DR650 What have I gotten into

[Steve B]

I bought a 1999 DR650SE last week. It has been sitting since 2003, 2010 miles, wiring harness cut through and stripped out of the bike, start / kill assemble removed, front and rear shocks modified (front shocks have air valve to add air to them?) (rear shock has a lowering link) airbox missing, exhaust system needs to be replaced, the plastic and gas tank rattled canned black complete with drips and runs. The deal is I got the bike and clean title for 500.00. Unfortunately the owner passed away in 2003 so I do not know what all the mods are. I will take and post pictures of what it now looks like.

Now it is like a jigsaw puzzle and I am working through it a little at a time. I pulled off the carb, cleaned and installed an oversized jet kit, got a new airbox and did the airbox mod, the tank is a piece dented and sprayed black so i will be replacing it with an Acerbis 6.6 gal which will require a bracket mod to make it fit , removed the exhaust and am waiting for a new FMF Q-4 system, waiting for new dual sport tires.

I got the new wiring harness but can not figure out the wiring layout / routing. Would someone, who has their bike apart, take a picture of the wiring harness routing and post it so I have an easier job routing and reconnecting things up or is there someone close by that I can come have a look at their bike? With the way I have it routed right now there are a few open connectors with no mate to plug into.

This is my first DR650 and my hope is that I can have it running this month.

Thank you for your help,

Steve Barrus
North Bend, WA

[Reposado1800]

Originally Posted by Steve B

I bought a 1999 DR650SE last week. It has been sitting since 2003, 2010 miles, wiring harness cut through and stripped out of the bike, start / kill assemble removed, front and rear shocks modified (front shocks have air valve to add air to them?) (rear shock has a lowering link) airbox missing, exhaust system needs to be replaced, the plastic and gas tank rattled canned black complete with drips and runs. The deal is I got the bike and clean title for 500.00. Unfortunately the owner passed away in 2003 so I do not know what all the mods are. I will take and post pictures of what it now looks like.

Now it is like a jigsaw puzzle and I am working through it a little at a time. I pulled off the carb, cleaned and installed an oversized jet kit, got a new airbox and did the airbox mod, got carb cleaner on the tank and the paint bubbled so I used it (carb cleaner) to remove all the spray paint back to factory finish, removed the exhaust and am waiting for a new FMF Q-4 system, waiting for new dual sport tires.

I got the new wiring harness but can not figure out the wiring layout / routing. Would someone, who has their bike apart, take a picture of the wiring harness routing and post it so I have an easier job routing and reconnecting things up or is there someone close by that I can come have a look at their bike? With the way I have it routed right now there are a few open connectors with no mate to plug into.

This is my first DR650 and my hope is that I can have it running this month.

Thank you for your help,

Steve Barrus
North Bend, WA

It sounds like the PO was insane! Distech has a build up thread here for his DR650 and it is VERY GOOD with mucho details.

[LukasM]

Sounds like you got a great deal!

Distech's build thread is really good, mine should have a bunch of pictures of the wiring as well. Link in my sig.

Lukas

[Steve B]

These are great resources.

thank you,

[Klay]

The factory service manual is excellent, and there are excellent drawings for routing the wiring. It might be worth buying it. I enjoy reading it.

[Steve B]

The bike also came with an 18" rear tire and no tachometer, is that common or after market?

[Slyder]

Factory rear wheel is 17", and DR650SE's do not come w/ a factory tach, only speedo/odo.

Congrats on the purchase - quite a deal you scored even if it does need some TLC!

I live in Monroe and work in Redmond. If you'd like to check out another DR as part of figuring out your bike, feel free to send me a PM and we can figure out a way to meet up.

- Chris

[Klay]

Originally Posted by Steve B

The bike also came with an 18" rear tire and no tachometer, is that common or after market?

A common modification is to put an 18 inch rear wheel from a DR350 on there. That may be what you have.

[BradBeck]

I live in Snoqualmie and trying to decide what my first bike should be. Strongly considering the DR650.

Steve B: howdy neighbor!

