Peter, there is a choke on the DRZ400, it is down on the side by the motor. Also note that the DRZ400 has the engine oil in the bike's frame with the dipstick up by the handlebars, weird eh? I had both the DR650 and the DRZ400......DR650, way better torque, far superior gearing, air/oil cooled, heavier........DRZ400, way higher seat height, but much better suspension, liquid cooled with radiator, about the same "power" as the DR650 (not torque), terrible gearing on the DRZ400 though - you are in 5th at 65-70 km/hr. If you are doing more offroad, the DRZ400 is your best bet - however, the better all round and lower priced bike is the DR650, imo. Thank you for reviewing these types of bikes, they are often overlooked, great deals and super reliable machines - thank you for a nice review.
My DRZ400 was wayyy faster than either of my DR650s, handled better, was smoother and I thought the gearing was bang on. Top gear perfect for 100kph, twist the throttle to accelerate and pass traffic without changing down.... Just my Opinion though.
drz400s has 15/44 sprockets on my E model those sprockets give me 160kph top speed which is more than enough. and yes i can pull top at 60kph all the way through to 160kph, which means nothing other than it has excellent power and torque. i can also do 125kph in 4th and sit on 120kph in 5th all day. i like the dr but i'd never go back unless i stopped riding hard trails. i do multi thousand km adventure rides, commute 65km each way a couple of times a week and ride offroad the drz does it all with no complaints.
Great dual sport, if you want a fun bike to ride to the trails, have a blast on the trails especially single track, and to ride around town, great choice! I have several motorcycles in the garage, this one will always have a spot. It's that good, a torque monster! DR-Z400S rocks!
I love it I ain’t had any complaints about it, I like that it’s durable, I recked is recently riding it cause of my dog, dog is ok I walked away with a broken arm and the bike was fine dented gas tank and the tire other than that, it was perfect fired up ok and ran ok to. When I got the bike I didn’t know how to drive a clutch bike, I have rode mini bikes but that ain’t nothing compared to the 400, but this is the first motorcycle I have ever owned and I love it.
Im 5'8" and 230lbs 55yrs of age. I love it. Great in my opinion on single track and dirt roads. We ride and some group members switched to the drz400s because of ease of use!
Another amazing bike! As far as headlight. Super easy fix! The cyclops h4 led ultra light is a simple plug and play! Seriously it’s 5x brighter than stock. A must imo. For tires I run the Dunlop D605’s on my 650. Great off road and good on highway. It’s the reverse of what comes stock on the 650 and 400’s. Wont ever go back to trail wings unless I do 80% on road.
There are Loads of after market options to choose from to make this bike your own, and to set it up for how you want to ride. But even stock, this bike is still really good.
Need more than than that. First take care of the swingarm pivot bolt. Then need radiator guard, then file the shift lever (ie round it up) so in case of a spill it doesn't break the case. Actually put some case saver. Then do the 3x3 mod and jd jet kit. After that it's only comfort and what ever you need. Had one for 5 years..
@@connor3288 @connor3288 yes, corrosion will set in. Take the swingarm out and use a waterproof grease on the swingarm "bolt/axle" (however we want to call it) It's a known issue with the drz.
I bought the 23’ DRZ from Macleans this past spring. My first bike with no experience on a motorcycle previously. The biggest intimidation factor for me was the seat height. I put 7700kms on this past season. Not great above 110 kph but definitely doable. There is a choke, it’s right on the carburetor. I never ran the death wings, I changed them out for some Motoz Tractionator Desert tires. Now I’m looking at the ever popular Dunlop 606 and the MT21 combination as my next set of rubber. Thanks for the review.
I own a 2018 sm model.......12000km 3 or 4 oil changes and fuel..........that's it......bike is so fun and simple......best bang for your buck motorcycle hands down. Maybe a 250 or 300cc of similar design depending.......nice video
Would you recommend buying this bike if you want to travel 60 kilometers in total per day/5 days a week? It's mostly street though. I just love the low maintenance aspect, it's fast enough... I don't need more than 120 km/h, I like the look of it. It's cheaper. What do you think?
