Suzuki DR650 Adventure Setup

April 26, 2020
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Pros & Cons of DR650

PROS

CONS

Note: The DR650 is a carbureted bike, which can be a pro and a con depending on where you’re riding. It handles low-octane, poor-quality fuel better than most fuel-injected bikes and is easier to fix in remote areas. However, it struggles at high altitudes without rejetting and can be harder to start in cold conditions.

Why Choose DR650?

We choose our travel motorcycles based on 5 key criteria:

Reliability – A long-documented history of bulletproof reliability.
Weight – Lighter bikes are easier to handle & more fun off-road.
Affordability – Cheap to buy, run, and maintain.
Simplicity – Easy to fix, with minimal electronics.
Parts Availability– Spares are easy to find, almost anywhere.

You can read more about our reasoning behind these in this post.

For our first big trip together, we wanted to ride the same bike models to avoid carrying different sets of tools and spare parts.

We narrowed our options to 5 candidates: Suzuki DR650, Yamaha WR250R, Honda XR650L, and CRF250L or CRF300L.

We went with the DR650 — not just for its bulletproof reputation, but because it’s widely available second-hand in Australia. Plus, any bike nicknamed Bush Pig, Dirt Tractor, or Off-road Armchair has to be doing something right.

We bought both bikes in Melbourne, already kitted out with plenty of upgrades — then set them up even further to meet our exact needs.

DR650 Adventure Setup

Tank, Filters & Carburetor

30L Safari tank (link):
- This provides each bike with a range of 600 to 700 km depending on the terrain.
- Safari Tanks tend to expand with time, so one of the tanks has a capacity of 35L now vs the original 30L.
- They are very sturdy, so far they show only minor scratches after all the falls we had with them.
- Update: In hindsight, the 30L Safari tank might be overkill for most travellers. It was useful in Australia, where Outback distances are huge, but for most regions, a smaller tank like the IMS or Acerbis combined with a fuel bladder is a more practical setup. A full 30L tank adds a lot of weight and bulk, which makes some off-road sections more challenging.
Fuel Filters ¼ two per bike (link):
- Inexpensive and a must when doing long distance, you never know when some dirt is going to fall in the tank by accident or if the fuel at the petrol station is clean… these can help in both cases.
Modified Keihin pump carb from a WR400F (Yan’s bike) (link):
- Gives a more responsive throttle
- Provides a little bit more power
- Requires less maintenance compared with the original (no need to clean the secondary carburator air filter)
- However, this is at the cost of more fuel consumption (+0.5L/100km compared to the stock carburetor)
- And more temperamental with the altitude and the weather….
- Overall, we would not recommend doing this mod (it’s how the bike was when we bought it). The stock carburetor is better for long-distance travel and the power gain is not that significant. UPDATE: The modified carburetor needed to be completely replaced in Queensland (Australia) after a small butterfly piece detached itself and went into the engine… Another proof that the stock one is better for longer adventures.
Carburetor have been re-jet (both bikes)
- A must-do on the DR650
- Both bikes have gained a lot in power and smoothness once they were rejeted
- Has almost no impact on fuel consumption

Exhaust

Leovince X3 Exhaust (Yan’s bike) (link)
- Less weight than original (-2.3kg!)
- More power
- Pretty quiet
- European approved (street legal)
- You can put a spark arrestor to make it trail legal in US as well.
Two Brothers M7 Exhaust (Aga’s bike) (link)
- Less weight than the stock version
- More Power & smoothness
- Pretty noisy standard, we put a baffle to reduce the noise
- Not street legal in Europe.

We recommend using the Leovince exhaust over the Two Brothers.
Exhaust is one of the top things to replace on a DR to save weight.

Protection

B&B Case Guard Clutch and Ignition (link)
- Another must-do if you’re serious about traveling offroad with the DR.
- This mod will protect both sides of your engine in case of a fall. Some people without this protection had a hole in their engine case resulting in the bike losing all the oil…
B&B Front Sprocket Case Saver (link)
- This mod helps to see the wear on the front sprocket.
- Also helps to clean the front sprocket
B&B Oil Cooler Guard (link)
- Essential mod, the stock guard is flimsy and won’t protect adequately the cooler from tree branches or rocks.
- B&B Oil Cooler is much more durable and would prevent a hole in your cooler.
B&B Bash Plate (Aga’s bike) (link)
- Good bash plate that protects the engine from rocks and gives extra protection in case of falls.
Force Bash Plate (link)
- It’s a good bash plate, however the B&B is better. One of the issues with the Force Bash Plate is on the rear brake control, the pedal can sometimes scratch on the side of this bash plate.
B&B Chain Guard (link)
- The original plastic one was breaking all the time, especially when you change the rear sprocket to a 44. Using this metal version helps to avoid this issue.
B&B Frame Guard (link)
- Helps to have a flat surface on the side of the bike to better handle the bike offroad.
- Protects the rear brake master cylinder in case of a fall
Parabellum Headlight Cover (link)
- Protects the expansive DR650 headlight from flying rocks… (my Africa Twin has still a headlight smashed after following someone to close…)
Barkbusters Handguards (link)
- An absolute must!
- Protects your hands & lever in case of a fall or from branches when offroad.
- Protects your hands from the cold & wind when driving on the freeway.