Brad Beck

Originally Posted by Deadpedal

Factory rear wheel is 17", and DR650SE's do not come w/ a factory tach, only speedo/odo.

Congrats on the purchase - quite a deal you scored even if it does need some TLC!

I live in Monroe and work in Redmond. If you'd like to check out another DR as part of figuring out your bike, feel free to send me a PM and we can figure out a way to meet up.

- Chris

[Steve B]

Tearing into the bike. The 18" wheel is not from a DR350. It is rigged mickey mouse, I will take photos, and has worn the swing arm, has washers stacked as spacers and is a real mess. Good thing it only has 2000+ miles. I contacted the seller and the original wheel was in the garage so i picked it up today.

[Steve B]

I am having a hard time uploading photos so I will regroup and try again. I got the new wiring harness installed and all the lights work (headlight, blinkers, brakes) except the tail light, not sure why. Plug gray to gray, b/w to b/w and w/b to w/b. Any ideas? The engine turns over. I will get the FMF hi-flo headers and Q4 exhaust and 6.6 gal Acerbis fuel tank Friday. I have built and installed (http://dr650.zenseeker.net/GasTank.htm) the conversion kit.
I will try to get pictures up.

[Mezo]

Hi Steve,

Have a read of this for uploading, host them elsewhere & then link them.

If you get stuck on a part missing from the bike i may have it floating around from my old DR project, im in Perth as well.

PM if you need anything.

Mezo.

[DisTech]

Sounds like you have the wiring pretty much sorted, but I have a bunch of pictures I didn't put in my thread just to keep track of the routing. Let me know if your interested.

Nice collection of bikes, are you going to Odessa?

[Agitator]

sounds like this project is right up my alley

I hope it goes well for you, sounds like you're getting there. Those little "bugs" at the end of sorting something can be frustrating but the end result is worth it. Ironing the kinks takes various amounts of time depending on the original design.

That rear wheel thing sounds pretty sketchy

Please post pics when you get a chance

~Tator

[Harry94025]

Hi Steve,

I don't know if you already knew about this, but the 1998-99 DR650s can have a problem with the starter gear (depends on the serial number, you can Google "Suzuki DR650 starter problem", or something like that for the scoop). I also have a 1999, and replaced the solid gear that was driven by the starter motor, with the earlier/later gear that has a torque limiter clutch. If the engine backfires when it shuts down, this can break the solid gear, and that apparently destroys the engine case. Interestingly, my torque limiter came from a 1995 DR; I checked the part number from one of the on-line Suzuki parts houses, and it was identical to the later number. The retail price for the parts is about $175, but I bought mine through eBay for $40...

Regards,
Harry

Originally Posted by Steve B

I bought a 1999 DR650SE last week. It has been sitting since 2003, 2010 miles, wiring harness cut through and stripped out of the bike, start / kill assemble removed, front and rear shocks modified (front shocks have air valve to add air to them?) (rear shock has a lowering link) airbox missing, exhaust system needs to be replaced, the plastic and gas tank rattled canned black complete with drips and runs. The deal is I got the bike and clean title for 500.00. Unfortunately the owner passed away in 2003 so I do not know what all the mods are. I will take and post pictures of what it now looks like.

Now it is like a jigsaw puzzle and I am working through it a little at a time. I pulled off the carb, cleaned and installed an oversized jet kit, got a new airbox and did the airbox mod, got carb cleaner on the tank and the paint bubbled so I used it (carb cleaner) to remove all the spray paint back to factory finish, removed the exhaust and am waiting for a new FMF Q-4 system, waiting for new dual sport tires.

I got the new wiring harness but can not figure out the wiring layout / routing. Would someone, who has their bike apart, take a picture of the wiring harness routing and post it so I have an easier job routing and reconnecting things up or is there someone close by that I can come have a look at their bike? With the way I have it routed right now there are a few open connectors with no mate to plug into.

This is my first DR650 and my hope is that I can have it running this month.

Thank you for your help,

Steve Barrus
North Bend, WA