So here's the thing, you will ALWAYS find a better bike for your situation, and that doesn't matter what your situation is. So the question comes down to how YOU feel on that bike. If your 60 km drive is ALL highway, there are definitely going to be more comfortable bikes. If it's all in town, there will be other comfortable bikes, but there may not be more fun bikes than this for that ride. If I was younger, I'd absolutely grab that bike and do that trip and just have fun. The only reason that I wouldn't consider it now is because I've been spoiled with different bikes that have more diverse capabilities. It's sort of like saying a Miata is a fun car, but an SUV makes more sense for my life right now.
i commute on mine 65km each way but only a couple of times a week. you definitely need a comfort seat. yes it will do it no trouble, but the reason you would buy a drz is because you go offroad as well. if you don't go offroad there's better bikes just for commuting for sure.
You could make it work if you were comfortable with taller bikes. Remember the bike does squat a little bit with the weight of a rider, and the seat is narrow, so it feels lower than the spec sheet says, but I hear what you're saying.
@@PeterLoweOne I do ride a Kawasaki Versys 1000 ( i think 33" seat) and it is tall for me, but i handle it well. I have test rode a KLR650 and KLX300 with no problem. I am a heavy guy (250) and am used to heavy bikes, but not an experienced dirt rider.
why dont they ever say how much horsepower these kind of motorcycles have? suzuki yamaha honda etc, nobody says the power and torque figures, just the cc's.
It's interesting. I'm not sure. Rumour is that one of the companies got in trouble for overstating the hp number at one point, and since then, they all stopped listing the number in North America. I'm not sure if that's true.
an old outdated 2006 Kawasaki with no electronics... 145 horsepower. Not suitable for most people under 60 years old... ? Over 40 years of experience advised....
it doesn't need any of those things, especially the suspension it has better suspension that almost every other dual sport and the forks don't leak every other month.
An updated instrument cluster would be a welcome addition and wouldn’t require emissions requalification. (LCD tach, voltmeter, ammeter, wireless speedo sensing, gear indicator, and a 12V accessory outlet shouldn’t be too difficult to accommodate). The current unit looks like it was lifted right off the first generation Africa Twin.
I can help with that. Americans are among the few English speakers in the world who say Zee. Most English speaking countries say Zed. I film in Canada. These are Canadian bikes, so I'm pronouncing it like Kawasaki Canada pronounces it.
Right. But Suzuki's marketing material points out how this is a weight savings piece of this bike. It's something they feel is worth mentioning, so I tried to pass that along in this video.
pretty sure he got confused with the aluminium cylinder with scem coating rather than a cast iron or steel sleeve. scem is also not new suzuki has been using it since the 70's. aluminium is also a metal.
@@6226superhurricane yeah..a lot of people need clarification these days. Also, for those who don’t know, steel is also “alloy”. And you can have something made of billet steel.
He covered some of the good and bad points to the bike, except that stinking atrocious close ratio transmission that takes away from the rotor, everything that the rider needs , that’s a low first gear, and a usable relatively high Street gear! Hey folks we found out 20 years ago this close ratio, transmission sucks and if anyone’s noticed cars have had fuel injection since the mid-80s why are we 40 years down the road with a stinking carburetor!!! these features in my mind, put this bike at the bottom of the heap!!!! So unless your budget just can’t afford a real trail bike that’s made correctly in this modern era just sit and suffer for a while with a DRZ 400 so you can get a real nice dual sport bike!!!
It's always a little different showing the seating position sitting still and while riding. This would have been my position to cruise, I would have moved around for more aggressive riding.
🤣 If I was filming in America, and talking about American bikes, I'd say Zee. But I'm filming in Canada. The people who are actually going to buy the bikes that I film will be saying Zed. Some Americans really struggle with that concept, I guess. 🙂👍
American’s find it difficult to understand that some things are not always pronounced the way they pronounce them , so if they are not pronounced in an American fashion then the rest of the world must be wrong . I say this as an American .
You Canadians speak American English and some British English. It sounds like you have an issue with Americans either way "Bud"! "That's a little scetch," "don't ya think Bud"! He He! Ehh Bud just kidding with ya!
Nah, I love Americans, I'm just always amazed at how upset Americans get with me saying Zed instead of Zee, and then I get accused of changing the language.... It wasn't me that changed the name!!
I think it is just the Americans that say Zee, where the rest of the english speaking world use Zet, so don't apologies. The world does not revolve around US.
