02 DRZ400 worth £1500 ?
 

been tempted into a ride down into West Africa. previous trips have been on an Enfield, AT and XT660; so I'm not overly fussed what I'm riding. I'm not interested in 'the best bike' type of nonsense.

I've been offered an 02 DRZ400 (S?), with 20,000 miles, for £1500. I'm pretty sure it's just been used off-roading in the UK (never been 'real' off-roading).

it'd need a larger tank, hand guards and a screen. I am assuming a manual cam chain tensioner too. I can't see the seat being much worse than an 03 Yam TT600RE, which was sorted with a sheepskin.

I had originally been thinking about an old XT Tenere, which already has the large and expensive tank. It seems you can pick up an XT for £1000.

But, assuming it runs ok is £1500 worth it ? I am not sure whether to stick with the original plan and wait for an XT to pop up.

cheers

Hey there

I bought my 03 S model for £1600 with 11,500 miles. It was the going rate when I bought it about 18 months ago.

For the age, that bike is worth anywhere between £1000-£1800 depending on condition.

The condition and service history on that bike will be CRITICAL to whether you buy it. It's a 400cc enduro bike and they need to be serviced regularly. It's probably had a hard life if its been offroaded for 20,000 miles.

You will find low milage, practically unridden DRZ's for a few hundred quid more... I'd pay the extra and get something less abused.

You want a drz from 2003 or newer with the brown cam chain tensioner. The 02 model has a silver one and also cheaper suspension.

Read THIS for more info

A trail bike in descent condition will never get much below £1500. So as long as the consumables have a reasonable amount left on them and it doesn't make any funny noises, it's worth the money.
Don't fit a manual cam-chain tensioner; it'll give you something to worry about. Also if you adjust it just a little too tight you will prematurley bollox the cam chain (ask me how I know that) Fit the later model auto tensioner and you will be sorted.

Don't worry about it having been "off-road". As long as it's seen some reasonable maintenance it should be ok. Mine is ragged to within an inch of it's life, thrown off mountains, burried in mud, regularly drowned in rivers and copes just fine.

I would spend the time to strip out and inspect/replace all the bearings before a long trip.

There's plenty of info on Dr. Zeds on 'tinternet (maybe too much)

Have fun

Ted, you type quicker than me

great, guys.

compared to the XT what's it like on the road ? If I was riding with someone else on an XT I'm guessing the DRZ would have roughly the same characteristics, 60 mph is fine, 70 mph do-able, 80 mph uncomfortable ? I'm talking about the older XT, not the 660.

cheers

Mine's an E and geared for off-road / trail riding so can't comment on the cruise speed for an S.

Tyres make a difference to comfort on the road, so does the big floppy front mudguard that'll make the bike weave a bit. I run AC10s (road legal MX tyre) so mine rattles along a bit. At full thrash, it's good for 80ish but I toddle along at about 60mph.

More practice .. I need to get out more no doubt ! lol

Well, its all in the gearing. Stock S is 15/44 which is fine for about 55-60mph without over revving the engine.

I tried 15/43 which is ok for 60-65pmh.

I've got a 42T on order which I think will be perfect for the road. Cruise nicely at 65-70mph which will be fine for me.

The SM has 15/41 and I've ridden an SM with 15/42 and liked the power/gearing for the A-roads.

Tyres are important for road comfort. K60's are a good halfway compromise, as are Sahara 3's. I've got TKC80's on mine atm and they're fine in the dry but pretty terrifying on wet roads.

You WILL be needing a Corbin seat & sheepskin or get your seat remodeled.

cool, thanks.

just trying to weigh up a newer 400 v older 600. sounds like they'll be similar. it never felt too comfortable (mechanically) on the old XT at 70 +.

riding down to Spain (to get to west africa) is a long away. but once I'm there (apart from the NDB - NKT road) the 400 will be better.

sounds like a challenge being set down between my ass and the drz seat ! just looking at the seat it looks very similar in lack of comfort to the tt600re I had.

anyway, cheers for very good and clear info. I'll go and have a wee shot of the bike.

I think your best bet is to look for a used SM and convert it to S, at least you'll know it hasn't been ridden off road and wont have had the abuse. Good luck!

I would have to disagree. SMs due to their low gearing (13/52 sprocket combo?) have invariably had the nuts revved out of them. Wouldn't touch one with a bargepole. With an S or E bike you need to know the history of it (as with all second hand motor vehicles etc etc). An old fella gently green laning will have put no stress on an E or S.
cheers
Chris

I think there might be a secret weapon out there. I ordered one today: Sweet Cheeks motorcycle seat suport
:thumbup1:

cheers
Chris

I think the SM is 15/39. MUCH longer than the enduro versions. Lower reving as geared for the road and better top speed.

I've ridden them all and the SM engine is the one you rag the least IMO.. But of course, it depends who owns it !

Hi Ted
You could be right. I clearly know jack sh*t about super motards. I do know that they have different CDI units. So there's a useful fact :( In fact the S and E CDI s are different too. :offtopic:

cheers
Chris

there are 2 E's on offer as well. my thinking was the lower compression ration on the S makes it more suited to west africa.

lol... No worries, not many do until they throw enough money down the drain with that love affair (dont ask).

Well I have no idea they had different CDI's !! Makes sense with the E model as it runs different cams/carb (although people change the carb and cam and not the CDI ???)

I can't think why the S and SM would though. The engines are identical.

Maybe a slightly different advance on the firing. I really dunno !

The E is a dirt bike !! Higher compression so won't run as well on poor fuel. Also pathetic lighting, no indicators, smaller/weaker subframe (I think)..

Makes more power with its agressive cam and FCR pumper carb but also will use more fuel.

If you want to blast through the dunes it could be a lot of fun, if you want to overland too, i'd go with the S....

They have the same suspension.

I asked this question a while ago, when I had an E and a S:
Does a S CDI unit work on an E bike? - ThumperTalk

Chris

Ahhh, The S and SM will be the same then as they run the same ignition safety set up.

In theory :)

I'm wondering whether to take a spare reg/rect & coil with me to Capetown.

It seems the stator winding give up over 20,000 miles which is my only concern at the moment.

The three flavours of drz are all interchangeable and for buying seconds you're best off with the SM, mostly because the engine is less worn (especially if it hasn't had any mods done to it), secondly the wheels and inverted forks would happily buy you a set of dirt wheels and showa fork and help you get more kit for the bike. S & SM has stronger subframe over the E, more economical carb, and better electrics (over the E).

Chris the gearing on the SM is the opposite to the E, it's designed for higher top speeds over lower end torque, Ed was close but wrong: 15/41, I tried the 39 rear (for faster speeds) and found very little difference, I'm currently running a 42 rear.