Suzuki DR250 1983 any good or not

[Graeme M]

I went through a few rear guards on mine - I figured it was the perfect bike to learn to drag the guard in a wheelie cos there was no power to catch you by surprise. I never did learn how to do it though...

[80-85 husky]

curse that Doug Domokos

[Graeme M]

Exactly!  Then I watched that Eddie Kidd movie, Riding High, and took the thing out one wet Sunday morning to see if I could brake slide it into corners like he did. That sorted out the footpegs and grips... 

I thought Eddie was pretty cool on that YZ.


Getting back to DR250s, I reckon that white Z model is the one to have. I haven't ever seen another one apart from mine.

[Paul552]

Speaking of wheely's

Stumbled on to this ages back

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qNnrCKi4-js

(give it time you won't believe that these guys can ride at all)

[mungus]

For what its worth I had and raced one when they were new back in 1982 (DR250Z that is). 

The "S" wasn't just road registerable it was quite different. Way less suspension travel, puny little steel swing-arm, big lights, metallic paint options, gas miser CV carb, etc. IMHO the "S" was rubbish as a dirt bike, I never saw any local farmers or trail riders on an "S". The Z was cheap enough and so much better that they all bought those instead. The S was basically a commuter bike.  I have seen registrable "Z"s in OZ too. With a proper PE style lighting kit and passenger pegs, but these are still a real Z (alloy swing-arm, longer legs etc).  Its easy to tell the S and Z  apart. The big headlight and pathetic little swing arm are the dead give aways to an S.

I even raced my basically standard new "Z" for a while in the club level Open Enduro class in NZ, until I admitted defeat and got a new KDX200 and changed classes!  Out of the crate they were just too gutless...  :'( But that could be fixed! 

The DR250Z was underpowered for that job, but at least it had decent handling. Once you got the engine breathing better it could keep up with XR250RE's (even pass them in the rough stuff) or beat a KLX250 without much fuss. But once the TT600K/L came out in 83' they became a bit of a joke in Open Enduro class. Mods of the day were hi-comp / big bore kits, (aftermarket - more CC and squeeze than the 300cc factory GN kit), a bigger pumper carb (can't remember what sort, standard was a VM28SS), White Bros headers and higher lift cam (I see Webb's cams are still available), UNI filter and alloy muffler etc.

I read an American Dirt Magazine on a DR250Z race project bike of the time (might have been Dirt Bike? I'm not sure its so long ago). From memory the dyno chart in the article showed them going from OEM of 17 bhp (rear wheel) to around 26 bhp. So not too bad for the day. Front forks weren't wonderful at higher speeds either, but then a front end swap from an RM-X/Z was an easy fix. We were luckier in NZ as the DR250Z there was basically the USA spec model, just fitted to what you might call in OZ "Rec Reg" specs, with the round PE speedo, a brake light switch (still kept the small taillight), and a hilarious squeezy horn for the RWC (guess it didn't need a battery!). I see some of them in OZ had some poxy passenger pegs mounted into that lovely alloy swing-arm - YUK! (guess you can TIG that up and linish it back nicely). ADR's etc...

These days its dead easy to buy a Suzuki GN based 300 cc upgrade kit with a matched / ready to go (jetted) new TK 34mm CV pumper carb off eBay (Chinese suppliers). (Although you'd get better response with a Mikuni TM33 pumper for around $240 USD off eBay, jetting per the KLX300 fitment should be a good starting point).
Add a warmer Webb cam and you're away! Probably 24-26 bhp at a guess. Likewise new heads are available ex China for around $300, which might solve the problem of buggered cam journals which is common. You can still buy the period Supertrapp alloy muffler kit and UNI filters too, so if you really want to, you can get a decent amount of power and all new barrel etc for under a grand. If you want to go all out, the Webb full race cam and comp valve springs, plus bigger valves might get you another hp or 2, but you'll lose some bottom engine and the smooth tick over. Beyond that the weak front brake and spindly 36mm forks were the bugbear for racing. The easy answer these days would be getting the front end off say an RM125/250 "E" etc (double leading shoes and superb 43mm forks). Their triple clamps bolt straight on to the DR250Z and transform the bike whilst still keeping it pre 84 class legal. (I found all the bits for an RM125E front end for around $500 US on eBay without difficulty, just now and had only missed another bloke selling the complete RM125E front end for $250 by a few weeks).

I really enjoyed my DR250Z. It was reliable, handled well and was easy to live with, plus lots of fun to ride. 
I found myself doing stuff that I wouldn't have tried on some other bikes of the day, as it was so "friendly" to chuck about.
I've been slowly collecting some of the old bikes I had through my youth for the last few years, and a DR250Z would be welcome if I could find a reasonably complete one at the right price..

Might even be tempted to make a 300cc project bike out of her... 

[LWC82PE]

In Australia we got some Z, D, E models with ADR kits that had PE blinkers. When the disc brake model came in 85 there was also 2 models. Disc with short travel 35mm forks (SF model) and Disc with long travel 36mm forks (F model)

E



Z



SZ

[mungus]

Ya crafty bugger! I was trying to post up a bunch of DR250 brochure scans I've got but couldn't figure out how. 
Seems you need to have some kind of file hosting account to post attachments here...

