Is the DRZ 400 any good?
dave
enough poop.
I am thinking aobut the DRZ400.
My hard core dirt bike riding is behind me now. I ride mostly on road,
but still like to explore a bit. I am in a mountainous reigon (Reno)
and I need enough power to make it up into the mountains. I am not
concerned about keeping up with highway traffic, because I stick to the
side roads.
I need dependability, and I know that Honda is known for this. How
does the Suzuki fare?
oldfart
reliability. They are a bit on the portly side and so might be a
handful in loose stuff or twisty single track. They seem to work well
for big guys who need a little extra power. OF
Cebridge
"I need dependability and I know that Honda is known for this."
Go purchase an XR400 and be done already. :)
Homer
"dave" <da...@juno.com> wrote in message
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bob prohaska's usenet account
> Have you not answered your own question?:
>
> "I need dependability and I know that Honda is known for this."
>
> Go purchase an XR400 and be done already. :)
>
The drz400s is a wonderful machine. Fast enough for the freeway,
agile enough to venture off pavement. Incredibly easy to ride,
once you learn to _find_ the ground before putting a foot down.
But, I'm not skilled enough to gracefully manipulate a machine that
heavy in truly difficult going.
And, I'm very much afraid of dropping it. Heavy to pick up, completely
vulnerable to radiator damage.
If you need the power liquid cooling allows and can deal with the
frailties, a drz400s is a superb compromise. If you need crashworthiness,
an xr400 will put you through some extra hoops for street legality,
but you won't worry about busting a radiator.
I don't regret buying a drz400s and would recommend it for any beginning
street rider. For serious dirt or other off-pavement work I think it's
too heavy for any but an extremely skilled person.
It should be said that I'm spoiled: I have a 200 cc Honda trials bike
that I'd take anywhere. So long as the ride isn't longer than about 2
hours.
bob prohaska
XR650L_Dave
An XR650L is not really much heavier than the 400, and has the
reliability of a stone fence.
Its an XR600R with a bigger jug (detuned quite a bit, its very mellow
and forgiving), but with 30-35lbs of battery and street-crap added.
Just tossin' that possibility out there.
Almost any part of the US you can find 'em used and pre-tuned.
DDave
gen...@socal.rr.com
and very few issues. The biggest one was the water pump started
leaking coolant after about 500 miles which I heard is quite common.
This was covered under warranty so I am unsure exactly what the problem
was but hopefully Suzuki worked it out by now. I never had any other
problems with it that weren't self induced. It is a bit heavy, but the
only time that ever bothered me was on one of the famous, "Deeney Death
Rides." With much taller gearing it would have been fine.
HTH,
Derek
azb...@excite.com
bike was stone reliable. Replaced one countershaft seal and had a slow
waterpump cover leak for years. I rode the bike everywhere, including
two passes over five miles of hell, and it was great. Won the B class
at a regional enduro on it. It's a great do everything bike, though it
does nothing exceedingly well. Buy it, you'll like it.
Eat Dirt
"dave" <da...@juno.com> wrote:
I have the E model (bush model) with the lighting kit for street use.
This bike should not be compared to a XR400, it is a totally diff beast
and is in a class of its own. If you're typical "my Honda is made of
gold" person, then stick to the xr.
If you're short and not scared of heights stick to the xr.
If the above isn't totally true and you have a bit of common sense then
you'll see what I mean about this bike being in class of its own. As a
xr owner you're familiar with the breakthrough the XR650 made in 2000.
In 2001 Suzuki responded by making a bike that was a true dirt bike, not
some tank on two wheels, with a pathetic seat made to satisfy short
japanese men. The drz is a true dirt bike, the S model is a true dirt
bike with lights. It resembles my mx race bike is just about every way,
from the seat height to the handlebar positioning and everything else.
Take the headlight away and I'm hard-pressed to tell the two bikes apart.
Should you have the legs and skills to not bitch about a tall ride, the
DRZ400 is the bike to have. I used to have a XL600 Honda so don't slam
me for slamming them Hondas. Been there, done that, never will own
another honda tank again.
