If you know your motorcycle history, Husqvarna was born in Sweden, and developed a reputation for innovation in engineering. When it moved away from the Nordic Country, ultimately landing in Italy for some time, many of its best engineers stayed in Sweden and formed the brand Husaberg. Husaberg, not surprisingly, has its own well-deserved reputation for innovation in engineering.
Husaberg was bought by KTM quite some time ago, and has presented some marketing challenges for the Austrian brand, namely, that it was originally positioned as a premium product, more expensive than similar KTM models, yet KTM had the bulk of sales volume. It seemed awkward that Husaberg was positioned above KTM for another reason, namely that KTM viewed itself as a premium brand among off-road manufacturers.
The recent acquisition of Husqvarna by a company controlled by Stefan Pierer, CEO of KTM, will reunite the Swedish marques in a sense. According to an interview published by Motociclismo, Husqvarna will largely break ties with BMW, which currently supplies engines for the 650 enduro models and the Nuda 900 twin. It appears the 650s will be kept for a while, but the big twin is not considered close enough to the roots of the brand, and has sold poorly. Pierer made it clear that future Husqvarnas will likely share engines with Husaberg. If you follow the link, the interview is in Italian before translation.
With the integration of Husky and Husaberg, maybe we will see the Berg 70degree 4 stroke motor re emerge in the Husky chassis?….
I wish Husky well, but I also fear that ownership instability over the past years will have an immediate negative effect on sales, and it may take years for them to re-establish the brand unless they bring some truly innovative designs and engineering to the table. That, or very low prices…
The best Husky’s came from Sweden, Love to see them made there again!
A Shame. I REALLY wanted a Husqvarna Moab. No one will buy what you don’t sell.
-todd
Can you even BUY a newly designed Husky? I didn’t know you could.
It’s a shame there wasn’t enough market for them all to survive on their own. They seem to be emulating Bimota but without the outrageous prices. It was a shame that Husaberg has been relegated to a blue KTM. Their backslanted four stroke was a great concept that worked quite well.
This reminds me of those old TV shows that had you following that little bouncing ball on top of the words in order to sing along.
The day is coming: no one will know where their motorcycle is actually being built, leaving it up to the ad agencies to pump out snappy copy telling us that “heritage” is what matters!
Perhaps nobody will know where a bike, or it’s components, are being built. However, it will be plainly obvious where it is being designed. BMW has core characteristics that come from the German design core regardless of assembly point. Italian design is obvious as is Japanese. KTM is seen all over the attitude of their product, even when built in India.
My hope is that the re-engagement of Husky and Husaberg will mean the elimination of the Cagiva legacy and a return to the Swedish design that made Husky and Husaberg the stuff I desired in earlier years. Being built in Sweden would be a plus, and the market may bear it. As a drummer, I still buy Paiste cymbals made in the original factory for the qualities that imparts, regardless of cost…
Me thinks this is not done playing out yet. All of these products seem too similar to exist under the same corporate umbrella. Perhaps an Indian or Chinese firm comes into play, or…Triumph??? International intrigue awaits.
I’m confused. Currently Husaberg is just a blue KTM. The brand will killed a year ago. So now is the Husaberg staff joining forces with the guy who killed them and break away from KTM to join forces with Husky? Or is Husky going to be another sub brand of KTM? And is there a place for Highland in all of this mess?
All of this seems very strange to me.
I think one of those brands needs to die so that the other may thrive. Or at least survive.
Let’s hope Husky makes it all the way home…and that they still pursue a DI two-stroke…