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Buying a new FE570? Known issues, problems & common mods

Joined May 2012
201 Posts | 15+
southern hemisphere
Loving my new 2012 FE570, I did a pile of googling for known issues and mods required for a new berg and thought i'd just list everything I found here to save a bit of legwork for anyone thinking of buying one of these awesome bikes. Hope no one minds me rehashing stuff they have already posted when I'm a noob around here. :D

I'm still setting mine up so keen to hear if I've missed anything or got anything wrong. And this list isn't Berg bashing, the levels of awesomeness involved far outweigh the known issues with brilliant handling, suspension that will work great for most riders, flat power curve and adjustable ignition mapping, excellent reliability, decent 1.4 liter oil capacity, hot looks and a wide ratio six speed box to suit all kinds of riding.

35W HEADLIGHT: Poor lighting, you can get a marginal improvement with a Philips 12v 45W/40W BA20D, or go an aftermarket headlight like the Trail Tech X2 seems common, or the el cheapo H4 car bulb mod. http://www.husaberg.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=12783rl

REAR TAIL SECTION: This usually breaks within 10 seconds or 30 mins of hitting dirt, and has to be replaced with a tail tidy or remove all together and fit some flush mount indicators. If you want to keep the tail section, take the indicators off, drill holes in the plastic just under the rear fender and mount them there. Then trim the bottom of the rear section off as over rough ground this eventuallly catches on the tire and disintegrates. Then work out somewhere to put a reflector if one is needed to be road legal in your state/country.

EXHAUST PIPE SHIELDS: Earlier models were known for melting pants, boots and even causing fuel to boil in the tank where it comes close to the exhaust (at low fuel levels)! The 2012 has some shields and plastic guards to resolve these issues, but still none on the forward part of the pipe, apparently some riders are still melting their pants on this bit (no probs on mine though). Either wrap some muffler insulation around the offending parts, stick reflective heat tape on the bottom of the fuel tank, buy a universal heat shield or just make your own with some alloy plate and hose clamps that have a threaded hole in the bracket to allow bolting your home built exhaust shield in place.

REAR SPROCKET BOLTS: These are known to come loose. At the very least get some Loctite on them, or ideally fit Nyloc bolts as well.

FUEL CAP: Poor design, if you just push the logical place on the tab to release it usually only half releases. You need to apply pressure both sides of the breather hose to get a proper release, and it still isn't all that easy then.

EXPOSED RADIATOR HOSE: Some Berg owners think the radiator hose on the left hand side of the engine is too exposed and could hook up on stuff?

INLINE FUEL FILTER: The dealer told me pre-2012 models had too fine a screen which was prone to blocking, but Husaberg have now got the correct guage mesh in the 2012 models. Owners of earlier models just removed the screen completely, but the dealer told me they should really put the correct filter in as the fuel injection system easily craps up with dirty fuel. Also, the older filters would swell and restrict fuel when they heated up (easy fix is fitting a Can-am fuel filter). Heat buildup from the motor caused issues with some older fuel filters causing them to swell and restrict fuel. Most people fit a Can-am fuel filter and do away with the fuel quick disconnect. A fuel neck filler sock is a good idea as an extra preventative meausre against a blocked filter. Another cool idea is a fuel filter sock that sits under your fuel cap in the opening to the fuel tank (http://www.profill-australia.com/e-store/STORE.html).

HANDGUARDS & BASHPLATE: The plastic handguards need to be replaced with proper Barkbusters for serious offroad riding, like pretty much every other bike out there.

STICKY CLUTCH WHEN COLD: Right off the dealership floor, the clutch won't disengage when cold so you have to push the bike before engaging first gear. It's fine once the engine is fully warmed up. Doesn't seem to be much you can do about it and a lot of Katos do it, the Europeans make kick *** bikes but just don't seem to make decent clutches like the Japanese on a lot of their models.

TOUCHY THROTTLE OFF IDLE: Like a lot of fuel-injected bikes, some riders might find the instant response a hassle in gnarly tight terrain but easily fixed with a G2 throttle cam or putting the ignition mapping to the mild no.1 setting, or both. I did the el cheapo mod and took apart the throttle housing and created my own cam by getting a Stanley knife into the plastic the cable runs along. It's worked a treat.

AIR FILTER NOT SEALING PROPERLY? Only found one post about this so not sure if it's a known issue, no probs on my bike. He said the boot from the throttle body to the airbox didn't seal well?

ALLOY REAR SPROCKET: Cool if you want to save a few ounces in weight, but in reality it will just wear quickly then wear out your chain and front sprocket too. Probably worth putting a steel one on straight away.