Radiator concerns? Mine came with aftermarket aluminum rad guards. In my
opinion a must-have no matter which bike you own (unless of course it's
some air cooled Honda).
Mine has a sprocket with I think one more teeth (or whatever the next
one is) that makes the bike more street worthy, at the compromise of a
bit of low end revying. Ideal for street use. Heck, I have even taken
the bike a few times to the motocross track and taken jumps and tight
corners with it and it performed fine, despite the gearing change.
Believe me, this ain't no Honda, mah friend. The thing will perform like
a 4 stroke race bike if you give it. Wanna see a XR do that, hehe.
Another major difference: the suspension. I won't get into it as this
post is getting long. Do a search online and you'll see what I mean.
Bottom line: get the bike. You will not regret it. Suzuki made history
with this bike and that is no accident.
Eat Dirt
In article <1151861514.8...@m79g2000cwm.googlegroups.com>,
"dave" <da...@juno.com> wrote:
I have the E model (bush model) with the lighting kit for street use.
Eat Dirt
I have the E model (bush model) with the lighting kit for street use.
This bike should not be compared to a XR400, it is a totally diff beast
and is in a class of its own. If you're typical "my Honda is made of
gold" person, then stick to the xr.
If you've short legs and scared of heights stick to the xr.
If the above doesn't apply and you have a bit of common sense then
you'll see what I mean about this bike being in class of its own. As a
xr owner you're familiar with the breakthrough the XR650 made in 2000.
In 2001 Suzuki responded by making a bike that was a true dirt bike, not
some tank on two wheels, with a pathetic seat made to satisfy short
japanese men. The drz is a true dirt bike, the S model is a true dirt
bike with lights. It resembles my mx race bike is just about every way,
from the seat height to the handlebar positioning, rider position and
everything else. Take the headlight away and I'm hard-pressed to tell
the two bikes apart.
Should you have the legs and skills to not bitch about a tall ride, the
DRZ400 is the bike to have. I used to have a XL600 Honda so don't slam
me for slamming them Hondas. Been there, done that, never will own
another honda tank again.
Radiator concerns? Mine came with aftermarket aluminum rad guards. In my
opinion a must-have no matter which water-cooled bike you own.
Mine has a sprocket with I think one more teeth (or whatever the next
one is for a taller gearing) that makes the bike more street worthy, at
the compromise of a bit of low end revying. Ideal for street use and
highway but yeah, a bit tall for fun bush riding. Heck, I have even
Eat Dirt
In article <1151861514.8...@m79g2000cwm.googlegroups.com>,
"dave" <da...@juno.com> wrote:
I have the E model (bush model) with the lighting kit for street use.
This bike should not be compared to a XR400, it is a totally diff beast
and is in a class of its own. If you're typical "my Honda is made of
gold" person, then stick to the xr.
If you're short and not scared of heights stick to the xr.
If the above isn't totally true and you have a bit of common sense then
you'll see what I mean about this bike being in class of its own. As a
xr owner you're familiar with the breakthrough the XR650 made in 2000.
In 2001 Suzuki responded by making a bike that was a true dirt bike, not
some tank on two wheels, with a pathetic seat made to satisfy short
japanese men. The drz is a true dirt bike, the S model is a true dirt
bike with lights. It resembles my mx race bike is just about every way,
from the seat height to the handlebar positioning and everything else.
Take the headlight away and I'm hard-pressed to tell the two bikes apart.
Should you have the legs and skills to not bitch about a tall ride, the
DRZ400 is the bike to have. I used to have a XL600 Honda so don't slam
me for slamming them Hondas. Been there, done that, never will own
another honda tank again.
Radiator concerns? Mine came with aftermarket aluminum rad guards. In my
opinion a must-have no matter which bike you own (unless of course it's
some air cooled Honda).
Mine has a sprocket with I think one more teeth (or whatever the next
one is) that makes the bike more street worthy, at the compromise of a
bit of low end revying. Ideal for street use. Heck, I have even taken