We test a lowered 2023 Husqvarna FE 250, dubbed the Lolo by Husqvarna Australia, to see how it would go for those short of stature or needing to build confidence.
The 250cc four-stroke is generally seen as good for those smaller in stature because they are less of a beast to hang onto and smaller people require less ponies to get moving. So Husqvarna Australia kitted out this 2023 Husqvarna FE 250 with a bunch of lowering gear to make it even more appealing to riders who don’t need the 950mm seat height.
They started with a Husqvarna Low Seat which instantly lowers the perch by 15mm to 935mm. They then fitted a Genuine Suspension Lowering Kit which reduces the seat height by a further 20mm. All of a sudden you’re at a seat height of 915mm. A seat height reduction of 35mm may not seem like a lot but across your inseam length, (your crutch) that’s like a 70mm reduction as it is 35mm lower for both legs
The kits are super easy to install and come with spacers that go inside the cartridge of the forks, to bring the fork down 20mm too. That’s before you even push the fork legs through the clamps to bring the front-end down again. It comes with a 20mm lower shock spring and the best part is these kits require no cutting or machining. You can do all this yourself, or at your local authorised dealer.
Then, if you wanted to on-sell your bike, you can return the suspension back to standard height by removing the spacers and replacing the shock spring with the original. The kit also provides internal shock spacers, however this will require the shock to be disassembled. For this you’re probably better off going to your local authorised Husky dealer to get it done.
HOW DOES IT GO?
At 188cm and 100kg I have no problem touching the ground so there’s no point me testing the 2023 Husqvarna FE 250 Lolo. Instead, we got Jemma Wilson to swing a leg over it and here’s what she thought:
“I’m a 250 rider and I love he standard FE 250. But lowering a bike is something I never did, even when I raced, because I thought it would be a disadvantage. As it turns out, I wish I had tried this. Now that I lower my bikes, I can touch my toes on the ground and that gives me that little bit of extra confidence and ability. We originally did the modification for the girls that come to my events and instantly it makes them feel more confident.
“So instead of going up a hill climb and trying to dab my foot and finding there’s nothing there because I’m too short and falling off, I can now dab and stay upright. It also stops all those awkward drops where you can break your levers because you’ve pulled up and you can’t find your footing. It makes the biggest difference in all areas and it’s something I regret not doing when I raced.
“People often ask me about the disadvantages of the performance of the bike when you start lowering it, which is why I never lowered it while racing. I thought if it was lowered, it would be hard to get over things like logs, or steps on hillclimbs, those kinds of things, I thought I’d smash the frame and make riding harder. But, riding up to a log and being that little bit more confident I can get my foot down, actually makes it easier to get over. So the disadvantage that I thought existed doesn’t, and if you do it properly, it shouldn’t change the handling of the bike.
“Husqvarna have gone to a lot of effort to make sure it doesn’t change the handling. Typically playing with the seat and suspension height can make a bike pretty bad, but that’s not the case with this one.
“I use MPE Suspension to set up my lowered kits on my Husqvarnas. Paul’s been doing suspension forever and it’s really good. He knows how low to go before it starts to upset the geometry of the bike. The Lolo is lowered to a point where it doesn’t change the handling.
“I know girls that are shorter than me that are more beginners want something even lower. They have to make the choice if they lose a little bit of handling and go even lower and do things like cut their seats out. I don’t like that because it makes you sit in behind the handlebars, not over the top like you should be as the boss of the bike. But if that’s what you need to do for a few months just to get confident, especially with the stationary weight of the bike, before putting your taller seat back on, then that’s okay”.
Pricing
- Low Seat – Part # 25107940200 – $225 RRP (-15mm)
- Genuine Suspension Lowering Kit – Part # 79612955144 – $320.00 RRP (-20mm)
THE MATHS
The FE 250 has seat height of 950mm, 5-10mm lower than their competitors as standard. FE 250 LoLo now has a seat height of 915mm!
The standard seat height of the Husky FE 250 is 10mm lower than the KTM 250 EXC-F and 5mm lower than the Yamaha WR250F so the Husky will give you the lowest seat. If you include the lower standard seat height with the Lolo savings you’re down at that 1993 seat height.
CLEARANCE SALE!
By dropping the suspension 20mm, you might be worried about ground clearance. The lowering kit will reduce ground clearance from 360mm to 340mm but you still have 20mm more ground clearance than the Yamaha WR250F and are only 15mm lower than the Sherco 250 SEF Factory.
