VOL. 50 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 22, 2013
To emphasize
Husky's legacy
and off-road roots,
Husqvarna/KTM
held its 2014 world
media launch in
Sweden, but the
company's new
home is in Austria.
P77
though, I must admit, I'm not sure I
ever got out of third gear on these
trails.
Each of the Husky models had
their own advantages in these
near-extreme conditions: Both
the TE 250 and 300 felt light and
nimble and had plenty of torque –
especially the 300 – to fall back
on when things got really ugly,
while the four-strokes all seemed
to hook up a tad better on the
wet rocks and muddy trail and
seemed a bit easier to maintain a
fast and steady pace. The TEs felt
a little stiffer and a bit more antsy
on the trail, while the FEs divvied
up a more cushy ride and weren't
as busy feeling on the trail.
The TE 250 and 300 feel very
similar overall, but the 300 has
better lugging control off the bottom and hits noticeably harder
when the motor comes on the
pipe (which can get you in trouble
from time to time if you get sloppy
on the controls). Like the KTM
250 and 300 XCs, the TE Huskys
have electric starting with backup kick. The TE's ignition is also
adjustable between two ignition
curves that can be switched by
changing plug connections.
As for the thumpers, the FE
250's DOHC motor is a revver but
still pulls well off the bottom and
offers decent torque, though not
nearly as much as the FE 350.
The 350's larger displacement
takes the edge off the rider when
things start getting gnarly on the
trail compared to its 250cc counterpart. Power is overall a bit
smoother on the 350, too, and