I absolutely would. Without hesitation. This bike, a Ninja 400, those are just two examples of 400cc bikes that I would recommend without hesitation, and the riders that I know who started on those bikes have been very happy with them as first motorcycles.
Peter, there is a choke on the DRZ400, it is down on the side by the motor. Also note that the DRZ400 has the engine oil in the bike's frame with the dipstick up by the handlebars, weird eh?
I had both the DR650 and the DRZ400......DR650, way better torque, far superior gearing, air/oil cooled, heavier........DRZ400, way higher seat height, but much better suspension, liquid cooled with radiator, about the same "power" as the DR650 (not torque), terrible gearing on the DRZ400 though - you are in 5th at 65-70 km/hr.
If you are doing more offroad, the DRZ400 is your best bet - however, the better all round and lower priced bike is the DR650, imo. Thank you for reviewing these types of bikes, they are often overlooked, great deals and super reliable machines - thank you for a nice review.
My DRZ400 was wayyy faster than either of my DR650s, handled better, was smoother and I thought the gearing was bang on. Top gear perfect for 100kph, twist the throttle to accelerate and pass traffic without changing down.... Just my Opinion though.
drz400s has 15/44 sprockets on my E model those sprockets give me 160kph top speed which is more than enough. and yes i can pull top at 60kph all the way through to 160kph, which means nothing other than it has excellent power and torque. i can also do 125kph in 4th and sit on 120kph in 5th all day.
i like the dr but i'd never go back unless i stopped riding hard trails. i do multi thousand km adventure rides, commute 65km each way a couple of times a week and ride offroad the drz does it all with no complaints.
Great dual sport, if you want a fun bike to ride to the trails, have a blast on the trails especially single track, and to ride around town, great choice! I have several motorcycles in the garage, this one will always have a spot. It's that good, a torque monster! DR-Z400S rocks!
love mine at 67 years old just getting back in to off roar
I love it I ain’t had any complaints about it, I like that it’s durable, I recked is recently riding it cause of my dog, dog is ok I walked away with a broken arm and the bike was fine dented gas tank and the tire other than that, it was perfect fired up ok and ran ok to. When I got the bike I didn’t know how to drive a clutch bike, I have rode mini bikes but that ain’t nothing compared to the 400, but this is the first motorcycle I have ever owned and I love it.
Im 5'8" and 230lbs 55yrs of age. I love it. Great in my opinion on single track and dirt roads. We ride and some group members switched to the drz400s because of ease of use!
Just curious, are you on the stock rear spring? Did you just increase preload for your weight?
Another amazing bike! As far as headlight. Super easy fix! The cyclops h4 led ultra light is a simple plug and play! Seriously it’s 5x brighter than stock. A must imo.
For tires I run the Dunlop D605’s on my 650. Great off road and good on highway. It’s the reverse of what comes stock on the 650 and 400’s. Wont ever go back to trail wings unless I do 80% on road.
Waiting on that DR-Z 400 SM review, they are such fun 🤪👍!
I'll definitely have that when I get to see the 2024 model!
How I wish I could buy a new one in UK, sadly no longer Greta-compliant.
Yeah, this bike is for me, a pair of Barkbusters is about all this needs.
There are Loads of after market options to choose from to make this bike your own, and to set it up for how you want to ride. But even stock, this bike is still really good.
Need more than than that. First take care of the swingarm pivot bolt. Then need radiator guard, then file the shift lever (ie round it up) so in case of a spill it doesn't break the case. Actually put some case saver. Then do the 3x3 mod and jd jet kit. After that it's only comfort and what ever you need.
Had one for 5 years..
@@LoiczzrWhat about the swingarm bolt? Lube it? What's the issue? Thanks.
@@connor3288 @connor3288 yes, corrosion will set in. Take the swingarm out and use a waterproof grease on the swingarm "bolt/axle" (however we want to call it)
It's a known issue with the drz.
Love this bike. It looks great, has quality, fantastic cylinder capacity and it is nimble. Pity is not longer available in Europe.
I bought the 23’ DRZ from Macleans this past spring. My first bike with no experience on a motorcycle previously. The biggest intimidation factor for me was the seat height. I put 7700kms on this past season. Not great above 110 kph but definitely doable. There is a choke, it’s right on the carburetor. I never ran the death wings, I changed them out for some Motoz Tractionator Desert tires. Now I’m looking at the ever popular Dunlop 606 and the MT21 combination as my next set of rubber. Thanks for the review.
