 65 hours on the bike and roughly 1400 miles. I'd say about 60% of that is desert racing, and the rest play riding in the desert.

I have checked the valves 4 times. The first at 3 hours, one intake and one exhaust a little loose, the other two a little tight. Since then each time I have checked the valves their adjustment has harldly changed. And by that I mean that when they were checked I could still get the .005" feeler gauge in, it was just slightly tight.

Where as on my 01, the intakes would usually be a little tight at each 15 hour interval. IE couldn't get the .004" feeler gauge in. The 04 has different lash settings.

I had to replace the water pump bearing oil seal, b/c of a race I rode back in January in flash flood conditions in the desert. The silt type dirt, which made a nice mud, was forced into the weep hole during the 3 hour race wrecked the oil seal on the water pump bearing which lead to a weeping of oil out the weep hole. I spent about 12 hours cleaning all the mud from every nook and cranny off of my bike. That race also destroyed the fork seals as well.

As stated earlier, the ignition is Koukasan (sp?) and is dry type. Wheels and other bits are KTM.

Dan at Motoxotica is the Man to see about parts, great prices, and availability. This guy knows his stuff.

So far this bike has been flawless in reliability, it starts and runs great.

I'm running the DVR needle at #5, with a 42 pilot. And one full turn in on the acclerator pump adjustment screw, that's less fuel. All other jets stock.

reliability

bksavs said:

Come on guys, Do the newer ignitions last longer than 25 hrs? $375 for a part I replace everyother valve adjustment. If I make the plunge and get a new one$7.5K, will it be more reliable than my 00?

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8O I have almost 100 hrs on my '03 fe400 and have never had to replace my ignition :shock:

tm-enduro said:

Owners of '04 / '05 / '06 'bergs, please tell what you think about their reliability. I have been closely following the UHE over the last year and have noted that other than the Baja attempt on a fe550e, no Austrian 'bergs have broken! Is this true? Have the ignition failures of the past gone to the wayside? BTW, is the new ignition an oil bath? Are the counterbalancer failures just a bad memory? Has the 'berg achieved KTM like durability, with superior performance?
My Husky 125 is a hoot to ride (the suspension is amazing) and has been stone reliable, but I miss the feeling of chugging thru the tight trees on my 'berg, and I miss the ability to wheelie at 45+ mph.

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I bought a new FE450 four months ago and have been riding every other weekend and now have nearly 40 hours on the engine with no problems. Checked the valve clearance three times, adjusted after 8 hours as you would expect from a new engine but no need the other two times.
This bike is impresive straight out the crate. I thought it would be high maintenance from day one but apart from regular oil changes it`s just wash and go.

The only critisism is the fuel consumption. I now this is a race engine but I like to ride long trails and some of the routes we use in Scotland it can be 100 miles to a fuel stop, which means carrying extra fuel.
Now I am intersted in Dales kit that requires accelerator pump removal. Will this give me more miles to the tank full?, as i can do the same trail twice and get differant tank range depending on how quick I twist that throttle.

husabutt said:

Dales kit was tested on a 550 and favors/requires accelerator pump removal.

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Bill