Another tip for keeping track of the case bolts is to get a piece of cardboard, draw a rough outline of the case with dots for bolt locations. As you remove a bolt, push it through the cardboard “map” in the matching position. When done your cardboard piece should have all the bolts in their correct locations. When reassembling remove a bolt from the cardboard and put in the matching location on the actual case.
Great tip. Have been doing that for years. And you can even put a strip of masking tape over the bolt heads to make sure they don't fall out when you accidentally step on them.
Great video! I did the job yesterday and this was a great aid. The job was pretty straightforward. I was lucky that my gasket came off attached fully to the case, so I was able to reuse it. The screws on my NSU were actually not loose at all. In fact, they even made a popping sound when I began loosening them. I think it took me about 3 hours total, as it was my first time and I was going very slow. I filled with AMsoil oil and it seems to be shifting snappier than before.
Great "How to" video - thanks ! Would sure love a hint on how to get the old gasket off the clutch cover. Mine was baked on for 13 years ! Had to pour lacquer thinner into cookie sheet, soak the clutch cover for half hour, scrape. Repeat the whole procedure several times. It added hours to the job.
I did see a similar video, can't remember which one, but instead of using thread locker 'red loctite', this maintainer used screws with holes in the heads of the screws and safety wired them together. Sounds like a good solution. I do safety wire every day at work and it's a proven method.
Thank you. I've been putting off doing the fix as I assumed it was going to be a PIA, however after watching this video I found doing the screws to be fairly simple. Instead of using thread-lock I went with the safety wire - 6 of one, half a dozen of the other.
VERY WELL DONE!!! Best kick stand video yet. You were clear, showed each step with out extra talking. Very simple to follow. I WILL be using this video to do mine. I ordered the kickstand repair kit from pro cycle. It comes with safety wire.
Suzuki started putting threadlocker on these bolts back in 2017, so newer models probably don't need to worry about this. Posting in case a new DR owner is freaking out. 😄
Thank you for that. May I ask you where you got this information? I have a 2019 but it still freaks me out thinking that such a small issue like this can wreck an entire motor!
It's worth investing in a JIS screwdriver for this bike or (or any Japanese bike for that matter) because you really don't want to deal with one of those screw heads stripping out. Take it from the guy who learned the hard way..
Thanks for the tutorial. I just used your link to buy the gasket as well as the shaft seal retainer from you guys. Both of the jobs seem like cheap insurance
i learned the hard way years ago trying to remove screws with a philips PH2 bit. JIS screw bits are a must have in the tool box. the Japanese screws and bolts are made of butter if you dont have the exact size tool, they will strip
Thanks for the video, it's helped. Just need to ask if after the 4 bolts are tightened up. Should the centre piece be solid and or should I be able to rotate it by hand? Because I've had 2 scenerios presented. One after the bolts were in I was able to spin the centre piece easily but but it didn't look like face plate was positioned properly. So I took it off and did it again to check and saw this time it clicked into position. But this time after tightening the bolts I can't spin the centre piece (not the funny thing that attaches the the clutch lever) anymore. So I'm wondering if this is the case, that the whole thing should be solid or not? Hope this all makes sense.
It looks like the last steel plate (closest to engine), concave washer and it's seat, and the thin wire retainer, can stay in place when the clutch basket is removed? Is that correct? It looked like it at 5:46 in the video. Thanks for the video, good job.
Don't remove the breather cover. It's not in the way if all you're doing is removing one neutral-sending-switch fastener at a time, applying threadlocker and reinstalling. If you were removing or replacing the switch, yeah, then the breather cover is in your way.
Great video. But will add some more info: 1. Better also softly scratch the switch surface before re-install. With some thin sand-paper. But more important - To whom having similar blinking neutral light: Is it happen only when the engine become hot? Test - is it turned back on when its cold? For me - after fixing the NSU as shown in the video, tightening and applying locktite , the problem did not disappeared. It seemed like a problem with the NSU itself, stopping to work on hot engine... Good I opened and did the above Fix, but in my case - the NSU itself was faulty.
Should not need high strength Thread Lock? Medium is fine Make it so much more difficult if you do have a strip down to do later Also just a drop on each bolt is plenty AND the breather cover screws!
It'd be hard to replace this bike. Nothing else has so many good how to videos. I've got 60,000km (37,500 miles) on mine and the clutch slipped bit today under hard acceleration at high speed (140 km/hr, 87 mph) in 4th gear. Thinking I should check the clutch and do this at the same time. Anyone try EBC CK friction discs? Maybe new stiffer clutch springs?
