2015 HUSQVARNA
TC85
WE BUILD A
In a world dominated by four- strokes, there is still a home for the smokers we love so
much. That home is the realm of
kids’ bikes. Back in 2007, Honda
came out with the CRF150, which
was intended to take over the 85
class, but the AMA would not
allow Honda’s mini thumper on
the gate with the 85cc two-stroke
machines (although Honda was
told that the AMA would allow
them in the 85cc class, as they
had allowed them in the 250
and 450 classes). This lack of
eligibility killed the motivation for
other manufacturers to build four-stroke, race-ready mini bikes.
No one, save Honda, is crying about expensive and heavy
four-strokes not being allowed
in most 85cc classes. The lack of
four-strokes at the lowest ranks
probably saved mini cycles from
the decline in sales that followed
their arrival in the former 125cc
and 250cc two-stroke classes. The
bottom line for a racing family is
cost. The cheaper the entry into
the sport, the more families will
join in the fun, which might make
us sound a little hypocritical for
praising the amount of effort that
KTM has put into its 50cc, 65cc
and 85cc mini bikes. But, striving
to be the best means moving forward with R&D, which brings us
to MXA’s Husqvarna TC85 build.
When the first Husqvarna TC85
came to market, we had the MXA
mini crew torture test it. Surprise,
the Husqvarna TC85 won our
85cc shootout. Thus, you might be
tempted to think that it is perfect.
Far from it. We did break parts,
find better aftermarket solutions
and learn as we went along. We
took notes and decided to build
the perfect Husqvarna TC85. As
always, we went overboard on the
