Husqvarna Dirt Bikes - History And The Race LineupIn 1920 the company opened their first engine factory producing a 550cc four stroke V twin. It was also around this time that Husqvarna started developing racing motorcycles and had considerable success through the 20's and 30's, winning races in Sweden and then throughout Europe. Race wins included the International Six Days as well as GP and the Isle of Man TT road races. The Husqvarna racing machines were renowned for their light weight, due mainly to the then revolutionary work of designer Folke Mannerstedt who used various alloys in the bikes manufacture to decrease weight. The company stopped racing in the mid 30's when demand for bigger motorcycles slowed and their production became non-profitable however their engines were later modified and used in the production of army motorcycles. In 1935 the first two stroke machine was produced. It had a 98cc engine and the bike could be pedalled as well. Riders didn't need a motorbike license and the bike proved to be very popular throughout Sweden. 1946 heralded the release of the 'Svartkvarna' and it was a huge success due to its light weight and reliability. Husqvarna sold thousands of these machines after the second World War as the civilian population had to deal with widespread petrol shortages. In 1957 Husqvarna released the 'Silver Arrow', bringing with it a brand new design, a 175cc engine and a weight of less than 75 kilograms to comply with Swedens classification of a 'light motorcycle'. Both the Silver Arrow and the Golden Arrow (a 200cc machine that was released after the Silver Arrow) marked the start of serious development into the Husqvarna dirt bikes range. As the machines became more specialised for off road Husqvarna again started winning national and international championships. '08 Husqvarna Dirt BikesThe CR125 has had quite a bit of work done to the motor for '08, there's a new block with five transfer ports and the ports have been redesigned for better performance. The 125 has 45mm Marzocchi forks up front and a new rear Sachs shock.
There has been a number of changes made to the four stroke motocross range for '08. The chassis and rear subframe are all new as well as new plastics which has helped narrow the bikes across the radiator by 40mm.
The seat heights are 10mm lower, which coupled with the frame changes has lowered the centre of gravity on all the bikes to improve handling. The rear suspension has been updated, the shock now has an 18mm piston, replacing the 16mm item used on the '07 models. Husqvarna claims this has improved oil flow and made the rear shock easier to tune.
The TC510 has 50mm Marzocchi forks and the engines come in a matte black finish with a 'racing red' valve cover. There's not a whole lot that's new with the Husqvarna dirt bikes for '08, the enduro machines have fuel injection so it's only a matter of time before the technology is added to the motocross machines. (photos courtesy of husqvarnamotorcycles.com.au) Check out all the Husqvarna dirt bikes on the Australian site or on the US site here. You can check out the 07 range of bikes here Please note that to protect our younger visitors to Motocross 101, SafeSearch is turned on in these search results.
|
