2008 FSR street legal in USA?

[Bandit9]

2008 FSR 450/515 street legal in USA?

[Boomhauer]

I know I have seen a few here and there Blanco. There is one down in San Antonio that is.

[barkeater]

Last I heard, Dale at Gas Gas USA was working on it. I think they were trying for a green sticker in CA too. But that's just heresay.

[GMP]

I hope so, it would really help get them back on the map. Husky quickly sold every TE they brought in.

[jeffd]

I think I heard it was about $50k (but it might have been 100k) to get epa certification on a bike. I heard a husaberg rep talking about it... When you only bring in 50 a year - it might be hard for that to "pencil out"...

Some states are more stringent than others about tracking 50 state legal status on bikes (epa/dot approval etc.) - the federal government is stepping in and pushing smaller states to stricter enforcement. Part of this is coming from the nhtsa (national highway traffic safety administration)- when a bike is in an accident and it is not supposed to be street legal in the first place - it is a "red flag"... The days of license plates on these "grey bikes" is coming to an end...

Along these lines, I just found the following on a motorcycle website...

U.S. Motorcycle Sales Report for 3rd Quarter 2007

October 24, 2007 - U.S. Motorcycle sales are down across the board so far this year, with one exception. The dual-sport category is up by about 4% compared to the same period in 2006. This may be due to the popularity of motorcycles like the updated KTM 990 Adventure or the popular BMW R1200GS.

The remaining categories, including off-road and street bikes, have suffered in 2007. Off-road sales are down about 15%, while street bike sales are off by nearly 5%. Even scooter sales are down by nearly 2%; the scooter market just can't seem to gain momentum in the U.S.A., even with relatively high fuel costs persuading many to find more efficient methods of transportation.

Overall motorcycle sales, including all categories, are down by 6.4% so for the first three quarters of 2007 when compared to 2006.

Given the statistics given above - the acquisition of dual sport bike specialist husqvarna by bmw seems like a prudent move.

jeff

[Cruiser]

You would think the dot cert wouldn't be so costly, aprilla was able to get the 450 and the 550 approved and I dont think that they actually sold that many.. Also the cost of the dot to selling out of the model as husky did,, When was the last time husky sold out of any line of their bikes before??

[jeffd]

Les told me it is the one time certification by the epa for the motor that is costly. In subsequent years it is much less and even if they change from carbs to efi (as husky did) - it doesn't have to be re-certified completely...

So, the cost should actually be amortized over multiple years of sales.

jeff

[roostafish]

Originally Posted by Cruiser

When was the last time husky sold out of any line of their bikes before??

Actually, last I heard, Husky sells every bike they import. Our local dealer sells every two stroke, CR, and WR before mid year. In fact, the 250's are pre-sold before they arrive, and he puts 150 kits in 125's for many people who would like to have a 250, but settle for the smaller bike. He doesn't have to discount anything, and yet he does.

[Cruiser]

Well, the husky importer had 125 leftovers for 3 years in a row. The more recent years they importede about 1/2 the amount of bikes. The importer still had leftovers. Certain models sold out quick when in short supply, but in general In 2004 you could still buy a 99-2003 cr or wr 125 in crate for about $2995 from the importer. Then they only had a couple 2 strokers come in at all then the dot 4 stroke hit. Almost no 2strokes were brought in. Why do you think Fred Hoess left husky,, no wr 125 at all coming in, a couple cr 125's thats it..
Its easy to sell out if you bring in less than you sell,, but if you DOT a good 4 stroke(not the apprilla)you should sell out of it.. quickly..

[roostafish]

I guess we have a Husky hot spot then, because our dealer seems to have a loyal following and is doing quite well. According to him, he sells every WR he can get his hands on. Then he starts modifying CRs for people to ride off road. There are also lots of people who buy the DOT four strokes.

Fred Hoess left Husky because they stopped importing two strokes for a brain dead period of time. I don't blame him. I also don't blame him for sticking with GG, because it is a superior performing machine.