Husky? 04? 05?

[purplecopter]

OK, I've decided to buy a Husky... I think. My local dealer has some 04s left for a decent price. Are there any major problems with the 04s that they fixed in the 05 model as it is also a half decent price when compared to the 06? Also I will be riding mostly offroad but with and hour or so on the highway to get there and back, has anyone had any problems in doing this? One more thing, what is the travel in the suspension on the 04 and 05, being a short-arse I need to increase the sag a fair bit and would like to know there is still enough left. Neither the Husky website nor the dealer could tell me.

Thanks again

[aussiethumper]

Are you comparing the 04 to 05 for the TE's or TC's, 250's or 450's? Because the answer to your questions will be different onwhich capacity and model you go for. Also, whats the price diff now between the 04 & 05's? I hear they are running them out at great deals. That also answers a lot of questions because it will determine how much money you have left in the kitty to spend on updates & mods?

[purplecopter]

sorry, i can't believe i forgot to mention the model. i was looking at the TE510. the diff in price is AU$1000 which i was going to use to get a tank sprockets and barkbusters and have some change.

[aussiethumper]

If theres only $1000 difference between the 04 & 05 you are looking, then I'd go for the 05. The main improvements on the 05 is the keihin carb, improved valves, centential bodywork plastics, updated suspension settings. You won't be able to upgrade these components for $1000. Having said that, the 04 is still a good strong reliable bike. I reckon a little bit of tinkering with the carb & suspension and the 04 will run as good as the 05, it'll just look a bit dated against the new bikes. But as you say, the $1000 can go a long way towards LR tank, sprockets etc. BTW - I love my 04 and actually prefer the skinny feel over the wider 05's. Suspension travel is the same but seat height is different, I think the 05 is lower?? (check the spec sheets on the Husky website to be sure). Long hours on tarmac at constant high revs is never a good thing for any race-bred bike IMHO, maybe some others can comments about their experiences with Huskies so far?

[purplecopter]

I'm biting the bullet and getting the TE510, no more fartin around. though i'll search for a better dealer as this one's run out prices are the normal rec. retail prices. I know they're not designed for highway but they seem to be the most able to handle it and the 2 year warranty makes the deal even sweeter. if i come into some money later i'll get a trailer to save his legs... and then maybe a car that will pull it, my current car cost less than my helmet.

[TonyBray]

my current car cost less than my helmet.

🤣

That's a good one!!

[501EXPLR]

so did u get the 04 or 05?

[purplecopter]

can't get the bike for a little while yet, it's too long a story to put in here... suffice to say i'm completely tangled up in red tape. as soon as i'm free again i will get the 05, the benefits outweigh the cost as aussiethumper pointed out.

[DoctorRzed]

I would of got the 05 Husky but I was able to get a new 04 one for $2900

[ejensen]

$2900 that's crazy. Do they have any more?

[Dave Hopkins]

I came from KTM (not a bad experiance) love my 05 TE450, and think the carb swap from 04 to 05 would make up most of the $1,000 difference. I do a lot of head rebuilds in my part time business and I think it would be an error to buy an 04 without acknowledgeing much shorter valve life on the 04!

One other issue is dual sport/ road use, this is a close ratio trans, road speed with stock gears is not very fast, low is low enough that gearing up to a 15 is no problem but is still is working hard on the hiway, if I was going to do much of that I would get the TE610 or the KTM EXC