Dual sport bikes have a nice advantage of being able to handle dirt roads much easier than street tire bikes. Nice review, thanks.
I love the Zed!
2001 400e model makes almost 50hp and 41Nm of torque, which is pretty good weighting at 120+ kgs.
It is a fun bike for sure!
2024 e model is 48hp 40nm of torque. 138kg wet in street legal trim.
I own a 2018 sm model.......12000km 3 or 4 oil changes and fuel..........that's it......bike is so fun and simple......best bang for your buck motorcycle hands down. Maybe a 250 or 300cc of similar design depending.......nice video
Most likely my introduction to dirt, unless something from Yamaha comes out. I would keep it stock outside of tires after they wear out.❤
Put a set of Dunlop D606 tires on and it is great off-road and still good on-road. The stock Trail Wings are primarily oriented for the road.
@@kickinalive5839 Thank You, I have the American made Dunlop tires on my street bike and enjoy them.
10:29 triple net cost for them to add a fuel gauge is like $4.00. A digital tachometer probably $10 usd ☹️
That is a great bike, for little money! It never tries to pretend that it's anything that it's not, you get what you get and it does that very well.
Perfect summary!
Would you recommend buying this bike if you want to travel 60 kilometers in total per day/5 days a week? It's mostly street though.
I just love the low maintenance aspect, it's fast enough... I don't need more than 120 km/h, I like the look of it. It's cheaper.
What do you think?
So here's the thing, you will ALWAYS find a better bike for your situation, and that doesn't matter what your situation is. So the question comes down to how YOU feel on that bike. If your 60 km drive is ALL highway, there are definitely going to be more comfortable bikes. If it's all in town, there will be other comfortable bikes, but there may not be more fun bikes than this for that ride. If I was younger, I'd absolutely grab that bike and do that trip and just have fun. The only reason that I wouldn't consider it now is because I've been spoiled with different bikes that have more diverse capabilities. It's sort of like saying a Miata is a fun car, but an SUV makes more sense for my life right now.
i commute on mine 65km each way but only a couple of times a week. you definitely need a comfort seat.
yes it will do it no trouble, but the reason you would buy a drz is because you go offroad as well. if you don't go offroad there's better bikes just for commuting for sure.
Awesome dual sport motorcycle.
Now the only one left the DR 350 S. Pls review that bike compared to these two
Nice review, it's a shame that we can't buy them here in the UK...
Me encantaria poder comprarla nueva en España…
If i wasn't only 5'7" i would be interested in this bike!
You could make it work if you were comfortable with taller bikes. Remember the bike does squat a little bit with the weight of a rider, and the seat is narrow, so it feels lower than the spec sheet says, but I hear what you're saying.
@@PeterLoweOne I do ride a Kawasaki Versys 1000 ( i think 33" seat) and it is tall for me, but i handle it well. I have test rode a KLR650 and KLX300 with no problem. I am a heavy guy (250) and am used to heavy bikes, but not an experienced dirt rider.
You sounded so good until you said no choke. Then my brain exploded. 🤯☮️
Yup. You're not going to believe this, but sometimes people make mistakes at work.
Good job and nice bike
Gosto da pegada retro que a Suzuki mantém
suzuki needs to bring back the DR350... better than the 400/650 in so many ways.
How. I had one.. but I don't see why it's better
I like the style, but I'm only 5'8" what which u will recommend me,I'm never have driven a motorcycle. I like dual motorcycle
Try CRF 250/300, KLX300 or DR650
why dont they ever say how much horsepower these kind of motorcycles have? suzuki yamaha honda etc, nobody says the power and torque figures, just the cc's.
It's interesting. I'm not sure. Rumour is that one of the companies got in trouble for overstating the hp number at one point, and since then, they all stopped listing the number in North America. I'm not sure if that's true.
39hp 29tq stock.
an old outdated 2006 Kawasaki with no electronics... 145 horsepower. Not suitable for most people under 60 years old... ? Over 40 years of experience advised....
HP is less relevant with these bikes. It’s enough.
@@machupikachu1085those numbers are from the e model. The s model is more mild.
🏍 braap!
Great legendary bike, but it needs a serious update. EFI, better suspension, better display screen, and 6th gear.
