First impression: Husqvarna TE 449 with ABS
- Video: Gerhard Forster on ABS on a hard enduro motorcycle
To begin with, a short story from this year's motorcycle season: from Kranj to Medvode along the asphalt road there is also a crushed stone road, onto which I turned on the F 800 GS and picked up speed with the Dakar until ... Until the rubble ran out. I'm slowing down. Pi ...! With jerking front and rear brake levers, I had to head back to the road through the meadow. Of course the small GS has (switchable) CHAPTER! You can imagine what (was) my opinion on off-tarmac e-assistance.
Then, at the end of autumn, we receive an invitation to Technology Day with the title Husqvarna off-road ABS... Location: Hechlingen Off-Road Park, where you or your motorcycle can be taught off-road tricks.
In short: Italians and Germans stuck their heads and a small number of hard-enduro cars. TE 449 equipped with a braking system with a XNUMX kg ABS brake system. Because it's about prototype, the fuel tank protrudes strangely at the back, the hydraulic system bolts are a little rusty and greasy, on one of the prototypes the ABS allegedly even failed. This is the rolling stock used by the plant for testing.
Speed sensors are installed on both the rear and front discs, but unlike conventional ABS. rear brake allows locking the wheelthat is a necessity in this area. At the front, the ABS works at speeds above 7 km / h and allows you to block a little more than the systems I have tested so far.
The impression after a good hour of racing on different surfaces (sand, hard ground, mud, sand) dispelled doubts about the usefulness of an electronic assistant on an off-road motorcycle, but not completely. Somewhere after a steep descent followed a sharp left turn, and there my heart fell twice into the "gate", because I doubted the success of the maneuver due to the weakening of the front brake caliper. Both times he "took off". On the other hand, when braking on smooth roots, the ABS showed positive light.
Question: Do off-road motorcyclists need ABS at all? Answer: Did the high-speed rocket racers think a few years ago that electronics could be smarter than their right wing?
Interview: Anton Mayer, development of braking systems
How long have you been developing the system?
The idea came to us in 2005, and we carried out the first tests right here at the field trials in Hechlingen. We started by installing the existing "hardware" on the enduro motorcycle and only changing the "software".
What do you want to achieve with the additional electronics that enduro riders prefer to avoid?
Every day we think of new ideas and what we can improve. We are pushing the boundaries of technology in all segments, from superbikes to touring bikes. Off-road ABS is a big problem that no one has yet dealt with.
What's the biggest problem?
An off-road motorcycle is very unpredictable, so the most difficult thing was to adapt the existing ABS for different surfaces: hard, soft, slippery. It is difficult to define parameters that will work well in different terrains. We were looking for the best compromise between motorcycle stability and braking performance.
When will serial production of off-road ABS start?
At the moment we can't say for sure which bike it will be available on, but it is undoubtedly a major development of the system that will be used on production products. What we are currently developing is simply technology that can then be used on a wider range of Husqvarna and BMW motorcycles.
text: Matevž Hribar, photo: Peter Mush
