Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

RIDING 1999 Husqvarna TE610 - -, . IMPRESSION ~ By Kit Palmer 00 0\ 0\ ,...... "",' ,...... ... OJ .o o ..... u o 42 have a love /hate relationship with Open -class fo u r-stroke off-road bikes - I love riding them, bu t I hate raci ng them (and some I don't even like riding) . Ha uli ng around a thumper p us h ing 300 p ou n d s over a 70 -mil e end uro course that the club's president's "Sfl-yea r-old b lind grand mo ther" laid ou t is usu ally jus t too mu ch for my 160po un d body to endure. Throw in a cou p le of bad ly timed stalls, a few sa ndy climbs, rocks, whoops, a nd a s tee p downhill, and I'm looking for the finish line afte r the first check. Give me a KTM 250E/XC, for example, an d I'm just getting warm ed up. When I'm in control of my own destiny, however - choosing my own trails, riding them at my own pace, and not having to be anywhere at any particular time - sometimes anything less than a mega thumper just won' t do. The Husqvarna TE610 is on e of thos e mega thumpers, for su re. The Italianbuilt mach in e w ei ghs in at o ve r 29 0 po unds with its 2.4-gallon tank filled to th e brim ; its sea t he ight is more than three feet a bove the g ro u n d; th ere 's n earl y 59 in ch e s of chassis b etween axles; it fu nnels spe nt gases through not one but two exha us t pipes; and the hu ge, tra sh-can- s iz ed pi st on pu sh e s o u t roug hly 45 hp - perfect for a ro mp in the hills. . In th e rig h t hands (s trong hand s ), however , the TE610 can be raced , and even raced to victory, as Swede Anders Eriksson proved in Europe th is year. The m ul ti-time ISDE go ld medallist captu red th is year's World Enduro title in the 500cc class, g iving th e Hu sqva rn a name yet another off-road World title. After making a few s ig nifican t changes to la st yea r's TE610 - new fra me , forks, shocks, camshaf t, to name a few - the '99 takes on a few significant upgrades of its own . For starters, Husqvarna replaced the '98' s 50mm conventional Marzocchi forks for 45mm inverted ' Zokes. In recen t yea rs, the 610 has put on a few pounds, so more-muscu lar legs are needed . The Italians also tinkered with the German-made Sachs shock that was first seen on last year's model. The Progressive Soft-Damp shock, with both compression and reb ound damping adjustm ents , is now 10m m lon ger fo r improved coo ling, and it's be en revalved for a smoother ride. In th e m otor d epartment, th e '99 ·TE610 features new crankcase s, a new gea r-d rive n oil pump, longer connecting ro d a n d s tro ke, a lig h t weig h t dropforged pis ton, a new cra nksha ft w it h im proved oi l p ass ages to allo w better connecti ng- ro d an d n e edl e-bea r in g lubrication, impro ved crank balancing for reduced vibration; and a new , high capacity, do uble-wall oil filter . The TE and all of the Husky big-bore four-s t ro kes feat u re du al e xh a us ts , w hich at one time seemed-quite trick but now just see m quit e heavy . But w hen it co mes to keeping big thump ers quiet , Hu sq varna beli ev es th at tw o is better than one. Powe r is transferred to th e re ar wheel via a six-speed transmission and a cab le-operated clu tch. . Elsewhere, you 'll find a new, braided s tainless-s teel front-b rak e line, a new taill ight and dual-headlight assemblies, and, for your riding comfort, the seat is narrower at th e rear and the footpegs are positioned a little higher than before. For tho se of you looking for a dualsport bike that is a little ou t of the ordinary , th e TE61 0 is wi red for "ea s y " dual-sport conver sion . But befor e you d o that, yo u might wa n t to w ait and che ck ou t th e elec tr ic- and kick -start TE610e, Hu sk y' s new d ual-spor t bike that the compa ny is hoping to be able to offe r in the United Stat es late r on. The Supermotard-styled motorcycle is in the process of get ting DOT-cer tified . Finishi ng tou ches inclu de Excel rim s, Pirelli tires , a n 18-inch rear wheel, an 0ring D.I.O chain, a skid pla te, USFSapproved spa rk arres tors, a mechan ical odo me ter, Brembo disc brakes and a 30d ay warra nty. The only thin g we can see that you' ll need to buy befo re your first enduro or trail rid e on the TE610 is a pair of handgua rds. Now, t h e sca ry pa rt : starting the beast. You' ll probably agree that there is something intimidating abo ut firing up big thumpers, especially ones with leftside kickstarters su ch as the TE610, but . the Husky is actually a breeze to start. It takes some effort when the TE is cold , but once it' s hot, it's downright easy to start. Even right-handers (or should we say "right-footers"?) ca n ge t the TE runnin g witho u t always ha ving to leave the seat. A smooth, efficient kick is far more produ cti v e than a h ard jer k. Th e TE eve n passed the post crash sta rt test. On e time, the TE laid on its side for a while gas d ribblin g on to the ground - while its rider hop ped up and d own on one leg w it h a s ma r ti ng kn ee. W hen he was ready to climb back aboa rd, it took only two kicks to get the TE running again. However, all is no t perfect in Kicksta r ti ng la n d . T he k ic kleve r al mos t a lways bind s with the foo tpeg a t the bottom of the stroke, and you have to persu ad e the lever to return to the top New inverted larks highlight some 01 the changes to the 1999 Husqvama TE610. of the stroke with a slight tap of yo ur heel. Off and runnin g, the T E is rea ll y quite docil e for such a massive machine. You do notice the wei gh t and the size of the bike, but thes e things are of no great concern until you are well int o your rid e and fatigue starts rearing its ugly head. Up until then , the TE is extreme ly fun to ride . Th e. fo u r-val v e, liquid-cooled motor pumps ou t a ton of pow er but in a smooth and complian t manner. Unlike the more explos ive and qu icker -revvin g Ya m ah a WR400 and a ny of th e H us a be rg thu mpe rs, the Hu s ky ' s mo tor delivers a more traditiona l four-st roketype power. Thanks to a -reshaved cra nk and rubber-mounted handl ebars, very little vibration finds its way to the rider's hands and arms - for an Open -class, single-cylinder .fou r-s troke, that is. Unfortuna tely, (me side effect of rubber-mounted bars is that "

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