Suspension

VSM upgraded suspension & fork (Yan’s bike and Aga’s rear suspension too later in the trip) (link)

Wheels & Tyres

Rimlocks on front and rear (both bikes)
- When running low pressure in an offroad situation, rimlock prevents the tire from moving on the rim and potentially tearing your tube.
Heavy Duty Tube 4mm
- We had them for a while, but they are very annoying to change because they are thicker.
50/50 tyres
- There is much to be said about finding perfect travel tires, and we spent a lot of time testing different combinations. Check the ranking and reviews of all the tires we’ve used so far in this post.
- For the DR650 our favourite combo is Bridgestone Battlax Adventruecross AX41 in the front and Motoz GPS Tractionator at the back.

Battery & Electronics

Motobatt Battery (link)
- After 3 dead batteries dying in the middle of nowhere in Russia & Mongolia, I definitely wanted something reliable for our trip this time…
- I haven’t been disappointed with these gel batteries so far. They start way better in the cold, don’t seem to have an issue with the vibrations or falls.
USB chargers
- Charge our GPS, phones and power banks
LED Auxiliary Lights (both bikes)
Trail Tech Vapor Speedometer & Tachometer (Yan’s bike) (link)
Heated grips
- They were a nice thing to have until they broke, and since then we didn’t bother getting new ones. Good gloves do the job.

Ergonomics & Comfort

Sargent Seat (Aga’s bike) (link)
- The original seat is extremely hard and not suited for long-distance.
- The Sargeant seat is comfortable enough for the first 300km of the day.
Seat Concepts (Yan’s bike) (link)
- Less comfortable than the Sargent Seat but still better than the original one.
Sheepskin Seat Cover (link)
- Add a bit more comfort for those long-distance…(and they look nice!)
- Don’t forget to cover your seat when it’s raining. One of our friends had his sheepskin turn into a pile of mold after exposing it to too much humidity!
Aftermarket handlebars (both bikes)
- The original bar is flimsy.
- Highly recommend fitting a more sturdy one and adjusting its height to give you better control & comfort, especially when standing up.
Lower footpegs (link)
- The ergonomics of the DR650 is wrong… If you are taller than 1.7M you should lower your footpegs to give you more control and comfort.
Pivot Pegs (Yan’s bike) (link)
- Not essential but make the gear change much easier!
Warp 9 Brake and Clutch Levers (link)
Warp 9 Shift Lever (link)
- The original shift lever is very flimsy… This one doesn’t break as easily during a fall.
Screens For Bikes Windscreen (Aga’s bike) (link) (Yan has a DIY screen made from a piece of plastic – see here for the video and forum thread)

Luggage Racks

B&B Carry Rack (link)
AndyStrapz Luggage Rack (Aga’s bike) (link)
Rackless Mosko Moto 80L V3.0 ‘Revolver’ (Yan’s bike)(link), but added VSM bag supports for more safety and support.
B&B Rear Luggage Plate Extension (Yan’s bike) (link)

Key Issues to Address

The DR650s are very reliable, but there are a few problems that need to be fixed before undertaking any serious long-distance riding. Below are the main issues we addressed:

Neutral sending unit (NSU) loose screws (pre-2017 models only)
- There are two screws holding the sensor responsible for lighting the “neutral” indicator. In some rare instances, these screws can fall into the engine and cause serious damage. To avoid this make sure to apply thread lock and re-tighten the screws. There are guides available on how to do this here (DRRiders Forum).
Countershaft Seal (Pre 2012 Models Only)
- In some instance the countershaft will move out of position resulting in the bike dumping all it’s oil… Suzuki fixed that issue after 2012, you can get the original countershaft seal for post 2012 from any Suzuki dealer. Highly recommend you install it for peace of mind.
Upper drive chain roller
- There is plenty of examples of the upper chain roller breaking out and leaving a hole in the frame… The recommendation is simply to remove it and Loctite a bolt in its place.
Wire Harness Chafing
- You can put some plastic or tape on the harness to prevent this.

To read more about the most common DR650 issues check out the links below: