2013 Husqvarna 650 Terra

[PirateJohn]

Weren't there rumors that BMW wanted to buy KTM? Maybe this is the next best thing - give the man that built KTM his own line of similar bikes and sell parts to him.

[K1W1]

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

Perhaps BMW are having trouble incorporating Husky into BMW showrooms? Dunno. Why not let them be separate ... away from BMW?

BMW have an endless flow of money from the car side. They don't need to sell off Husky ... unless there are some unforeseen political/legal considerations none of us are aware of. (always possible)

BMW are parasites. They have a history of doing this sort of thing. They buy small companies to milk them of their technology that BMW is unable to develop themselves then dump them once they have the knowledge.

Example - Land Rover
BMW purchased Land Rover in the mid 1990s because they had no history or experience in 4WD. They used Land Rover brains to develop the 4WD systems in their SUV range then dumped the company to Ford (who subsequently virtually ruined it before selling it to Tata who have done wonders at restoring and improving things in a relatively short time frame).

[hansi]

[bobobob]

Originally Posted by K1W1

BMW are parasites.

BMW poured tons of money into Husky, modernized their factory and gave them a much need product boost.
Some might argue they saved the company and provided capital and technology they otherwise wouldn't have had access to.

[klxmack]

Originally Posted by bobobob

BMW poured tons of money into Husky, modernized their factory and gave them a much need product boost.
Some might argue they saved the company and provided capital and technology they otherwise wouldn't have had access to.

Agreed. Im sure that BMW pumped hundreds of millions into Husky and are not seeing the pay off in money or Tech.
BMW dealers talked like Husky is the bastard child of the family.
I hope that KTM buys them and builds and alternate line to KTM.
I will never buy a bike brand who's corporate colour is orange. I hate that colour.

Cheers

[RuggedExposure]

Well I'll be damned!

I just put my down payment on the next Terra that shows up in El Paso...

This is just my luck.

What will this mean for warranty work and parts?

[Butters]

Seems a little early for doom and gloom. I could easily envision the following scenario:

KTM Guy doesn't like the loss of control/direction since being purchased by Bajaj. So he buys Husky. Perhaps he can't buy it outright or realizes he also needs some production assistance, so BMW sells him a controlling share, perhaps keeping some ownership itself. Part of the purchase includes an agreement to source XX% of new Husky parts from BMW. This way BMW still gets some future return on their Husky investment and KTM Guy gets some well funded assistance.

It could be a Win-Win for both parties or it could be that KTM Guy gets stifled by BMW. Here's hoping it's the former and not the latter. But short of having a crystal ball, it seems way to early to foresee anything.

[Adv Grifter]

Originally Posted by eakins

UPDATE:

The latest is that Stephan bought Husky, not KTM. Hmmmm.... the plot thickens considerably.

http://www.nieuwsmotor.nl/motornieuw...r-van-ktm.html

Web translated:

As already whispered BMW Motorrad sells its subsidiary Husqvarna Motorcycles, not to KTM but to the personal business of its CEO Stefan Pierer called Pierer Industries AG.

The consequences for Pierers role as CEO of KTM is still unclear and will in the next six time be sought out. It is obvious that the European competition authorities might interfere with this, but it is also the possible that Pierer will resign his position at KTM.

For some time Pierer has been the CEO of the Austrian motorcycle company, but a large part of the shares therein are sold to the Indian motorcycle giant Bajaj.

Purchasing Husqvarna Pierer would potentially enable again completely with a clean slate to start again.

There will be viewed in the coming months if any form of cooperation between KTM and Husqvarna is possible, there is at least already a new model announced at the EICMA 2013 already will be shown

This morning we reported that KTM is not in the market to buy Husqvarna, this would also not be a very logical step.

For BMW the sale of Husqvarna ensuresit substantially looses face. The German company pumped millions into the Italian Husqvarna, but could never make a success of.

The following chart is from Cross Industries Ltd, the company which Bajaj for almost half owner. It now owns Husqvarna said Pierer Industries AG makes no part of it..

