Largest Single Cylinder Motorcycle Ever Sold! Riding the Suzuki DR800 BIG!

[@DRBigADV]

I've restored a 1992 DR800 over the past 2 years. I've been riding it since May, and I love it. It's indeed completely mechanical, except for the CDI ignition. It's a bit crude. But all mechanical means it's easier to work on yourself. And it's bulletproof! It's built to manage the huge hammer blows that singe cylinder creates. I once kicked it into first at a standstill without the clutch by accident. Doing that with a modern bike might have risked damaging the gearbox. But with this bike, if I would have done that on purpose, it probably wouldn't even have stalled. Also, the ride is quite comfortable. I did a 1500km tour around Belgium this summer, all on smaller roads, and it's so enjoyable to drive. I like the steering and the way it handles. Vibrations are really manageable, especially considering it's one huge piston that's jumping up and down several thousand times per minute. Brakes could be better. And suspension too. But hey... The bike's almost as old as me.

[@BigB-qk6zh]

Great to hear she's back and running! I just bought one today, 1994! How difficult is it to get spares??

[@davesears5264]

Hi I'm 5'6 tall owned a 1998 Dr800 about 3.5yrs a monster single but loved it simple to work on could ride it all day so comfy. Front brake not great or the suspension on the front but you can up rate. I now own and ride a KTM 990 adventure.

[@paulkinsella6172]

Massively enjoyed this video. Massive thanks to you for the massive effort you've put in to it. Massive singles are massive fun. Hope I've said massive enough, as it seems to be your word of the day! Ooh! The massive downpour has stopped, think ill go for a massive ride on my massive Triumph.

[@easternmenace]

The Dr800 is one of my dream bikes to test and possibly own, I do prefer the 700 though it looks more like a Dakar bike

[@LvChartroise]

I've owned now for 4 years a Dr 800 from 1994. I had a BMW 1150 GS (sooo heavy in comparison!) before that and I absolutely love the BIG over the BMW! Over the years I've done a lot of work on the bike but because it's so mechanical you can most of it yourself. I use the motorcycle in Tuscany and to me it seems that it has been made for the twisty roads here. Also off road it behaves great. I can jump a little with and with the torq it will pull you out of every situation ;) If you can find one it's an absolute joy to ride and own

[@wolfmanjackxl1691]

It's not the DR Big's fault that the tires you had on it seemingly were shite. : ) It's a very stable and predictable bike with the right ones. And it's a proper offroad bike if you need it to be (surely no Motocross bike). The V-strom is a street bike foremost. Proud owner here.

[@Ravan_Caw]

Great blog nice comparison of bikes. Ps bring back the old intro music. Please please, t’s strange but I think of it as your theme tune. Many Thanks

[@luke6645]

I agree... the watch me ride one

[@urnansroach]

I think giving someone a DL1050A in 1991 would be the same as giving a Harley rider a brand new Goldwing

[@notacucumber7617]

He asks - why is this shit so heavy? Can i ride thru this puddle without engine overhaul?

[@drdoolittle5724]

Yup, it was fun thank you very much and well worth all your efforts - my old stuff is never compared to my new stuff but hell, new is easier! Your 'old' music was far better than your 'new' music!!!

[@HakanKoseoglu]

About the people from the past thing The bikes are designed for completely different things. You can take the DrBig to and old style Dakar rally and expect to finish - in fact the suspension, power, everything is designed for that robust riding whereas the new bikes are for the common fast roads for long distances and a bit of light off-road greenlaning. Completely different buyer market and expectations. Having an old XTZ660, I can completely get from where the DrBig comes from. Low powered, unstressed engine plodding along with loads of torque, but gearing and suspension designed for the dirt, not the open roads...

[@Ray88G]

There is one bike missing from this lineup.! A Dr650 but also very rare in UK because of emissions

[@adenlamb9916]

Hey spicy, i'm soon to be the owner of a DR800 supermoto conversion. If you ever want to ride it ill quite happily let you borrow it for a video.

[@thebiker4966]

Great bikes a great video as always

[@Cool95951]

I like the old ones more because there are less things that can break i drive a 1983 KTM 500 K4 and it runs like a charm i see the clutchwork as a training 💪 but when driving you dont realy need the clutch it's a helical claw gearbox you can just let go of the gas and put the next gear in without a problem.

[@user-sw2lv3zp6o]

I remember the original DR750 Big getting a lousy write-up in BIKE in 1992.

[@krc1972]

Interesting vid, glad to se my DL1050A got a cameo!

[@lazyfox75]

I LOVE my DR 800 S

[@MattiasE]

I love the Dr800s and will own one soon i hope. Now i have ccm 404 that has drz400 engine.

[@NK-dl2nc]

Do t know how well set upnor maintained that 800 is but my DR Bigs had light controls and also you would probably get a better experience short shifting and riding on the torque rather than revving it. Done many thousands of miles on mine. It's a bike you either love or hate. Very reliable and very tactile.

[@djrichylaurence8991]

My Scram 411 is a good grin once you do a few tweeks 😊

[@maximilianpaech1944]

Niice 🤡 FYI: Iam owner of two dr big since 1992. one till present. The big handles in comparison to modern ADV Bikes like a bicycle. The clutch is smoother than the Magura one on my 990. You have to maintain the wire from time to time. The engine noise comes for two reasons: One is the balancerchain. You have to service it. The other is a worn out motor. The big doesnt like high rpms. That will result in noise and oil consumptio. Mine has 100K and still dont need oil at all 👍

[@ianrumford9247]

Loved this video great to see the comparison 👍🏍

[@SupermotoZach]

I really wish my DR650 didnt blow up lmao I loved it, had soo much torque it ripped you a new one and was so fun.