One thing that always surprised me was how long the DR250Z kept going. Launched in late 1981 (82 model), in its prime in 82 & 83', continued as the "D" model in 1983/84' (seemingly with only the addition of a tool bag), and if can believe the parts listings, finally petered out in 1985, with the only visible upgrade being a front disc brake. I've just seen a wrecker selling one labelled as 1986, so perhaps they lasted that long? 

Its fair to say Suzuki got their money's worth out of their tooling on that one.
Now thanks to the Chinese copying industry, we can even buy brand new complete engines (albeit GN250 electric start jobbies) and most engine parts, brand new, for good prices (300cc big bore kit is $150 USD).

[LWC82PE]

Not sure when they stopped here but i think it was near late 80's.

I am not so sure its chinese 'copies' I just think Suzuki has moved manufacturing of those GN's out to China so they are still Suzuki authorised i would assume but i am sure the build quality/specs have dropped down a little to keep prices low. Quite a few Jap bikes are like that now. Where you used to get brand name Nissin calipers or whatever but now they put on no name versions.

[mungus]

Quite possibly. I know the Japs get some of their obsolete stuff made and sold locally there, but I well remember a bit of a stink years back when I was working in China, about Honda finding a verbatim copy of one of their 1980's commuter models doing the rounds...

I just found a bloke on eBay selling those same DR250 engine parts ex Singapore, so perhaps you are right and they are "sanctioned" parts after all.
Whatever the case, jolly nice to have new stuff available 30+ years on.   

[Nathan S]

I bought an 84 model S a few months back. Damn it's horrible. I bought it thinking that it could be a vinduro bike for The Wife - but she pretty much refuses to ride it: "too heavy, too slow and the suspension is crap" - even a novice rider can accurately identify it's problems... Should have kept my 84 KDX, or the twin cam XT250...

I found a rough Z locally, but the seller wants way too much money for it.

[mungus]

I bought an 84 model S a few months back. Damn it's horrible. I bought it thinking that it could be a vinduro bike for The Wife - but she pretty much refuses to ride it: "too heavy, too slow and the suspension is crap" - even a novice rider can accurately identify it's problems... Should have kept my 84 KDX, or the twin cam XT250...
I found a rough Z locally, but the seller wants way too much money for it.

Yup that about sums up the "S". They are a dog! Having said that the basic frame and motor (except the carb) is the same, so if you throw away the lights, battery etc and swap the rear suspension and carb for the Z version (wrecker?) for a cheap enough price, it might be OK. If it was me I'd swap the whole front end for something better than the "Z" forks though. They are better than the S forks for sure, but there are way better options for the same money at a wreckers. RM-E perhaps? (keeps ya drum brakes to be class legal, but gets double leading shoes) 

The "Z" is a nice fun bike (or ladies Vinduro), and possibly easier for a lady to live with than a 1980's 2T. Price wise they seem to be all over the show. I've seen roughies than run for $500 (ie Vinduro project bike) and then some clowns asking $1,500 for sh*tboxes. There are a couple on the web for sale in OZ now; one for $1,200 regoed and in quite decent nick, plus he'll drop the price if you don't want the rego. (so maybe 1K?), and there are also 2 for sale in QLD for around $695 (both from the same bloke), but one is missing the carb and airbox so that's overpriced IMHO.

Anyway sorry you bought an S. It does amaze me how people advertise shitty old trail bikes in the Vinduro or even VMX section on eBay etc...

[mungus]

On the topic of how long the DR250Z lasted, I just found a USA / Canada spec PDF factory service manual that shows them in production until 1987! 
Although officially they have later year suffix letters, these models are all basically the 1982-83 "Z", albeit some years received minor changes or upgrades. The dirt bike world generally refers to all the dirt versions of the early SOHC DR250 as "Z"'s;

Z model 1982-83 (launched late 1981, with the RM and PE "Z" range for 1982)
D model 1983-84 (gold rims, tool bag and new graphics, same white bodywork)
E model 1984-85
F model 1985-86 (Went to a VM30SS carb, disc front brake & "RM" style yellow colour scheme)
G model 1986-87

For 1987 they were still making a DR250SH, but it looks like it was the "S" version again. The "Z" looks to have died in 1986-87.

Its a pity they never put the bigger forks and double leading shoe brake from the RM - D / E family on to it.
That plus changing to the VM30SS carb a bit earlier could have given it a new lease on life back in 1983/84 for little cost.
Instead they just let it die a slow death as a fun bike. And in my view that probably didn't make for an easy sell for the new and more race oriented models in 1990, having to overcome the lame image of the 1989 DR250...

But then Suzuki has done that with others in the DR family as we probably all know. Early in its life the DR650 could easily have been an XR/TT competitor will a few off the shelf RM parts, but again - nada! 

Sometimes ya really do wonder what the marketing guys in Japan have been smoking! 

Anyway there ya go. 

[80-85 husky]

the guys in japan are focussed on selling dirt bikes....there a whole heap more dual purpose riders than race riders....Suzuki generally focus on the soft option to target those dual purpose riders. once in a while they will pop out a hot machine to keep the racers and completion aware that they still have it....bit like Madonna....

[chrisdespo]

At the first Melanesia Village 2000 in hervey bay we were at the track setting up for the races on the week end most of the blokes like Goof and Gunther and the likes came out to look over the new track, Beetle came out on a DR250 and cruised around the track for a look and cleared the Quads down near the dam straight up pretty well impressive.