Phate
August 22, 2011, 11:19pm
9
I absolutely love the bike (SM). In the city it will do everything a sport bike will do but then you can go off the road or make your own shortcut over somebody’s lawn without blinking an eye.
Stock they are very slow however. With basic upgrades (Pipe, 3x3 mod, carb of a different bike etc) it opens up to be a lot of fun up to 40/60 mph. After that it’s rather a dog but will get upto 100.
Some guys put the big bore kits on them for under a G however and make upto 60hp, which is very respectable.
Two biggest issues with the bike are the fact that it’s 5 speed and the fact that it’s got a steel frame, but thats it.
As far as the E model (the enduro with nobbies), I rode one after I met a random guy with a brand new one and we swapped bikes for a second. While his tires felt surprisingly just like street tires (after market) the bike definitely felt more enduro like instead of street and was lacking a bit in power. Plus for me (5"7) the enduro was just too tall being a 2 to 3 inches taller than the moto.
You can’t go wrong with one, I think mine has 20,000 miles on it now.
Mk4 - yes I bought it used and it’s 6 years old buy now, so wouldn’t be surprised if previous owner dabbled there as it is a common fail point due to corrosion.
Edit: found this useful link for DRZ as a starter bikeSuzuki DRZ-400SM Review | Updated July 2017
read comments on bottom.
Sounds pretty awesome. I’m 6’1" and around 215lbs, so the enduro bikes I’ve sat on felt pretty much the perfect height. Plus I’d take it into the woods. Some pretty good ATV trails near my school. Basically it sounds like people only bitch about the seat being too hard. I thought a 400 would be a better idea since I’m pretty heavy, and I don’t know how well the smaller motor would drag me around. Plus I have zero interest in cruiser motorcycles, which is the main thing I’ve been recommended as a starter bike.