Suzuki DR-Z400SM

Geez it's a good time to be a learner! Alright, so the safetycrats might have a different view, but when it comes to choice, the Learner Approved Motorcycle Scheme (LAMS) list is full of truly great machines to get that all important early experience.

If I was just starting out again, right near the top of my list would have to be the Suzuki DR-Z400SM.

There have been lots of words written about the DR-Z400, both as the now ubiquitous dirt bike forebear and the cheeky street-oriented SM progeny -- and it's true to say that there's been very little bad press.

Having ridden the SM a few times before and been more interested in the sillier side of its personality, in other words the monos, stoppies and larking around, I was determined that this time around I'd focus on why the little SM is such an excellent learner machine.

When you start riding, you need to be able to feel in control right from the very start -- hence if you were to ask most riding instructors to name the world's best learner bike, they'd probably tell you Honda's lowly CB250 owns the title. One of the CBs main attributes is its low seat height, and on paper the SM appears to be immediately behind the eight ball at a claimed 890mm.

The numbers however do little to tell you how the thing settles onto its soft and long travel suspension, allowing most people to get their feet on the ground. At 170cm, my wife had little trouble getting both feet on the ground, although the initial swing over required a bit of dexterity.

Once located behind the bars all the controls are easy to see and use as the admittedly narrow seat and tank positions the rider nice and close with an easy bend in the arms and an obviously centralized footpeg position, all of which makes for great low speed control.

Starting is of course electric and being a Suzuki requires the clutch lever to be pulled in before ignition occurs. The merest prod of the button and a little choke brings the little single thrumming into life without the need for any throttle; warm up is commendably quick and once a little heat is in the engine, it settles into a slightly busy sounding idle.

Why is rapid warm up important? Simply because stalling in the middle of the first intersection 150m from home is as dangerous as struggling to achieve smooth riding on a half-cold engine or firing though said intersection with the choke putting 4000rpm on the dial.

The DR-Z400SM's little liquid-cooled 398cc engine is a darlin' of forgiveness that's happy to plod along but loves to rev as confidence grows. Although there doesn't appear to be much bottom end power, it's coupled to some sensible gearing that allows smooth take-up and easy progression through the power range.

As you might expect, it's a soft and comfortable ride, even the narrow seat isn't too unbearable over shortish distances. But the real advantage of an SM is in the actual riding stance that positions the rider upright with a commanding view of the traffic environment.

Assuming that the rider will in some instances still be coming to terms with achieving basic skill fluency, having a riding position that allows early detection of hazards is common sense and it's no surprise that so many of the LAMs models have upright riding positions. Which brings us to another key attribute for learners and that is light weight. The little SM weighs in at a claimed 134kg, easy to ride and easy to push around.

By comparison Suzuki's own GSX650F, which is also LAMS approved, weighs in at a porky 216kg.

Of course another advantage of light weight is that apart from being able to get along quite quickly without the need for a lot of horsepower, the thing will stop quickly. The little twin-piston caliper and single disc are all the SM needs, and provides plenty of manageable power and lots of feedback to the rider.

If there's a criticism, it would be that under firm to hard braking the forks compress significantly, which isn't that much of a problem until having stopped, when the springs then return to full or almost full extension. Something that can catch out the unwary rider, especially if they're not that long in the leg.

Out on the open road or freeway, despite being light and having little in the way of big-bike feel, the little SM rides well and delivers a fair degree of confidence. There's enough power for overtaking in top gear and the fat SM wheels provide a good feeling of straight line stability. Until the wind gets up or a big truck goes past at speed that is.

It's a fact of life that the lighter the bike the more you'll get blown around - and of course a large part of the solution is planning ahead and taking steps to buffer or read the terrain in order to prepare for side winds and gusts.

As a rider's experience grows it's only natural that the urge to explore will grow exponentially, and the types of roads will change from the familiar and dull to the new and exciting. The 10 litres of fuel contained within the tiny tank (while being sipped at a rate of about 20-22km) won't get you very far unfortunately, although there's nothing to stop you fitting a large capacity plastic enduro tank from someone like Acerbis to almost double the range.

Anyway, short jaunts are definitely on the cards and the SM is a great way of getting out and exploring, especially as dirt roads can be coped with easily -- up to a point anyway.

However, when the roads do start to get a bit more interesting the SM is brilliant at letting a learner ease into the world of cornering technique. Steering is almost effortless, which in turn means that in the event of a mistake, changes in direction can be made without the sense of being taken along for the ride by excessive weight.

Suspension is, as we've said already, very soft and this is a plus when the roads are a bit choppy. But not so good if the rider starts pushing beyond the equipment's design envelope, as this is after all a cheap and cheerful machine built to a price.

Don't get me wrong, the SM is still very very forgiving, but like any motorcycle it responds well to those who respond to it.

Overall the SM is a great addition to the Learner Approved Motorcycle scheme. Its semi dirt style might not suit everyone's tastes, but it is a very youthful machine as the new graphics clearly demonstrate.

It's reliable, cheap to buy and cheap to run.

As a rider I love it, as much as anything for its small bike convenience; I really wish I had the money to own one. As a rider trainer, I think that apart from the seat height -- which makes it better suited to slightly taller people -- it's right there with the CB250, which might not sound like much of an accolade, but I can assure you it is.

TRANSMISSION
Type: Five-speed
Final drive: Chain
Clutch: Wet

CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR
Frame type: Steel cradle
Front suspension: 41mm upside-down Showa forks, adjustable for compression and rebound
Rear suspension: Showa monoshock, fully adjustable
Front brakes: Single disc
Rear brakes: Single disc

DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES
Claimed dry weight: 134kg
Seat height: 890mm
Wheelbase: 1460mm
Ground clearance: 260mm
Fuel capacity: 10lt

PERFORMANCE
Claimed maximum power: Not given
Claimed maximum torque: Not given

OTHER STUFF
Price: $8990
Colour: White
Bike supplied by: Suzuki Australia (www.suzukimotorcycles.com.au)
Warranty: 12 months, unlimited kilometres