Considering a Husaberg

foxa4 · Apr 23, 2006

I am considering purchasing a 99 Husaberg FE501 the guy said its in good condition he bought it from the second owner and road it for 3 weeks then he decided the bike is to big for him. Im 6' around 220lb an experienced rider. I want a dual purpose bike but have ben disappointed with the bikes i've owned. currently I own a KLX300, with lots of low end, a blast on the tight trails but not much power in the top end. I want a light weight dual sport I can ride on the street but have fun in the woods also. I know its asking for allot but the DR650 and XR650 I have owned in the past were just dogs on the trails. Any info? the guy wants $2300 for the bike. Thanks for any response.

oh yea he said after he changed the oil its ben dripping a little. is there any known problems with oil leaks for the 99? Thanks

LeFrog · Apr 23, 2006

That is actually too much for this bike. You could get a newer design Berg for that price, as I did.

I would also bet you are the only one interested.

Either keep looking or propose a lower price.

These bikes are good bikes, by the way, just not worth two Gs.

Sorry if I wrecked somebody's deal.

ned37 · Apr 24, 2006

as froggy says, his price is a little hi, but we all start off that way. prolly a good deal at just under 2k if in good shape, low hours, etc. also depends on where you are. hes prolly selling it because he can't start it easily enuff. some people just don't have the patience to get it dialed in. oil leak is most likely related to the drain plub seal or the oil filter cover seal. not a biggie unless he did some serious crossthreading.
ned

foxa4 · Apr 24, 2006

Thanks for the info, This is a cool forum! I think Im going to test ride it and see how I like it. just a little hesitant since the guy told me he has only had the bike for a few weeks. Also it might be a resale nightmare

risky1 · Apr 24, 2006

if you are going to purchase an 8 y/o race bike with an unknown quantity of hours on it, resale value should be the farthest thing from your mind.

do not let this discourage you, as there are many people here as well as some of the best tuners who believe that the 2000 and earlier motors are a superiour design than the current model. sans the ignition, albiet they may need some updating and freshing up...

the general consenus has been that the 501 motor is the sweetest there is for generally all applications.

I owned a 98, good bike! had a top end partial rebuild done and sold it for more than i bought it... the market is out there if you are willing to bide your time...

in my opinion a '99 in great shape should be worth around 1800+/-

foxa4 · Apr 24, 2006

The seller told me when he brought the bike home he changed the oil and filters. When he road the bike a few times he noticed an oil leak. He described it as leaking when hot 5 drips per minute. He then told me he thought the leak might be from him putting a light weight oil in it. I asked where did it look like the oil was coming from, he told me it looked like the bottom of the engine where the case separates. Im not sure what to think about this. I wouldn't think light weight oil would do that. Any advice would be appreciated. Im thinking of taking a look but the bike is 3hrs away and I don't want to wast my time if it needs a gasket that would require splitting the case open. I don't expect a miraculous diagnoses but thought someone would know what to look for. Thanks

berger · Apr 24, 2006

I'm not buying the light weight oil bit either.
It could be anything from a oil filter oring seal to a cracked case (yes, thats been known to happen quite frequently on the 01's anyways). Tell him he needs to either repair the leak or positively ID it before you will bother coming out to look at it. I would consider that a very reasonable request.

Hakan · Apr 25, 2006

I have a 99 501 that I bought in 01. It has been a great bike, especially well suited for dual sport in my opinion. I thnk they are a bit slow steering and the suspension from that era, espesially the WP Extreme fork is not the best. The engine just snorts and will leave most bikes way behind.

I initially had problems starting my bike before I got the routine down, now it normally fires from the starter or in 1-2 kicks. This could be the case for him re-selling so fast.

Have him look at the oil drain or oil filter to see if comes out from there. The oil drain has an alu washer for seal and could easily bot been tightened enough or be worn out. If there is a crack in the case??? I probably would not drive a 6 hour roundtrip to inspect.

Good luck with your decission,

Hakan in LB, CA

DaleEO · Apr 25, 2006

The oil leak could be as simple as it needing a new copper washer on the drain plug. If it's leaking from the drain plug, it could easily be drooling over to the middle of the motor and dripping from there. But, as Berger said have this guy positively id the leak point. You know it's entirely possible that when this guy changed the oil the copper washer was stuck to the motor, and when the bolt got removed the oil just carried it into the pan and may not even be there, something you might ask him to check, I mean it's only a quart of oil.

I also agree with Risky and Lefrog on the price. 2300 is way too much for that old of a bike. You really won't know until you see it though, it could be a diamond in the rough. I have seen used bikes bought that were several years old and still had the orginal tires on them.

Also check the axle clamp bolts on the forks, and make sure they have not been overtightened to the point that metal has broken on them they are hard to come by.

Good luck!

foxa4 · Apr 26, 2006

Hey guys, I drove down and checked out the bike yesterday. It was actually a nice drive. The bike was located on an Island community in the Puget sound here in Washington state. The Pacific Northwest can be a gorgeous place when the sun is out, I had to take a fairy to one of the many Islands in the sound. The fairy ride back was especially nice at night with my new Husaberg silhouetted with the Seattle city lights on the horizon. Yes I bought the bike, I have to say it had me at first wheelie, and the handcrafted qualities where very attractive, the bike just has that good quality feel to it. The oil leak appears to be coming from the top part of the engine. At first it looked like it was seeping out of the head gasket but I think it might be running down from the valve cover. The owner showed me an invoice listing all the work done on the bike recently about $400 worth of work from jetting to valve adjustment and a new stator. It looked like the shop used some silicone sealant on the valve cover. I will check it out closer when I have time. Anyway looks like im sticking around because this site is an awesome resource! Thanks again for the advice

LeFrog · Apr 26, 2006

Well, enjoy your Berg. I hope everything will work out for the best.

DaleEO · Apr 26, 2006

Congrats on your new Husaberg!!

I agree that your oil leak could very well be coming from a vlave cover, might even just be loose??

Let us know if you need some help once you identify exactly where it is.

wildbill · Apr 26, 2006

Have fun on your new bike. Another place that can leak is where the hose vents into the backbone of the frame from top of engine. The clamp might just be loose or the fitting. Both easily fixed. Good luck and enjoy.

sandskipper · Apr 26, 2006

To add on to what wildbill stated, the funnel shaped crank case vent feedthrough also gets brittle and is subject to cracking and degradation. Inspect around the hose clamps for cracking. I just replaced mine after three years with the check valve modification as this was a major leaking point on my '02 Fc550. Dan over at Motoxotica sells some reusable valve inspection covers for cheap and does a great job at sealing off the inspection ports. The valve inspection ports have been a cause of leaks for many years unless rectified by planning the surfaces or sealing with RTV or your prefered sealing compound.

Regards,

Considering a Husaberg

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