Disappointed with my DRZ - where next?

[CRM]

I have a DRZ 400E thats been made barely road legal - the idea I can hoon around on the road a bit and ride to the trails - but really it's a bit big and heavy for the tight type of trail riding I enjoy (I tend to fall off it a lot!) plus not set up for taking the wife out on the back to the movies (no rear pegs).
So anybody out there got any ideas of the perfect bike for me? I'm wanting a reliable low mantainence street legal four stroke that I can go trail riding and take on the road two-up for short distances. Also not too tall (I've put koubalinks on the DRZ to lower it a bit which helps).
Thanks for your feedback.

[Masterchop]

I'm wanting a reliable low mantainence street legal four stroke that I can go trail riding and take on the road two-up for short distances. Also not too tall. Thanks for your feedback.

I reacon you just described a DRZ400E

[Supermoto Junkie]

Buy Orange.....a nice little KTM 640 lc4 sounds right up your alley, if you buy one thats several years old then you won't have to drop a big pile of cash either, then buy some motard wheels and give these sports bike guys a run for their money

[deanohit]

I reacon you just described a DRZ400E

Yep, thats about right although S-J made a good suggestion with the KTM.
Any good dirt bike isn't going to be any good carrying a pillon.

[NordieBoy]

Little?
LC4 640?

[kiwifruit]

wr450? maybe to tall?

[Supermoto Junkie]

Little?
LC4 640?

I guess it is relative to the size of your grapefruits.....or is that Ass

[CRM]

Looking at going to something a bit lighter - maybe a KLX300 or XR250 or TT250 for about $4000 so looking at a few years old - really like electric start though - any ideas?

[Alpha Solo]

Sell it to me or swap it for my Pampera 2 stroke...

[jafar]

Split your money & get a street bike for taking your lady out on & a dirt bike for the weekend.

[Rosie]

Buy your wife a nice little chook chaser (XT225, or a sherpa, for example). Having her own bike, she no longer has to go on the back of your bike. And you can ask nicely to borrow it whenever you need a small light traillie.
Everyone wins

[marks]

I've just been down this path.

Any bike that is ok as a 2 up street bike is shit on tight trails . They are all either too heavy or too tall except for maybe a gas gas 250 pampara - (never ridden one).

get a kdx200 for tight trails and a small/med road bike for everything else or be prepared to compromise to the point of not enjoying it.

I love my wr450 (flash equivalent of what youve already got) but its not good in really tight trails whereas my sons kdx is a roosting rocket in the same conditions.

[warewolf]

Disappointed with my DRZ - where next?

If the DR-Z400 is too much bike, then the next step down would be the 250 trailies: DR/DR-Z, TTR, XR, KLX etc. The first two being leccy start.

Then there are the jap import versions of the same, all of which are leccy start, more road-oriented and therefore more of a handful on tight rough trails than the aforementioned.

The next step down from that is per Rosie's suggestion, the soft-trailies (for want of a better word) like the XR200, XT225/250, SL230, DR200 etc etc. Some are closer to 200 than 250cc. But these tend to be the same weight but less power and suspension than the first lot I mentioned. I would rate my DR-Z250 as having 50 to 100% more power and 50-100% more suspension than my DR200, for the same weight.

All three of these groupings tend to have pillion accommodation that would work for short town trips but any more would be trying. Some particular examples don't, eg my DR-Z250 didn't have the pillion pegs, other ones did.

And as you already know, lowering links are available for most of them, if required.

I second the option of the Gas Gas Pampera, I rode one quite a bit and liked it, except the front suspension is very soft and to my mind dangerous. The power and other capabilities of the bike could very easily over-stress the weak front. Could be cheap fixes there, but overall a very nice bike. Light, powerful, agile. Pre-mix fuel and kick-start only though. I was instantly quicker on it than my DR-Z250 on smooth stuff, but the front end was downright scary. Could have been a bad example, eg low or crapped-out fork oil, but it wasn't my bike to fix.

[CRM]

Thanks for the quick feedback. I guess I'm looking for the mythical 'do-all' bike. My last bike was a 'chicken-chaser' - a Honda XL250 Degree - water cooled electric start low-seat bike and it was my intro back to riding after 20+ years away. It's actually a great little bike and got along really well on the trails - just the ground clearance and suspension letting it down in the rough stuff (my son has it now), It reminded me of my old XL175 only way more power. Getting the DRZ was trying to get more suspension and power but just hasn't clicked for me - just not the fun experience I'm after. I haven't ridden the KTM four strokes - what are they like?

[tipper]

In my experience, a really fun bike 'in the trees' is always light and fast = two stroke Gas Gas EC200 or KDX; four strokes are just that bit more work to ride. Had a KTM 520, and that was like wrestling an aligator in the tight, but really good at 80kmh wheelies in the open. Got rid of that for a WRF250, better, but longed for something more like a MTB with an engine -then I rode the Gas Gas.....

In my perfect world, i would have such a bike just to jump tree roots, a KTM LC4 for exploring, and a road bike like a Street Triple for fun.

There is no perfect bike, but having done it all (all 'codes'), the DRZ is not a bad bike, just a really good compromise on the first two. Easy, friendly, and bit heavy.

Having been passed on a trail ride by a Fantic trials bike at warp speed, I realised all compromises suit different riders.