Brake Magazine have built their ideal budget adventure bike from an old Suzuki 400. We wanted to find out more
Brake Magazine, the UK-based ADV channel, bought a 20-year-old DR-Z to try create their idea of an affordable, fun, reliable and cool-looking adventure bike. Did we say it had to be affordable? OK, good. Read or watch certain areas of the internet, and you’ll hear bikes that tick all those boxes a referred to as a ‘Unicorn’, mainly because it’s so hard to build a bike like that on a budget. If you do, it’s almost a mythical creature. We interviewed Brake’s editor and founder, Llewellyn Pavey about the finished bike.
KRIEGA: What is the base bike for the project, and what was the concept?
Llewellyn Pavey The base bike is a 2004 DR-Z 400 S. It's the slightly more dual sport-orientated DR-Z that was most common in the UK. In Australia, the USA and South Africa you can still buy the E model which is more powerful, but for an adventure base, the longer service intervals and less stressed engine of the S is probably the better option.
The concept was to make a lightweight, highly-capable budget adventure bike. Something better than a Honda CRF300 Rally, but about the same weight. I wanted it to be A2 Legal, affordable, reliable and to have a high level of performance. The last goal was for it to be a great looking, desirable bike. [A2 legal refers to a specific UK licence restriction and limits the kind of bikes riders with different licences can legally ride. A2 Legal is a bike with a maximum power output of 47bhp (35kW) and a power-to-weight ratio not exceeding 0.2 kW/kg. They can be ridden by anyone 19 and over with an A2 licence].
The budget was to try and bring the whole bike in for less than the cost of a Honda CRF300 Rally, so in the UK about £6000. This is always tricky to explain across borders, but the British secondhand bike market has been insane the last few years. I know in the US, secondhand bikes are very affordable but finding any bike for less than £2500-3000 in the UK is hard, even if it's 25-30 years old.
What are the main modifications?
The project was twofold. Restore the bike to a good working state and then upgrade it. The upgrades are mostly about making it travel capable. We added a tower from a company called One Adventure. That takes care of lights, gives some wind protection, navigation mounting and so on. It looks great too and gives a kind of rally bike look.
To add to the look we used a set of Polisport Restyle Plastics and some in-house Brake Magazine graphics.
Making a bike travel ready also means it needs storage. We used a rack from Chinese brand NiceCNC and then mounted the new Kriega OS-BASE Adventure and two OS-18 Adventure Packs. The new super-adjustable base made it easy to get it fitted well. Adding extra luggage and camping kit would be more than easy and that's what makes it 'adventure' ready.
What is the best money no object modification?
You could easily put the OS luggage in this question, the long warranty and durability of the product is incredible, but suspension is my pick. Going from clapped out 20-year-old suspension to a full deep service was a huge upgrade on the bike. The whole bike feels nearly showroom fresh now and it's lovely.
What was the inspiration for the graphics/colours?
The graphics are designed by my friend Jack. He's an automotive designer and we both draw big inspiration from NASA's overall design language. The iconic oranges, the big, clean designs. I liked the symmetry between the idea of this being a real explorer's kind of bike and the exploration of NASA.
How does the project stack up against buying a recent model bike for the same money?
That depends on what you want from the bike. The project idea is to build a lightweight, highly-capable off-road bike, compromising some road-going ability. It's a bike that'll let you get to the more tricky places in the world, rather than crossing Europe in a week.
Our DR-Z can do the miles, but it can't sit at 85mph on a highway. It's also only 150kg. In regards to new bikes that can do that, it's really down to the rider, but the most direct comparisons are the CRF300 Rally and the Kove 450 Rally. The CRF300 is an inferior bike for everything but the highway [compared to Brake’s DR-Z].
I haven't ridden the 450 Rally yet, but by all accounts it's great. However it's nearly £3000 more than we spent. We have some new bikes entering the market like the KTM 390 Adventure R and Enduro R but at present it's still a hole in the market.
What does it excel at?
Being fun to ride. It's light, amazingly capable to ride and puts a smile on your face. You'll have a hard time getting it stuck, whether that's in the mountains or the deserts.
What could still do with improving?
A few things. Some of it is detail related. This bike went through a few owners and has some odd parts such as the clutch perch/lever. I'd like to fit a taller seat, with an Alcantara cover for hotter countries. We ran into some problems in Episode Two that you'll see soon and they will need solving [see Brake’s Episode 1 below].
Lastly, I think we need to find some balance with the gearing. It's superb for trails and dirt roads but I'd like it chugging along at a lower rev range on the open roads. This stuff is so well documented with the DR-Z that fixing it is going to be easy. That's one of the biggest upsides of 20+ years of knowledge on the bike.
Brake Magazine’s DR-Z400 is fitted with Kriega OS-BASE Adventure and OS-18 Adventure Packs.
To buy, order directly from kriega.com or head to your local dealer for a closer look
Kriega UK dealer network
Kriega Worldwide importers
See more Brake Magazine films at The Brake Magazine YouTube Channel
The OS-BASE is an over-the-seat harness for mounting OS-ADVENTURE PACKS as saddlebags. This system provides a super-tough, lightweight, easy-fit solution from 6L up to 54L capacity, without the need for pannier racks.
There are 2 x UNIVERSAL-FIT OS-BASES: OS-BASE DIRTBIKE (for the latest enduro bikes) and OS-BASE ADVENTURE (for adventure bikes old and new ) plus 11 x MODEL SPECIFIC designs available.