Hi Matt,

give EVERYTHING else a good check over before you start thinking about top end rebuilds, look at the whole of the induction system, spark plugs - Tigthten first to see if loose, then pull and see if they are clean or oily, also operate the clutch while its running and make sure its just not this rattling a bit - they can be a little noisey sometimes on the older DR650's

I have heard of bugs making a home in someones airbox when their bike was parked up before, so look at EVERY possible minor problem first.

If you cannot find anything minor, then start to look at more serious problems including the neutral sender unit screws here:

Potential problems to be aware of - Suzuki DR650 Wiki

OHH $hit Oil Chage... - ThumperTalk;

If you cannot find anything minor, I would also drop the oil and filter it ( a paper coffee filter will work) and have a good look through it for swarf/particles etc.

This will help tell you if something is screwed in the top end.

I fitted a magnetic sump plug to my DR650 as soon as I bought it.

Good Luck and fingers crossed its something minor, let us know what you find.

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Grif

'11 KTM 450 EXC
'09 Suzuki DR650
'00 Discovery Series 2 V8
'95 Defender 90 300 Tdi Overlander
http://gipperstravels.blogspot.ca

Anyone nicked anything ???

Deffo check your oil first. Has any water got into the fuel ?? It is a mechanical knock or a combustion sound ??

You really need to try very hard to pinpoint where the sound is coming from.

Put a long screwdriver to your ear and use it as a probe on the engine..

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Handle in ear pointy end on engine! Alarming the noises you hear.

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Anything can happen in the next half hour

That they are ! lol..

It's handy to truoble shoot engine problems. Well.. sometimes !

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Whip the cam cover off & check camchain tension, could be that the spring in the tensioner has let go & tge tensioner's retracted, leaving the camchain to fly about. Mine sounded like more of a rumble than a knocking noise though?

Happened on my old DR600, a spare tensioner to hand fixed it.

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OK, first thanks for all the replies good to know you guys are here!

I checked the valve clearances anyway, figured it wouldn't hurt after 9000 miles, and its one job I can do before I think about getting it to a workshop and stripping down the motor. They were spot on, so that idea was out the window.

I started it again and it seemed to start much easier, the noise was still there but not nearly as loud and the longer it idled the quieter it got until it all but dissappeared, but was still there if I opened the throttle. After leaving it idling for a little while, fairly confident it wasn't destroying itself from within I took it for a gentle ride, maybe not the most careful approach but hey!

It just seemed to dissapear after a while, most confusing! Left the bike and started it this morning, sounds perfect again, as if I imagined the whole thing, but I know I didn't it was definattely a very loud knock the first time I tried to start it.

Could whatever it was have just sorted itself? could it really be something as simple as it not being happy with being sat on its centre stand for ten days with me too busy sunbathing to turn it over once in a while? Or is it a sigh that something serious is lurking, we go to Africa in less than four weeks so I bloody hope not.

Or could it just be that the bike was telling me something, when putting the rear wheel back on I missed a little spacer washer that had fallen out of the old towel that I had kept the axle and bits in in my pannier while the wheel was off and I only found it when I dug out my more specialist tools from the bottom of said pannier to check the valves. I never said I was a mechanic!

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I can't say for sure...... but it is most likely a symptom of what is yet to come... hopefully far into the future, but I can't say.

My suspicion is that the oil has been allowed to settle, and thus any areas of the motor which are overly worn (but which would otherwise be hidden by virtue of regular lubrication) are now showing their presence.

Nowadays, I travel mainly on bikes but I occasionally use my car (Honda S2000) which I purchased new 11 years ago ( it has only travelled 125,000km). For the past 2 years, after neglecting to use it weekly, it emanates a loud whine on starting, which lasts for around 20 seconds - from what I have read I believe this is due to the camchain tensioner being on the verge of failure, but after 30 seconds the sound disappears and the vehicle operates as good as new.

kimandmatt don't get yputself overly concerned, yes ayou have a future problem but it's not now so live, and ride, for TODAY.

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