Suzuki DR650SE

I write this in response to some who complain about it....suzuki has been selling this thing since last century (maybe even the one before...). It is a cheap bike that is tough, well built and reliable.

It is in many ways outdated but that appears to add to the appeal. It is easy to work on, uncomplicated and predictable. I doubt there is more info out there on any other dirt bike on how to improve or change just about every aspect of the bike.

Generally you do not have to do anything to it to ride within reason, but you will have to be se...Read more

I have had 3 of these, replacing each with a new one every few years. I've been riding nearly 50 years, don't drive a car and have owned over 60 bikes in my time, and to me the DR is one of the best bikes around. Unchanged since 1996 and with no known major problems other than a very few which have had serious 3rd gear failures, they are light, robust, incredibly reliable and easy to maintain, and are a joy to handle on twisty roads. The engine has screw adjusted tappets and the air filter, oil filter and plugs are readily accessible so doing a...Read more

Great bike, they haven't changed much over twenty years or so. As with most bikes they have a few niggly things that need modifying but that comes down to personal preference and what you plan on doing with it I suppose. For me it was the front suspension that dived hard under heavy front wheel braking but some heavier front springs and a set of intiminators sorted that one out.
Original seat was replaced with a Sargeant Seat for those long days in the saddle.
The old Mikuni BST40 carburettor in the bike is probably not cutting edge technolo...Read more

I got a black DR 650 SE. Rode it from adelaide to Darwin and out to kakadu and finke gorge track and oonadatta track and flinders ranges. Perfect bike for offroad and highway. I put a safari tank on it and it was sufficient for all without needing any spare tanks of fuel.
Its a solid reliable bike that never let me down. Off course one needs to find the right tyres. I chose Dunlop dual purpose. I also got a small custom windscreen for the front which made highway riding more pleasing. People complain about the seat stiffness. But wasn't issue...Read more

This bike comes with alloy rims, straight pull spokes, an oil cooler, a rear shock that doesn't sag, dual spark plugs (good spark), foam air filter (more effective than a paper one), wide seat and a small headlight that puts out enough light to see by (but could be better). It has a solid subframe and weighs 166 Kg which is quite heavy for a road/trail bike. Bikes in this class commonly range from 100-140 Kg making it at least 20 Kg heavier than it should be.

The tappets are adjusted by shims... which means less adjustments than the screw a...Read more

Suzuki have been making the DR650 without many major changes for nearly 20 years. You would be forgiven for thinking that either, the bike is way old and something newer must be better or that after 20 years Suzuki have had all the time they need to refine this machine into the best the world will ever see. To get this out of the way early, the bike uses components that are old (the almost superseded rod style fork dampers for example), and a number of niggles mean that Suzuki have not developed the DR into the best machine possible.

So why ...Read more

First off, if you are seriously considering a DR then Google it, don't go by reviews here. There is a huge amount of content about the DR on the internet - just search on YouTube.

Secondly, you need to know a) what sort of rider you are - ability, aggressiveness, age,weight,height, strength etc and b) what sort of riding are you going to do. Work this out before you even go looking at bikes.

The DR is what it is - it does not pretend to be anything - it has many strengths and many weaknesses so do your research and get up to speed on t...Read more

Bought a 2015 dr after reading mostly good reviews but quickly realized that this was not the bike for me. Dual purpose? Not really, high speed wobbles at highway speeds around 100 km/hr, tiny fuel tank and extremely uncomfortable seat. As for off road this bike is basically useless, front forks bottom out on anything more aggressive than washboard (210lb rider) stock tires are useless off-road and without lowering the foot pegs and adding bar risers this bike is very cramped and very uncomfortable while standing/riding 5' 11" rider. If you are...Read more

2007 DR650 35,000 km (failed August 2015)
Bearing and/or 3rd gear failure, this can and has destroyed engines. Not restricted to any particular year model and no specific kilometers.
No recall or gearbox upgrade notification to date.
Bike forums listing bikes affected worldwide.
Great motor with a hand grenade gearbox - reliability issue.
Repair cost high.
I will require confirmation this issue has been addressed before considering to repair or replacement my bike.
To date no response from Suzuki Australia.
UPDATE: Received response fro...Read more

I bought a brand spankers 2015 one about 5 months ago, and am very, very happy with it. The secondhand ones were too close to the new price of $8K on the road, so I went for the new option. She's quick on the road, and more than capable off road. I've lowered the gearing a bit, via a smaller front sprocket; but will have to go further with a larger rear and a new chain set. I will convert to the more common chain size at that time too. A split shift gearbox would make these the perfect bike, but maybe just another set of wheels/sprockets and ch...Read more