The Husaberg FE 501 was the motorcycle on which the Swedish company was founded in 1988, and according to the German Wikipedia it won the Enduro European Championship in the same year. The 501 cc four-stroke stayed in the range until 2004, returned in 2013 with a KTM engine and was part of the brand’s last line-up in 2014.
Husaberg FE 501 at a glance
| Maker | Husaberg Motor AB, Sweden; KTM from 1995 |
|---|---|
| Built in | Husabergs Udde and Askersund, Sweden; Mattighofen, Austria, from 2003 |
| Class | four-stroke enduro |
| Displacement | 501 cc |
| First appearance | 1988, as the company’s first model |
| First production period | 1989–2004 |
| Return | 2013, with a KTM engine |
| Final listing | 2014, given as a 510 cc enduro by English Wikipedia |
| Name | F for four-stroke, E for enduro |
| Successor brand | Husqvarna |
No Wikipedia article covers the FE 501 on its own: the facts here come from the Husaberg brand articles in English, German, Swedish and Italian, which are in effect a single source.
History of the Husaberg FE 501
1988: the bike that started the company
Husaberg Motor AB was registered in January 1988 by engineers who had stayed in Sweden after the motorcycle division of Husqvarna was sold to the Italian company Cagiva in 1987. The first factory was set up in a woodshed by lake Vättern in the town of Husabergs Udde, which gave the company its name. The German Wikipedia records that the first model was the FE 501 and that Husaberg won the Enduro European Championship with it in the same year; the first machines had a reputation for a particularly good chassis.
1989–2004: a long first life
According to the Italian Wikipedia the 501 cc four-stroke was produced from 1989 to 2004, which made it one of the longest-running models of the Swedish period. The early engines, built between 1989 and 1996, had no oil pump and relied on oil delivery from the timing chain, so premature engine failures were known; from 1997 reliability and quality became comparable with those of more established brands. Production moved to Askersund and later, for a period, to Laxå before KTM bought the company in 1995.
2013–2014: the return and the end
The 501 cc engine came back for 2013 with a KTM power unit, as the Italian Wikipedia lists 501 cc production from 2013 as well as from 1989 to 2004. In the final 2014 range, the last year of the brand, English Wikipedia lists the FE 501 as a 510 cc enduro and groups it with the FE 250, FE 350 and FE 450; all 2014 models had 25th anniversary graphics and revised WP 4CS closed-cartridge forks. The Husaberg models were then sold as Husqvarnas, and the brand with which the FE 501 had started disappeared.
Design and features
- Founding model: the FE 501 was the first Husaberg, built in a woodshed by lake Vättern.
- Early success: an Enduro European Championship in the company’s first year, according to German Wikipedia.
- Engine history: from 2013 the 501 used a KTM engine, as Italian Wikipedia records.
- Naming: F for four-stroke, E for enduro, with the number giving the displacement.
- Final year: part of the enduro-only 2014 range, listed as a 510 cc model.
Husaberg FE 501 versions
- Early FE 501 (1988–1996): the original bike, with the timing-chain oil delivery of the first engines.
- Later FE 501 (1997–2004): the same model with the improved reliability of the KTM era.
- FE 501 (2013): the returning model with a KTM engine.
- FE 501 (2014): the final version, with anniversary graphics and revised suspension settings.
The FE 501 stands beside the other four-stroke enduros of the brand, the FE 450 and the FE 600. The two-stroke line that joined the range in 2011 is covered by the Husaberg TE, and all models are in the Husaberg collection.
Video: Husaberg fe 501 enduro
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Husaberg, English Wikipedia: history, naming, 2014 range
- Husaberg, German Wikipedia: founding, first model, European Championship
- Husaberg, Swedish Wikipedia: founding team, factory locations, model years
- Husaberg, Italian Wikipedia: production years by displacement, KTM engines
