Suzuki DR-Z400S

OK.....here goes my honest review of my (previous) drz 400!!

I owned my drz for 6 months, before some thieving scumbags decided to take it, and another bike out of my garage, i only hope they crash it and injure themselves severely!

My bike was a 51 reg, and had 2400 genuine miles and was serviced every year, so was showroom condition.I paid £2200, which included a set of supermoto wheels with tyres and brake disk etc...

So i thought it would be a fitting tribute to write a review to let everyone know how GREAT these bikes are!

Right, as per my previous bike reviews i,ll start at the front and mork my way back!

Front wheel......my bike was converted to a supermoto with exel rims and talon hubs and a huge brake disk, but i also rode the bike on its standard 21inch wheels front and 18inch back, the standard wheels to start then, a good selection of tyres available, the brakes are good (if serviced regularly) but you need to stay on top of the rims and spokes! 1 season without attention and they will start to look tatty!
The front end offers a suprising amount of grip with the standard wheels, it doesnt look inspiring when you see a skinny tyre but it can be hustled along at a good pace, as long as you stay off the brakes mid-corner, as those forks will dive a long way and spit you off!

The forks themselves are a decent enough unit, not adjustable, but they offer a lot of travel, and decent enough damping properties, again tho, get behind those fork girders and give it a good clean up every now and then!

The steering on the drz is good, great steering lock can be turned in the road with ease. Alltho the Actual steering lock (as in the device to lock the handlebars in place) is poor, and as i found out, is easily defeated by thieves!

The clocks are great! being digital they are clear and easy to use and are well lit at night.

The clutch and brake levers are well spaced and are very light in operation and the switch gear is typical japanese, a pleasure to use and well built.

The engine is an absolute gem! only punting out 33bhp, but it has great amounts of torque for a 400, remember people this is a single cylinder thumper, so big clumps of lovely torque! But if you do decide to buy a drz, or currently have a standard one, you MUST invest in an FMF powerbomb full exhaust, a K&N filter, an iridium spark plug, a James Dean jet kit, and a Storm extended fuel mixture screw (for all the above items i estimate £350) This may sound like a lot of money, but it really is worth the cash!
I had my bike set up by a reputable company in birmingham (uk) and the bike went from making 29bhp to a Proven 38bhp! and the noise was amazing! popping and banging on the over-run.
When standard the bike will loft the front wheel in first easily, and maybe in second with a bit of clutch, but with those mods it was wheelying off the throttle in second! and in third off the clutch!
The engine is very lumpy low down in the rev range tho.

The engine itself is a proven unit, beeing very reliable, and very easy to maintain.

The overall electrics on the bike seemed average, the light beeing nice and bright.

The seat is absolutely terrible! seriously its like torture if you plan to ride any more than 40 miles maybe its just my skinny botty!?

Tank range seemed decent enough allthough i couldnt be specific as my bike was purely a hooligan tool for having fun on so i never really worried about mpg or tank range, i just filled it up whenever i got it out of the garage!

The rear of the bike is a standard affair, rear disk brake which is very effective, and a 18 (or possibly 19) inch spoked wheel.

I know this may sound like an average bike, but sometimes a bike is a lot more than the sum of its parts!
On paper the drz seems like an average bike, But im sure if you ask 90% of drz owners they will tell you how great the bike is!
And if, like me, youre a bit of a hooligan at times, then either opt for the drz400sm, or get youreslf a set of supermoto wheels! with the supermoto wheels, the bike is TRANSFORMED!!! it can be thrown round corners like nothing else! i mean you can embaress sportsbikes with the corner speed it can carry, and it can pull giant stoppies up to traffic lights...then wheelie away!

Overall then, a brilliant little bike! i would recomend one to anyone! Not massively fast (90mph) but just has lots of character and cheap and easy to maintain!

IF you do own one tho i suggest you lock it up very well...as thieves love these bikes. and they are easily stolen.