In general no without putting the DR-Z engine under more stress than the others. None of those bikes are really designed to cruise the slab.

 

DRZ400SM vs. Honda XR650L

Im havin a tuff time picking between a Suzuki DRZ400SM or a Honda XR650L I plan on doin like 70% street/ 30% dirt. Which one is better out of everything from power to gas mileage and etc.!!!! I dont plan on on turning the Honda XR650L into a motard.

 

o ok thanks so i should just lean toward the 650's

 

Actually, it may even be faster! My buddy has a 2000 DRZ400 that he tarded out and was faster than the DR650 I had. Only thing you need to do is change sprockets. I think he was running 15 front 39 rear. He'd walk by me almost everytime!

 

In my opinion the DRZ will be under more strain at highway speeds just because you are pushing the motor a lot more at 70 than a 650. It is def. capable and with tall gearing you should be okay. If you are going for a street tard I personally would get a LC4 based bike or a XR650R, just my 2 cents. Sai is a good person to ask how the DR650 compares to his new XR650R. The 650's just have the extra power needed to get around :0)

 

I would say get a street legal XR650R but if you were to choice between the two I think the 400 would be better if you were going to run it in the dirt. The L is pretty slow so I imagine it compares to the DRZ.

 

o ok but i thought u really couldnt run the DRZ400SM in the dirt 2 much becuz of the tires on the bike. which bike has better gas mileage drz or xr.

 

so basically just change the sprocket on the drz400sm . i dont want the Honda XR650R i want the XR650L the dualsport model not the enduro model.

 

You can always change the tires on the DRZ to either MT60's or 17 inch knobbies. There is an old thread on there about 17 inch knobbies if you do a search.

 

Just compare torque curves. My guess is the 650's have a lot more torque at lower RPMs than the 400, so the 650's can maintain a given speed at lower RPM. The 400 could very well have as much torque at higher RPMs, but you would be spinning the motor a lot faster, which means more wear and tear.

Putting lots of commuter miles on a thumper will greatly reduce re-sale value. If you want a freeway commuter, you should be looking at an SV650, etc.

 

Merged the two similar threads you started. No need to start two of the same threads. Thankyou.

 

my dr650 kills my buddy dave's drz400sm with yoshi rs-3 slip on. mines just got a jet kit and open airbox. his isn't pulling 100mph like mine either.

 

Best of all of those on the highway will be the KLR650. My DRZ is not a happy camper on the highway... But I still force it to run beside the transports anywayz.

 

see thats the thing i dont want 2 feel like im forcing the engine on the highway so im better off with the 650's then.

 

Well; my buddy's KLR and my DRZ have the same top speed... The KLR is designed more as a touring-offroad bike than the others.

 

I've got a 2003 DR650 that I've motarded. I just got back from a 1200km round trip and it goes great. I am running 16/41 on the road which is good for 170kph (or 110mph roughly) but it cruises okay at 130kph all day. The DR is lighter than the XR and (I think) a better all round package. Try both and see what you prefer. The DRZ's and the like are the faster option from A to B but don't like the long hauls.

 

I have a 97 XR650L and a 06 DRZ400SM.

The XRL has way mo torque and kills my DRZ on the Highway. It is modded just a bit.

The DRZ is way lighter and handles much better. And the DRZSM comes with the RM suspension and it’s water kewled where the XRL will never be water-cooled.

The XR lack cause it’s not water-cooled and gets hot real easy on the freeway over a sustained 85 mph. And its suspension is decades away from the DRZ.

They make sport bikes to cruise over a hundred MPH, but if you want Tard potential, a great cooling system and great handling both on and off road then the DRX is my choice.

With street tires on both bikes the DRZ well out handles the XRL in the dirt. Cept for hill climbing. With knobbies I’d take the XRL in hill climbing in the dirt.

With a 39-rear sprocket the DRZ would be more freeway friendly.

My DRZ gets a bit better mileage than my XRL. But I have a 4-gallon tank on the XR and a two-gallon on the DRZ.

I actually bought the Dr.Z to replace my XR650L. It’s more modern and you don’t have to adjust the valves till around 14,000 miles says the manual.

I don't do more than 200 miles at one time on the DRZ. But 160 with two fills of the tank is not uncommon for me.

The new Huskies are pretty good alternative. My friends that have them have had to adjust the valves frequently and some have had top end problems. Also like the XRL my friends Huskies don’t seem to like a lot of freeway miles.

But the Huskies do put out quite a bit of horses and the do handle well on the road and track. And I believe the 450 are six speeds. The 06’s are street legal also.

And there’s the KTM with the LC4 motor. That’s a reliable motor also.

I had a 01 DRZ400SK. The street legal dual sport. And that bike was bullet proof. I had it for three years and never had to fix a thing. I put a paddle on it and road the sand and it handled OK on the trails. And I rode it to work.

That’s why I’m partial to the Dr.Z.

Hope that helps

 

thanks 4 the help guys an Honda Xr650L i will be getting.. :clap: :clap: :thumbup:

 

My input

I had a deserted out 1991 XR600R which I did the Baja treatment on then plated. It was a 630cc, cammed, ported and it ran 125 on top with 1 tooht bigger front sprocket. If I would have tarded it it would have upped the speed by a few MPH and ridden smoother. I am going to trade my GSXR for another one which has just been done and Id say go with more CCs anytime! You wont beleive what a big single goes like with a big bore kit cams and porting/jetting! It is incredible!

I raced a guy on a 2K something GSXR 750 which had a pipe and jetting and SPANKED his ass till about 100 then he passed me, but I mean I spanked him bad, iwas like 30 leinghts in front of him till 80, then he caught up.

 

This whole thread is full of bad bad bad info.

My DRZ has over 15k miles and has no problems cruising at 85 or 90 MPH if I want to. Too much strain? NO WAY.... the DRZ motor is plenty happy cruising at 9K RPMs and 90MPH.

A stock DRZ-SM or S model is only at about 35 RWHP peak.

However the DRZ isn't a 20 year old design like the other mentioned bikes and with a few parts its not very hard to extract much more power out of it.

I have topped mine out at a true 98MPH and I am making 44.2RWHP peak with stock cams, and still at 400cc. All this while maintaining slightly sub 50MPG mileage. (47-49 is very typical even with an FCR39 carb).

I am 100% positive however the 650s are all more comfortable rides on the highway. But for my use I would take a DRZ any day over XR650L,KLR650,DR650SE.

Depends on what you are after but "strain" and "DRZ" are 2 words I can't believe are being used together. You could keep it right at the limiter all day and it will keep on going. There are plenty of guys out there at 30,000 + miles on thier DRZ.

The real question is how much highway do you really plan on doing?
1. The DRZ will be way better on dirt hands down.
2. Will it keep up on the highway? - absolutely.
3. Will it be comfy? - Depends on how far you need to go.

 

I've owned a KLR650 a couple of years ago and it's a very reliable bike with a huge tank great for traveling but it has nothing to do with a DRZ wich is much more fun to ride. If you want to blow your head up, go with the DRZ, if you want economie go with the KLR. Remember in the end it's not the bike that make's the diffrence but the rider!!!