DR 350 Questions

[ElJefe]

I just bought a DR 350 to use in my commute to work. I love the bike but it didn't come with an owners manual.

1. What is the cruise rpm for this bike? At 65 I'm turning 6000 rpm.

2. There are mulitple options for the fuel valve. I have been running it on "On" but have to switch it to "Res" on my trip home everyday. The other setting is "Pri". What the heck is "Pri"? On my old dirt biks as a kid, we had Off, On and Res...no Pri.

On a related fuel question, I have been getting about 70 miles for approximatly 1.5 gallons of gas on the "On" setting, what shold I expect for the other settings?

Any help would be greatly appreciated... a copy of a manual and a tool box for the bike would be great too..

Thanks,
Jeff

[jerryhicks]

It doesn't say anything about the rpm in the manual but that sounds high. I'll check it out the next time I'm on my bike and let you know. My top speed is a little over 80 so that rpm may be about right.

The fuelcock's normal running position is on. Prime is used if the bike has ran out of fuel or has been sitting for an extended period to allow gas to run straight to the carb even though the engine is not operating. *Be aware that these fuelcocks are bad to leak through on the res side. It may be in the on position and you run out thinking you have reserve fuel in the tank but NO! you are completely empty. It happened to me! I still have not replaced the fuel cock. I just don't run out.

I get about 50 mpg and the fuel cock position would not change that unless I'm leaking gas through the carb while in the pri position.

What year model? Mine is a '95 and runs great!

I average about 60 mpg on my '99.

I've gotten over 100 miles from a full tank, but I usually try to fill up at around 70~80.

The engine would get hot after about 10 miles at 65 mph, so I went to a 39 tooth rear (from 42). That brought the revs down (though not enough to notice much in the lower gears), but it still tends to overheat at 65. Anything under 65 is fine.

One nice thing though, is that the speedometer is right on, as opposed to my AN650, which is 10% high.

[ElJefe]

Jerry,
Mine is a 94. It had 3700 original miles on it when I bought it a month ago. It runs great, I just don't know too much about it.

Wasions,
What did the 39 tooth drop the revs to? My Clymer manual has a list of things to check for if you overheat. They are:
Incorrect jetting
Incorrect ignition timing
Improper spark plug heat range
Intake system air leak
Damaged fins or
Dragging brakes

Thanks for the information guys,

Jeff

Yeah, I should probably look into that stuff.

I'm running around 5300 @ 60 mph, 5750 @ 65. (I had to go for a little ride to check it out. - Thanks! )

[ElJefe]

Hey anything I can do to Help!
Would you gear any higher, or is that an ok range? I will off road probably about 5-10% of the time, so I am looking for gas mileage gears mostly. A round trip for me is about 70 miles a day, all highway.

Thanks for your input,

Jeff

[jerryhicks]

Jeff, I just checked it out and I'm also running 6000 rpm at 65 mph. I remembered when I completely ran out of gas I got 131 miles on that tank which equates to 54.6 mpg (2.4 gal tank).

[ElJefe]

Jerry, That is excelent. I want to drive mine until I completely run out...but I don't want to walk back

Thanks for the info,

Jeff

Believe me. The LAST thing you want to do is to run your tank dry. It can cause all sorts of nasty problems. If you must, make sure the inside of the tank is clean, clean, clean.

[jerryhicks]

I assure you I did not MEAN to run my tank dry (-: My petcock was leaking through on the res side. When I went to reserve the tank was completely dry. It took me a few minutes to figure out the problem. Later I found that this is fairly common. I have not and will not let that happen again.

[ElJefe]

Jerry,
I was talking to my cousin the other day and the same thing happened to him. How did you fix it?

Jeff

[jerryhicks]

I have not fixed it. I've been looking for a discounted petcock on Ebay but have yet to find one. I leave it in the on position, knowing I have no reserve, and make sure I fill up when the tripmeter gets around 100. Hasn't been a problem YET!!