CAM CHAIN TENSIONER: A long-term test said cam-chain tensioner didnt keep full pressure on the chain sometimes, but a Dirt Tricks tensioner fixed it. Worth considering if the cam chain starts to get noisy?

NO KICKSTART: Poor oversight by Husaberg imho, and that compression makes her tricky to bump start. Well worth replacing the battery with a Yuasa or top shelf battery at the first sign of problems.

TANK BOLTS: One guy said the tank bolts just spin when trying to get the subframe off, apparently if this happens a very thin spanner is needed to hold the nut.

NO IGNITION KEY: Not a problem for dirt rides, but security is a problem for adventure rides or parking in the city. Some riders fit a hidden kill switch.

THERMOSTAT RUBBING ON THE FRAME: One rider said this was an issue on all 09 10 models were the same but it was easily solved with making a bracket for it.

DECALS DON'T LIKE STAYING ON THE BIKE: Seems to happen a lot, and it's a warranty claim so if you bought new check your decals before your six month warranty is up.

SIX MONTH WARRANTY: What's the go with this? The Berg shares so many parts with the Kato but they get a full year warranty. It's almost like saying the Bergs just aren't that reliable - yet they seem to be!

FUEL PUMP ON EARLIER MODELS: It seems Husaberg put crap fuel pumps on any FE570 built before October 2011. Only a possible issue if buying a secondhand Berg, there's a thread around somewhere about identifying if you have the original crap pump or it has been replaced.

RADIATOR FAN: Bit surprising the Berg missed out on this when they are standard issue on many KTM models. Probably only needed if you'll be doing a lot of slow gnarly work in hot weather?

FUEL CAP: Apparently it's a good idea to remove the one-way valve and ball from the fuel cap.

WHERE'S THE IGNITION MAPPING SWITCH?: A cool feature is adjusting the ignition mapping from mild, standard to wild. But you have to buy this poorly designed OEM switch for $60 from the dealer when it probably costs them $5 a pop. A clear case of just milking the consumer for a bit more dough. Trail Tech and 70 Degrees do much better designed mapping switches for around the $120 mark.

SMALL TANK: 8.5 liters is fine for dirt rides but very limiting on longer rides, and the auxiliary tanks aren't cheap. The main options seem to be a safari tank, safari rear tank or subframe tank that replaces the existing plastic subframe.

WEEP HOLE MOD: Apparently there is a weep hole around the water pump area that slowly fills up with crud and can eventually do some damage. Basic mod to fix this on the thread below:
http://www.husaberg.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=14199

CRAMPED POSITION FOR TALLER RIDERS: Nothing new here compared to any enduro model. It was a problem for me, the cables will easily allow mounting high bend bars in the forward position on the triple clamps, with one to two inch risers, if you rotate the throttle housing and add a few cable ties so the throttle cables aren't rubbing on other parts of the bike. I padded the seat an inch higher (and wider) with some upholstery foam, vinyl and a staple gun. Lowboy pegs would help, I just ground a few mm of the peg mounts so they moved 8mm back and down.

PLASTIC SUBFRAME & LUGGAGE: Given that many riders are turning their Bergs into light weight adventure bikes, the plastic subframe is a bummer as you have to opt for soft luggage instead of a rear rack.

REROUTE OF WIRING: Disconnect the fuel breather from the frame and run the cable harness under it as it will rub through at some point.
fe570cableloomreroute.jpg


There is a similar issue with the the headlight connectors touching the frame after a few years so bend the plate a little for clearance.
Bendplatealittlesowiresdontrubonframe.jpg


ADVENTURE BIKE MODS
CUSH DRIVE HUB: If you can get your hands on a Husky TE610E rear wheel (note it must be the E model) then you can get a cheap cush drive hub (if you don't mind a silver rear rim and blue front rim). It slots straight in and just needs an extra 5 to 6mm of width on the disc side wheel spacer to work.

EXTRA OIL CAPACITY, FUEL & WATER STORAGE
This thread has some pretty awesome tips. He plumbed the frame for extra oil capacity, the swingarm to carry water, and the subframe for an extra four liters of fuel. Apparently a few Bergs have caught fire from the subframe tank mod so you would really need to know what you were doing with that mod. http://www.expeditionportal.com/veh...want-a-lightweight-adventure-travel-bike.html

GEARING: Have to love that wide ratio gearbox. I've geared mine 15/45 so she's just cruising on the highway. First gear is too high for the gnarly stuff but a Rekluse autoclutch takes care of that.

Luggage: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=782994&page=5

GPS: There's an AUX connector just under the battery cover. You can buy the required connector to plug into this from BMW (Part # 83300413585) for about $30. Typical Beemer price for a $1 piece of plastic. :shock:

SNC00156.jpg
 
Great post - I've got a new 2011 and didn't know about half that stuff!

