Old Bike Australasia

Old Yeller

- Words and photos by Peter Whitaker

The Suzuki DR650 looks as though it’s been around forever. It has. First introduced in 1990 as a replacemen­t for the venerable Suzuki DR600, the DR650 soon got an electric leg but had little impact on the big bore trail bike market. A redesigned powerplant and weight loss program in 1996 came with the now familiar egg yolk graphics; and since then nothing but the colour has changed. In 2014 a choice of blue or white has replaced the yellow bits but walk into any Suzuki dealer with green in hand and for around $8000 you can ride away on a brand new ‘Trail Bike’ for far less money than you could back in 1996; only now the DR650SE slots more logically into what is now the Adventure Touring Category.

Trailbike, tourer, or take me to Timbuktu, many ‘OBA’ readers will appreciate there’s something noble about sitting tall in the saddle on a large bore, single cylinder, air cooled motorcycle. Particular­ly one with a bulletproo­f powerplant, an electric leg, swing arm suspension and discs. Sort of retro without the inconvenie­nce of oil leaks and dodgy brakes. And unlike many contempora­ry adventure bikes the DR650SE has no electronic wizardry to adjust. No push button ‘on the move’ suspension adjustment (though preload and compressio­n damping is adjustable) no ABS, no traction control and no computer to tell you what tyre pressures you’re running. On the DR650 all input runs direct from bum to brain and is controlled by the fingers on both hands. This is no tyre shredder but the DR650 will cruise at 110kph all day and twin caliper discs are more than adequate to haul it to a stop from those speeds. The 13 litre tank is good for 240km and the Bridgeston­e Trail Wing tyres provide a good compromise for most conditions; however if you intend heading out back, more aggressive rubber and a (readily available) large capacity tank provide a better margin of safety. The stock Suzuki DR650SE makes a great trail bike that’s equally comfortabl­e around town. And quite possibly the most extensive options and accessorie­s list make this machine the ideal base on which to build an inexpensiv­e, economical and reliable round the globe tourer.

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