[@connor3288]

How did it fail?🤔

[@HakanKoseoglu]

I want a Dr Big for ages, after owning an 99 660 Tenere for some time but they are ao rare now!

[@aabe4327]

Surprisingly there are several DR800's for sale here in sweden recently. I keep looking for a dr 650, but instead people want to sell me the big doctor. Your video gives me the impression it is probably not the ideal beginner bike tho.

[@spicy110]

That would be correct! It is a bit of a handful even for someone used to riding big singles. I love it for that but as a new rider I think the 650 would be the better of the 2.

[@docholliday2364]

Great video lots of good info thanks brother.

[@andybrown390]

l love my DR800, just finishing the second restoration due to some neglect in recent times. But I've had the motor tuned so it's a bit more lively. I know it's an ol' dinosaur of a bike but still great fun to ride and throw about......

[@spicy110]

Agreed! Bit of an animal ha ha

[@andybrown390]

@@spicy110 Maybe I'll have to do my own DR video in a few weeks when the bike is back on the road again. Not much on KZbin featuring the ol' DR BIG's...

[@ThePalmatron]

Really cool comparison...Thanks!!

[@bikesnjosh]

i used to own the dr650 the latest model 96- present supermoto setup , fmf exhaust used to roar and as you can imagine turn heads 🤣😅 think i scared people more than , turning heads impressed

[@AridersLifeYT]

Would like to see Spicy ride the CRF450L if he has not already

[@HippoDrones]

I really like the looks of the new V-Strom 1050, especially the yellow one. Ace to see the comparisons between them all... modern bikes are def better in all statistical ways... but older one's have a character that can make you love them :-)

[@calvinteh3297]

What's the advantage of a big single cylinder versus multi cylinders of the same displacement?

[@J2I3H]

Simplicity, low maintenance costs, high torque at low revs. All the fun within the speed limits. They are very responsive, go and try one;)

[@notacucumber7617]

Weight.

[@teagreen87]

Great vid 👍would love to see you get your hands on an original katana.

[@tobypalmer5564]

Awesome vid

[@crumblymal8479]

Hi what do you think between the DL 1050 and the Tiger 1200 XRX ETC I have only sat on a factory lowered Tiger which was 2016 @£8295 could have taken it out but did not have time to do it wish I had though Mal

[@kokkiematematika1931]

So did you check the DR800's top speed?

[@spicy110]

No, do you not think that would be a little disrespectful to the owner who allowed me to ride his bike?

[@MadNath]

☺☺ I had a dr 125 for my first bike as a 14 year old the bike was a tank so heavy.

[@keyboarddancers7751]

I don't think I've seen a better overview of the 800 and it's a great comparison with the 1050 and 400. Somewhat dizzying camerawork.

[@NP-cq3vb]

Tfw you see he's in 2nd at 40mph and you're used to almost shifting into 5th by then on a 125 hahah

[@Mouldybreaad]

What about my xt660x :)

[@78gragon]

Very interesting shame id have to totally mess the geomity of the susspention to touch the floor still looking into if i can make a triumph tiger fit me but think its just a style of bike that doesnt work for me but i can dream or use a old fasion streacher rack

[@kierenbbb]

That 1050 engine need to be in a naked bike, its wasted else. SV1050? I'd buy one

[@spicy110]

Oooo SV1050 sounds like a great idea tbh!

[@kierenbbb]

@@spicy110 well they had the sv650 and the tl1000, and then the sv650 and the sv1000. If they have a 1050 engine why not put it into the new sv650 frame or make a bigger frame to fit it into. Sounds goooooood

[@spicy110]

Yep fully agree

[@kierenbbb]

@@spicy110 surely someone at suzuki has already thought of this? The sv650 has been out since 2016, youd think in 4 years someone at suzuki would have thought of a bigger capacity version. Maybe it was emmisions thing and they didn't have a good enough engine until they brought out the vstrom. I guess in the next few years we may see the rise of a 1050 naked with the TL or SV name?

[@trevorphillips3055]

@@kierenbbb I have owned a 97 tl1000s for 11years, I'd love to see suzuki bring out a new version. It would need more power than the vstrom at least 140bhp would be nice.

[@benh3110]

Has anyone ever ridden a 360 crank twin? How does that differ to a big single?

[@dumbball1966]

like in benelli 302right? still better single especially single cyl from ktm or honda

[@chrishart8548]

All the BMW F650 F700 F800 twins are 360° crank it's a lot like a boxer engine for the sound.

[@staypuft0188]

I'm pretty sure I own that very Suzuki DR800 Big, in this video. 🤔

[@spicy110]

If you bought it from Haslemere motorcycle in the last year or so could be.

[@78gragon]

So i should be happy i have a carbed 125 i thought a injected 125 would be better interesting....

[@spicy110]

The higher end 125cc bikes injection is still good but it makes the bikes feel less snappy compared to have a carb.

[@MadNath]

Old school full powered dt 125 aprilia rs125 or an xl125 or an rd250

[@chrishart8548]

Forget the xl125 (4 stroke) unless you mean the MTX125

[@MadNath]

Sorry yeah I meant the mtx with s full dep exhaust system

[@maycrotch8576]

BARAMILY!!!!!!

[@noahthepetrolhead]

imagine if thay made a 1050cc single

[@spicy110]

There is larger singles but not production. The largest ever was 2000cc.....

[@MotoGoato]

Your videos seem to be getting quieter and quieter ......

[@spicy110]

Yes I had mic issues over the past few videos that are now sorted.

[@facilis]

WTF was that intro music!? Burn it fire and brimstone and bring the old tune back.

[@luke6645]

Spicy im not sure whether i would enjoy you riding my bike or my face more

[@Mcjayc]

Generic comment

[@djc2152]

I love how Suzuki stole Honda and Yamaha plastics and slapped them on their inferior scooter