I'm spending $1k on a cush drive rear wheel - wish i'd known about that TE610 deal.
 
Heat buildup from the motor caused issues with some older fuel filters causing them to swell and restrict fuel. Most people fit a Can-am fuel filter and do away with the fuel quick disconnect.

Heat buildup causes the fuel to boil, especially at low fuel levels. The resolution to the problem can be by fitting an aftermarket exhaust which is much free'er flowing reducing heat buildup, wrapping the header pipe or lining the bottom of the fuel tank with a heat blanket or reflective heat tape. Sometimes all of the above.

Clutches drag alot when new.

A fuel neck filler sock is a good idea as an extra preventative meausre against a blocked filter.
 
moto said:
Clutches drag alot when new.

thanks for the tips, moto. i've added them to the list above and will add any new comments there too if no one minds.

did your clutch drag less as you ran the bike in? i've clocked up 600 miles and there's no improvement as yet. googled around a bit and there doesn't seem to be any suggestions for oils etc that minimize the issue. not a big problem, i just do a rolling start when cold, and always try to get neutral before the bike stops.
 
Thanks for the heads up Hoosie5seventy

I am picking up a new 2011 FX450 (last of the 2011 stock) on the weekend.
I have read a lot of different opinions on the issues listed.
Good to know some more black and white facts and along with the fixs for some of the issues.

Weep hole mod? is this something i should be looking at also before hitting the mud?

If I find any more or can shed some light on any more of the listed issues ill be sure to report back.

Pictures were also very helpful ;)
 
hoosie5seventy said:
moto said:
Clutches drag alot when new.

thanks for the tips, moto. i've added them to the list above and will add any new comments there too if no one minds.

did your clutch drag less as you ran the bike in? i've clocked up 600 miles and there's no improvement as yet. googled around a bit and there doesn't seem to be any suggestions for oils etc that minimize the issue. not a big problem, i just do a rolling start when cold, and always try to get neutral before the bike stops.

I have less miles than you and my 'drag' has gotten better. It will only jerk forward when put into gear and stall 50% of the time now. So it's 50% better than it was :lol:

My issue is still that: with the lever adjusted to maximum (earliest) engagement I still have to pull the clutch lever half way in to dis-engage the motor. Flicking the clutch when changing gear is near on impossible. Turning into tight corners in snotty single trail (what I mostly ride) also requires pulling the clutch so far in it's awkward and I keep flaming out. Most annoying!

I have taken the issue up with the dealer but for the most part they are telling me that's how it's supposed to be and it's alright. I say BS!! It's a race bike, I should be able to dis-engage the motor with a few mm of lever travel if that's how I want it set-up.

Sounds like a small issue but think how often you use your clutch in tight, ganrly singles....it's hampering my riding! :cuss:

You might want to mention that the map switch requires the engine to be turned off before any chnages are implemented. Coming from a KTM this seems wierd.

Good post though, love your work :D
 
Not really a fan of how you say the handguards have to go and bark busters are required. Do you have any idea how many wrists have been broken due to barkbusters? I'll never run them.
 
08FE650 said:
Not really a fan of how you say the handguards have to go and bark busters are required. Do you have any idea how many wrists have been broken due to barkbusters? I'll never run them.

Probably a lot less than people have smashed fingers. Or they are stuck without a clutch lever or brake lever because they don't carry a spare.

If you ride gnarly terrain and/or crash a lot having wrap around hand guards is a must. I have never seen or heard of anyone (in Aus) having their wrists caught. I have seen several crushed fingers (one of my own) and many, many broken levers ending a ride for someone.
 
Or they are stuck without a clutch lever or brake lever because they don't carry a spare.

First ride on my FX450 on the weekend, Pushed the bike over before I rode it so I wouldn't be to "precious" about it in the bush.
Bloke the clutch lever before I even rode it... snapped at the lever weak point. Still ridable.

Brush guards didn't do much in the bush, but iv also herd of people breaking wrists with bark busters.
 
08FE650 said:
Not really a fan of how you say the handguards have to go and bark busters are required. Do you have any idea how many wrists have been broken due to barkbusters? I'll never run them.

to date i'm not aware of any comprehensive longitudinal study on wrist/arm fractures from barkbusters and relative stats on mashed fingers from a lack of barkbusters, so i don't have any idea on those numbers :D . however, i know a lot of guys rotate their barkbusters down to reduce the chances of wrist fractures if they go over the bars and forget to hang on; i've done this and rotated the levers downward as i stand on the pegs most of the time.

but point taken, barkbusters shouldn't be a "must do" mod to the berg. a lot of these issues really need some kind of serious study and stats. e.g. i only bought proper knee braces when a comprehensive study worked out it halves your chances of knee damage when dirt riding.
 
