Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Neither th e 250 nor th e 350 sta rte d as easi ly as we th o ugh t th ey would. So me ti mes ' th ey started o n th e first kic k, o ther tim es the seventh. Bu t th ey a lways di d fire to life a nd requi red littl e effo rt 10 do so . In o ther words, we we ren't nervou s abou t stopping th e en gine when fa r from civ iliza tio n . T h e brakes on the 250 a n d 350 a re powerful, bu t th e Iro n t tw in- p isto n disc bra ke on bo th b ikes feel a litt le m ushy. Un like so me d ual -purpose bikes o n the market, none of the DRs sport fa irin gs, thank-you -very -much. Fa ir i n gs o n dual -spa n b ikes, i n ou r o p i n io n , are si lly. T hey i nc rease weig h t a nd are susceptible to da mage. , If yo u' re going to ride in th e dirt, it's ine vitab le th a t yo u 're going to fall down, a nd wh ile 99.9 percent o f th e u sually left it id li ng during trailside meetings. In th e di rt , the 650's suspens io n is nothing to brag about, but it does ge t the job done if cas ua l trail rid ing is wh at 's in order, although in stock form it bottoms easi ly. All three DR s feature odome ter, tr ip rne te r , and s peedo meter instrumenta tion. ti me falling is no big deal, if yo u ha ve a fai ring th e sto ry cha nges. Fai rings aren ' t cheap and th ey don 't m ix well wi th rocks. T he DR650 is a whole new ballga me compared to its two littl e brothers. It 's also des igned for bot h on- and off -road riding, but it's m u ch happier o n the paveme nt tha n it is in th e di n. Sure, yo u ca n ride th e 650 in th e dirt a nd have a good tim e, as long as yo u' re Suzuki DR650SL Engine type • • • •• •Air / oi l-cooled, 4-stroke, single Bore x stroke • ••• • • 94.0 x 90.4m m Displacem ent •........ , • • 640cc Compression ratio .•. .•• •• 19.7:1 Carburetor • • • • • • • •40mm Mikuni Valves per cylin der • • • •• .•• •• • 4 Sta rting system ••• ••• Primary kick Ignition •••• • , ••• • • Suzuki PEl Lubrica tion ••• ••• •• • • Dry sump Transmission . • • • • ••• • . 5-speed Final dri ve ••• .•• •• •• • 520 cha in on a fa irly smooth a nd wi de open d irt road. T he DR650 is a handful in th e whoop s a nd o n tigh t trails, a nd an absolute bear in th e sa n d. The 250 and 350 will b low it away in the dirt. If yo u're looking for brute power in a d ua l-sport b ik e, though, a nd if yo ur p lans incl ude mostly pavement, th en th e 650 will su it yo ur needs to a tee. It 's very pow erful wi th stro ng bra kes to mat ch. Chassis ••••• • • • Sp li t, do wnt ube, double-cradl e fram e Fron t suspension ••• Telescopic fork Fork tube diameter • •• • . ..• 43mm Front wheel travel • • • • ••• • 9.4-in . Rear suspension •••• • Single shock, swingarm Rear wh eel travel • • ••• • • . . 8.7-in . Fron t brake •• • • • • • •• 11.0-in . disc Rear brake • • • • • • • • • • 9.8-in . disc Front tire • • . . .. • . •• 90/90-21 -in. Rear tire • ••• • • •• ••• • 120/ 90-in. Clai med dry weig ht «, " • • • 340 Ibs. Overall leng th • • • • • .• ••• 89.2 in . Overall width • • • . . . . ••• 34.3 in . O verall height ••• • • • •.•• 52.6 in . Wh eelba se ••• • • • '• • • • • • • 59.4 in . Sea t heig ht • • • .• • • • • • • . 35.0 in. Ground clearance ••• . . .• • 10.2 in. Fuel cap acity •• • • • • • • • • . 5.5 gal. Colo rs _•.••• • • • • • •• Wh ite/blue Retail price •• • • • •• •••• •• $3599 U n li ke m ost b ig -bore dual-sport bik es these da ys, the DR650 does not ha ve a n electric starter. Ouch ! Luckil y, th e DR we rode almost a lways fir ed o n th e first ki ck , b ut n onetheless we Suzuki DR250SL & DR350SL Engine type • • •• •• •• Air / oil-cool ed, 4-stro ke, single Bore x stroke DR250S L •••••• •• • 73.0 x 59.6mm DR350SL .•.•• .. . . 79.0 x 71.2mm Displacement DR250SL •• .•• .• • • • • • • • • 249cc DR350SL • .• •' .. • •• ••••. •349cc Comp ressio n ra tio. DR250SL . •••• •• • • • • • • • • 10.0:1 DR350SL •••• : • •• • • • • • •• 9.6:I Carburetor DR250SL • • ••• • . • . 3l m m Miku ni DR350SL •• • •• •• • • 33mm Mikun i Valves p er cylinder • • • • ••• •• • • • • 4 Starting system • • • • .••• Primary kick Ignition •• •••••• ••• • • Suzuki PEl Lubrication . . ••••• • •• • • Dry sump R oundup T he wait for more serious d ual -sport motorcycl es is fi na lly over. Suzuki has introdu ced tw o trul y din-ori ented dua l-sp o rt mo to rcycles: no fairin gs, no fancy p aint job s, and no low- mounted front fen ders 10 clog with mud. In fact, we w ouldn 't be su rpr ised to see strip ped- down DR250 an d DR350Ss show up a t family end uros. All yo u 'd have to do is sw itch to full knobby tires, rem ov e th e b linkers and m irrors, and beef up th e sus pens io n a li tt le, a n d you 'd have a defi nite fi n isher. And , best of all , th e DRs ar e rea so n a b ly pri ced . At $2999 for the DR250, $3299 for the DR350 a nd $3599 for th e DR650, yo u rea lly ca n' t go wron g. A ll three m o torcycl es a re covered by 12-mo nt h warranties. Many people are predicting th a t dual-sport o ff-road riding is th e wave o f th e future, a nd wi th mot orcycles like th e DR250 a n d DR350Ss emerging o n the scene, we have to believe 'e m. Suzuki obvio us ly does. t:!¥ Transmission •• •••• . ..• 6-speed , Final drive . • • • • • • • • • • 520 cha in Chassis • •• • •• • • Split, down tub e, daub-cradle fram e Front suspensio n • • • Telescopic fork Fork tube diameter • • .•• • • • 43m m Front wheel travel . •.. : . • 11.04 in. Rear suspension ••••• Single shoc k, swin garm Rear wheel travel .. .•.•• 11.04 in . Fro nt bra ke •••• •••....•.• Disc Rear brake ., • •• • • • • • • • • • Disc Front tire • .••• •• • • 80/ 100-21 in . Rear tire • • • . • • • • • • • • II 0/90-in . Claimed dry weight DR250SL •• • • • • • • ••• • 284 Ibs DR 350SL • • •• • • •••• ; . 287 Ibs Overall length • • • • • • • • • • 87.8 in. Overall widt h • ••• •• •• •• 35.8 in. Overall height • ••.• •.• • •48.6 in. Wh eelba se ': 56.5 in. Seat height • . •• • • • • • • • • 35.0 in. Ground clearan ce • • • • . • • . 11.2 in. Fuel capacity ••• • • •••• . • 2.4 gal. Colors • • • •• • •• • • • • Whitelblue Retail price DR250SL • • • • • • • • • • • • •$2999 DR350SL • • • • • • • • • •. .• $3299 21

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