Sadly that will never happen 😢
it doesn't need any of those things, especially the suspension it has better suspension that almost every other dual sport and the forks don't leak every other month.
An updated instrument cluster would be a welcome addition and wouldn’t require emissions requalification. (LCD tach, voltmeter, ammeter, wireless speedo sensing, gear indicator, and a 12V accessory outlet shouldn’t be too difficult to accommodate). The current unit looks like it was lifted right off the first generation Africa Twin.
Will I have a hard time to ride dr650 with my height around 5’6 to 5’7? I am not sure how tall I am but that is the last time I measured myself.
Not once you’re moving.
I don't understand why its pronounce to Zedd when its clearly a Z
I can help with that. Americans are among the few English speakers in the world who say Zee. Most English speaking countries say Zed. I film in Canada. These are Canadian bikes, so I'm pronouncing it like Kawasaki Canada pronounces it.
🔥
Motorcycles have been coming out of the factory with aluminum pistons since at least the 1960s.
Right. But Suzuki's marketing material points out how this is a weight savings piece of this bike. It's something they feel is worth mentioning, so I tried to pass that along in this video.
pretty sure he got confused with the aluminium cylinder with scem coating rather than a cast iron or steel sleeve. scem is also not new suzuki has been using it since the 70's. aluminium is also a metal.
@@6226superhurricane yeah..a lot of people need clarification these days. Also, for those who don’t know, steel is also “alloy”. And you can have something made of billet steel.
it needs a 6 speed transmission. Only thing i hated about mine.
Back in the day, the competition were all running 4 spd.
He covered some of the good and bad points to the bike, except that stinking atrocious close ratio transmission that takes away from the rotor, everything that the rider needs , that’s a low first gear, and a usable relatively high Street gear! Hey folks we found out 20 years ago this close ratio, transmission sucks and if anyone’s noticed cars have had fuel injection since the mid-80s why are we 40 years down the road with a stinking carburetor!!! these features in my mind, put this bike at the bottom of the heap!!!!
So unless your budget just can’t afford a real trail bike that’s made correctly in this modern era just sit and suffer for a while with a DRZ 400 so you can get a real nice dual sport bike!!!
Sounds like this bike isn't for you! 🤣
No fuel injection?
Not on this model, nope.
Also your sitting on it way to far back on the seat.
Sit up in the front of it mate
It's always a little different showing the seating position sitting still and while riding. This would have been my position to cruise, I would have moved around for more aggressive riding.
Is it made from al you minium? Could you run about clopping coconut halves together?
I am English therefore I speak English and zed is the correct pronunciation, not zee.
your welcome.
Haha! Thanks for the validation!
@@PeterLoweOne We Australians agree, Zed is correct. 👍
Hi
it got a choke
So... Americans don't like it when he says Zed instead of Zee, are we speaking American now and not English?
🤣 If I was filming in America, and talking about American bikes, I'd say Zee. But I'm filming in Canada. The people who are actually going to buy the bikes that I film will be saying Zed. Some Americans really struggle with that concept, I guess. 🙂👍
American’s find it difficult to understand that some things are not always pronounced the way they pronounce them , so if they are not pronounced in an American fashion then the rest of the world must be wrong .
I say this as an American .
You Canadians speak American English and some British English. It sounds like you have an issue with Americans either way "Bud"! "That's a little scetch," "don't ya think Bud"! He He! Ehh Bud just kidding with ya!
Nah, I love Americans, I'm just always amazed at how upset Americans get with me saying Zed instead of Zee, and then I get accused of changing the language.... It wasn't me that changed the name!!
I think it is just the Americans that say Zee, where the rest of the english speaking world use Zet, so don't apologies. The world does not revolve around US.
Oh but you should see my comment section when I don't say something about it. 🤣
@@PeterLoweOne 😂
I absolutely would NOT recommend any 400cc bike for a beginner / first time owner.
I absolutely would. Without hesitation. This bike, a Ninja 400, those are just two examples of 400cc bikes that I would recommend without hesitation, and the riders that I know who started on those bikes have been very happy with them as first motorcycles.
My first ever bike was a 2003 Suzuki DRZ 400. I fell in love and never fell out of love. @@PeterLoweOne
Ultra bee ride video please I want one so bad and your video on it has made me sad yes lol
Coming soon!
@@PeterLoweOne awesome thank u