A bit lost in translation in the above translation, no? Some non sequitur's in there. I'm betting on Bajaj forcing Pierer OUT ... and the Husky purchase will not go through.
Here's my post from the other thread:

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

It's not Husky's problem ... it's BMW's.
BMW own the contracts with Loncin, which I assume will be assigned to the new owners of Husqvarna. The question is, can the new owners be as vigilant in guiding QA as BMW have been. Turn your back and suddenly your Terra motor gets a bunch of 3rd tier reject parts. Or ... the new owners (Pierer ?) could bitch and moan to the Chinese saying the motor is too expensive ... well, you can guess where that will lead! (ever bought a "budget" Chinese BBQ! )

If it wasn't for Bajaj, KTM may have gone under. They were on the edge. Pierer pretty much blew it, doing things like building a new factory he couldn't pay for. The Polaris deal helped mitigate disaster but really it was Bajaj that saved KTM. I'd be interested to know where Pierer is getting cash to pay BMW? Will he sell off all his holdings in KTM? What percentage does he even own? Who would lend him money? And can Pierer extract himself cleanly from KTM without financial obligations or non compete clauses?

[Mobiker]

Originally Posted by klxmack

Agreed. Im sure that BMW pumped hundreds of millions into Husky and are not seeing the pay off in money or Tech.
BMW dealers talked like Husky is the bastard child of the family.
I hope that KTM buys them and builds and alternate line to KTM.
I will never buy a bike brand who's corporate colour is orange. I hate that colour.

Cheers

I don't know how well Huskys have been selling, but I visited 2 BMW/Husky dealers in the last 2 months and they both spoke highly of Husky. Gateway's first Terra didn't sit on the showroom floor any time at all.

[eakins]

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

A bit lost in translation in the above translation, no? Some non sequitur's in there. I'm betting on Bajaj forcing Pierer OUT ... and the Husky purchase will not go through.
Here's my post from the other thread:

not sure. i just copy and pasted that from yellow pigs thread in rockies.
http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=859417

[rickypanecatyl]

KTM seems to be doing amazing here! 4 months ago we had 1 dealership in the country... Now there's 3 new ones in Kuala Lumpur and I don't know about Penang where the old dealer was. It's the 200/350 Dukes that are everywhere now and I'm sure are giving them some capitol.

5 years ago I was hoping to see lots of Husky's here as our old Prime Minister bought Husky thru Proton (a national car company) along with Cagiva and MV Agusta.

[K1W1]

Originally Posted by RuggedExposure

What will this mean for warranty work and parts?

Probably nothing. You will still have a warranty and spare parts will still be available.

[Cruz]

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

A bit lost in translation in the above translation, no? Some non sequitur's in there. I'm betting on Bajaj forcing Pierer OUT ... and the Husky purchase will not go through.
Here's my post from the other thread:

Why do you think this will happen?

[Nev..]

Originally Posted by RuggedExposure

Well I'll be damned!

I just put my down payment on the next Terra that shows up in El Paso...

This is just my luck.

What will this mean for warranty work and parts?

Your warranty will not be affected at all. They have a legal obligation to honour the warranty of the bike you buy. As for parts, there is no reason why the supply of parts would change, even if many of them are sourced directly from BMWs parts bin. BMW would have a lot of trouble selling the company without guaranteeing a continued supply of parts, and it is unlikely any purchaser, or even the european competition watchdog would allow any sale to go ahead without this supply being guaranteed. Additionally, the sale of parts to Husqvarna probably represents a good income stream for BMWs balance sheet.

[RuggedExposure]

Originally Posted by Nev..

Your warranty will not be affected at all. They have a legal obligation to honour the warranty of the bike you buy. As for parts, there is no reason why the supply of parts would change, even if many of them are sourced directly from BMWs parts bin. BMW would have a lot of trouble selling the company without guaranteeing a continued supply of parts, and it is unlikely any purchaser, or even the european competition watchdog would allow any sale to go ahead without this supply being guaranteed. Additionally, the sale of parts to Husqvarna probably represents a good income stream for BMWs balance sheet.

I'm more worried about the Terra going the way of the 6.4L Powerstroke/ bastardized love child of Ford/Navistar.
It was made for 2 years then ended abruptly in lawsuits. The 6.4L is junk, and no one wants to warranty it and finding parts (OEM or aftermarket) is hard because of this.

I'm concerned that no aftermarket companies will make a wide selection of parts like panniers, bags, etc since the Terra will more than likely only be made for 1-2 years. And I really don't want to fork out $900 for the OEM hard bags.