Only once have I heard of a guy snapping wrists with barkbusters. He went over the bars and his hands stayed behind, 2 wrists clean broken and he was 3 kilometers from home. Luckily a friend was with him and nursed him back to help.

I have always used wrap around protectors despite this story. The number of levers I have broken on my mx bike are countless, the number saved on my enduro...priceless.
 
Yeah I suppose I had never really thought about it like that. I just figured I'd rather smash my hand then snap my wrist. I'd never really considered it a mate that pointed it out when I mentioned getting some, he's raced MX pretty much his whole life and talked me out of it. Did a bit of a google search then and theres definetly people out there that have done it.
 
08FE650 said:
Not really a fan of how you say the handguards have to go and bark busters are required. Do you have any idea how many wrists have been broken due to barkbusters? I'll never run them.
Do you know how many people have been killed crossing the road. Or driving in cars... In fact I think I'm just going to stay indoors and wrap myself in bubble wrap. Oh, hang on... maybe that's not such a good idea either. :mrgreen:

Clearly you don't ride much wooded single-track. If I didn't have my HDB guards by now I'd either have no clutch/brake levers or no fingers/knuckles.
 
bogeyman said:
Do you know how many people have been killed crossing the road. Or driving in cars... In fact I think I'm just going to stay indoors and wrap myself in bubble wrap. Oh, hang on... maybe that's not such a good idea either. :mrgreen:
Clearly you don't ride much wooded single-track. If I didn't have my HDB guards by now I'd either have no clutch/brake levers or no fingers/knuckles.

:D yeah, it probably comes down to the kind of riding you do. there's a similar debate over knee braces. some riders say they'd never wear them because it increases the risks of keeping your knee intact but can transfer the impact to your upper leg and break your femur. then if the bone cuts your femoral artery you can bleed out in about four minutes, even if it's not an exterior bleed. didn't read of any deaths, but it seems a few motocrossers have done their femurs wearing knee braces. i figured these are in the handful category, compared to thousands of guys with dodgy knees so it was a simple choice for me.

even neck braces get the same kind of debate. some guys reckon in a really big impact the brace could provide the wrong kind of leverage and actually result in internal decapitation 8O . another debate with heaps of speculation but no hard figures.

as for barkbusters? without hard stats, hard to say. it looks like motocrossers tend to avoid barkbusters as there chances of going over the bars and breaking wrists are much higher than typical dirt riding, where it looks like a much smaller risk. but it still obviously happens. just gotta weight it up against the higher chances of broken levers and crushed fingers, and the kind of riding you do?
 
Steering Stop Bolts (L & R): Mine were wound quite a long way out hampering the turning circle of the bike. If you ride rocky technical terrian terrain or want to chuch a u-turn on a firetrail it's MUCH easier with the bolts wound in some. Just check there are no clashes when at full lock. If the cables on the RHS side of the steering head are tucked behind the fuel breather then there is no drama. The ECU/CDI on the LHS is shaped such that the fork tube will not strike it through the natural steering arc.

Removing the ball from the filler cap: It might be recommended, however, if your bike is laid on it's side it will our fuel out of the tank cap breather.

Fuel Filter Sock: A good idea for extra filtration but it really slows down the fuelling up process.

Twitchy Throttle: I found after some messing around that rotating the throttle forward on the bars really helped with the control of the bike. I'd like to have it farther forward than I have it now but the brake master cylinder gets in the way. Worth trying before running out and buying a throttle cam or the like.
 
moto said:
Steering Stop Bolts (L & R): Mine were wound quite a long way out hampering the turning circle of the bike.
Removing the ball from the filler cap: It might be recommended, however, if your bike is laid on it's side it will our fuel out of the tank cap breather.
Twitchy Throttle: I found after some messing around that rotating the throttle forward on the bars really helped with the control of the bike.

good calls. yeah, forgot to mention the steering stop bolts. i screwed them almost all the way in and made a big difference, the oil tanker steering circle of the TE610 and kato 690R was a real hassle in tight stuff.

why do some guys remove the ball from the filler cap? i just put in because others had mentioned it, but couldnt think of a good reason for doing this.

re: editing posts... i was revising my original post every time someone came up with new issues or revised tips so readers didn't have to trawl through the whole thread, but it looks like i was limited to six edits and now i can't change the original post any more. looked through all the FAQs for this forum and couldn't find a way to contact the administrators. any suggestions on how i can get more than six edits?
 

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