THE tumultuous history of Husqvarna motorcycles is an interesting story and since the purchase by BMW in 2007 one would have to have their head up their rear end to have not taken notice of what's been going on with a legendary marque, both worldwide and right here in Australia.

Here's how I see it.

OK, for the knuckleheads out there, here is a brief history lesson. Originally founded in 1689 in the town of Huskvarna, Sweden, the company initially manufactured weapons for its Swedish king before venturing into hunting guns, household appliances, white goods, power equipment and finally producing its first bike in 1903.

After decades of producing road bikes and scooters the factory produced five special dirt specific machines in 1959 which featured a 250cc 2-stroke engine and a 4-speed gearbox on which Rolf Tibblin went on to win the European 250 Motocross Championship.
By 1962 Husqvarna had won the first of many world championships with Torsten Hallman winning the World 250cc Motocross Championship and in 1963 Husqvarna produced 100 'Hallman Replicas'.
These models instantly sold out and the production of motocross and enduro Husqvarnas started in earnest and with success on the world motocross scene the American market was the next obvious step with the yanks begging for a competitive off-road machine.

In 1966 Edison Dye imported two Husky 250 machines into America and flew Torsten Hallman over to showcase the machines.
Hallman won every race he entered in what came to be known as the 23-Moto Streak that put Husqvarna on the map in the US.American enduro riders like John Penton, Malcolm Smith and Dick Burleson were instrumental in Husqvarna's success in America while Mark Blackwell, Mike Hartwig, Brad Lackey and Kent Howerton all rode and won on Husqvarnas in the AMA Motocross Championships throughout the ’70s.
The ’60s and ’70s were definitely the heyday for the Swedish marque with a raft of World 250cc Motocross Championships (1962 Torsten Hallman, 1963 Torsten Hallman, 1966 Torsten Hallman, 1967 Torsten Hallman, 1976 Heikki Mikkola, 1979 Hakan Carlqvist) and world 500cc motocross titles added to its list of achievements (1960 Bill Nilsson, 1962 Rolf Tibblin, 1963 Rolf Tibblin, 1969 Bengt Aberg, 1970 Bengt Aberg, 1974 Heikki Mikkola).Right here in Australia we had a Swedish rider by the name of Pele Granquist using Husqvarna machinery to win the 250cc and 500cc Australian Motocross titles in 1978 and 1979 as well as narrowly missing out on two Mr Motocross crowns behind Yamaha legend Stephen Gall. I can also remember Robert 'Beetle' Bailey blitzing everyone in 1980 at the Queensland 125cc Motocross Championship at Tivoli Raceway on what can only be described as a ’well used’ Husky CR125.

Things started going pear shaped when Swedish white goods powerhouse Electrolux purchased Husqvarna in 1977. The motorcycles department was ’thrown in’ as part of the deal and the production line was soon pulled down and transferred to a separate factory in Odeshog.This move had a negative effect on the motorcycle division and in 1986 the Castiglioni brothers, Gianfranco and Claudio, purchased Husqvarna under the Cagiva banner, moving the entire operation to Varese, Italy.Success on the race track all but dried up with only three World Motocross Championships in the ’90s (1993 World 500cc Motocross Championship - Jacky Martens. 1998 and 1999 125cc World Motocross Championship - Chicco Chiodi) and unfortunately there have been none since.

Despite all of the doom and gloom it is a true testament to the tenacity of the enthusiasts that Husqvarna has continued to win numerous world enduro championships though. I won't bore you with all of the gory details but from the time the Castiglioni brothers took over Husqvarna until BMW's purchase in 2007, there were some tough times for Husqvarna dealers worldwide and their loyal customers. Unfortunately it was only a matter of time before even the most diehard Husky fan had to move on as production in Italy ground to all but a halt.

So now here we are, BMW Motorrad purchased Husqvarna on July 19, 2007 and has made serious inroads into putting Husqvarna squarely back on the map through aggressive changes and upgrades to each model, introducing new models, overseeing quality control, local, national and international racing teams, reliable distributors and a more dynamic dealer network. Significantly Husqvarna completely redesigned the 250 and 310 enduro models and have gone on to win the 2010 E1 World Enduro Championship with Antoine MŽo at the helm and backed that up with the 2011 E1 World Enduro Championship with Juha Salminen as well as the 2011 E2 World Enduro Championship with Antoine MŽo riding the 310 against the 450s.

Again, here in Australia the Paul Feeney Group has been having a fair throw at the stumps racing wise. Polish Champion Bartosz Obluki, Glenn Kearney and Luke Bussa all contested the 2011 AORC with Kearney and Obluki finishing second and third in the E2 class while Bussa finished third in the E1 class. Three riders, three podiums.As far as the World Motocross Championship goes 2011 saw Team Husqvarna-Ricci Racing step up with a two rider team and they will again be in action for the 2012 season with Nick Tries and Alessandro Lupino contesting the whole series on the new TC250.
Production wise, from 2009 to 2010 BMW increased its manufacture of Husqvarna motorcycles by 22.8 per cent to over 13000 units worldwide and to over 15000 units for 2011 and 2012.Like KTM did 15 years ago, Husqvarna is laying the foundations that will hopefully see the once dominant marque return to its former glory days.Next month: With the help of the crew at the Paul Feeney Group I will look at Husqvarna here in Australia. The past, the present and the future.

– Darren Smart