WARNING: Do NOT use 7ft-lbs on the clutch cover bolts like this video says. These are standard 6mm bolts only rated for 4ft-lbs. If you use 7ft-lbs like this video says, you will probably snap off the bolt in the engine case, just like I did using UNDER 7ft-lbs with a torque wrench.... just a word of experience. 7ft-lbs is for the oil cooling hose connection on the side.... NOT the clutch cover bolts. If you use 7ft-lbs, be ready to order new M6x35mm bolts from suzuki and have some bolt extractor bits on hand because you'll need them ;)
I checked internet and best I come up with is tighten to 6Nm or 4.42 lbs/ft. Use loctite blue, and keep checking for a month for peace of mind. The NSU screws loosen due to the cover heating and enabling the screws to loosen, but whatever, just fix the issue and be safe.
@@johnrogers5825 In most cases, when a torque is needed, the manual says it in the section for that particular install, right next to the pictures. But in the case of the clutch cover bolts, there is no specified torque listed in the part of the instructions where it has you reinstalling the clutch cover, so you have to find the size and type of the bolt (standard m6) and find it in the general bolt size torque chart. Even there, there are two m6 type bolts listed, regular and hardened. The weaker or "standard" m6 bolt torque listed there is 4ft-lbs. Rocky Mountain ATV's dr650 ATV video says 7ft-lbs, which is for the stronger m6 bolts, not these standard ones. If you use 7ft-lbs like Rocky Mountain says, you'll break bolts. You have to read the manual carefully and discover it's a regular m6 bolt and use the chart correctly and only use 4ft-lbs. So technically, the suzuki manual is correct, but it's not very obvious and people such as Rocky Mountain often make the mistake of thinking it's 7ft-lbs which will break bolts.
@@johnrogers5825 Yes, 4ft-lbs on the clutch cover bolts would be safe. This video says 7ft-lbs but that snapped my bolts. The Suzuki manual is technically correct because it does not list a torque in the clutch cover install section....instead, you have to know it's a Standard m6 bolt, and you have to use the generic bolt torque reference chart in the manual which says those type bolts are 4ft-lbs. People mistakenly think its the "hardened" m6 bolts and try to torque it to 7ft-lbs and break bolts. But if you read the manual carefully and know what kind of bolts these are, you'll see the manually actually says to use 4ft-lbs not 7 like this video says. I was working off this video and snapped a clutch cover bolt at less than 7ft-lbs. I bought a new one and used 4ft-lbs and everything's perfect. No leaks. The manual was a little unclear, but techinically correct if you read it carefully and don't make assumptions.
@@steelmilkjug It is a shame that Suzuki doesn't explain and detail things exactly for the millions of dollars they make. Many companies are like this too.
the drz 400 has separate concerns regarding the stator bolts that tend to need thread lock applied like the dr650 NSU bolts. i think this is suzukis way of making sure people keep buying bikes :) other known issues of the drz 400 are :steering stem bearings, wheel bearings, swing arm bearings, swing arm bolt tend to be left without hardly a drop of grease applied to them from the factory. these can be taken care of in a day. once a year apply grease and the bearings will last for years to come. Kick stand kill switch & Clutch kill switch should be removed once you are comfortable with the bike. these switches are silly and can leave you wondering why your bike wont start. the drz 400 petcock can potentially leak over the years, replace with a manual petcock (yamaha raptor will do) i may be forgetting another potential problem that can be fixed but thats the jist of it. the drz400 and dr 650 are great bikes with little maintenance and reliable machines.
I dont want to state the obvious but I'm going to. Why.....doesn't suzuki fix this problem. How many people want to have to buy all that extra tools,etc to fix a problem that suzuki should. Not to mention someone who doesn't have the capabilities to do the work is gonna have to pay for it Is suzuki gonna pay for the labor cost....I doubt it. Fix the problem suzuki. Then I'll by a dr. Thanks
Love the content, however money spent on backgrounds and appearances are insignificant compared to the genuine and helpful commentary. Authenticity is everything
@@Unknown_Noise maybe the order of the plates? If they are not in the right order it can cause an issue. Other possibilities - weak springs. Wrong torque on springs.
@@NirLouk I was keeping an eye on the order of the plates. Wrong torque on springs - this could be it because I screwed on without a torque wrench. Many thanks for your interest. You helped me a lot.
Another tip for keeping track of the case bolts is to get a piece of cardboard, draw a rough outline of the case with dots for bolt locations. As you remove a bolt, push it through the cardboard “map” in the matching position. When done your cardboard piece should have all the bolts in their correct locations. When reassembling remove a bolt from the cardboard and put in the matching location on the actual case.
LostInPA thats what i do.
Great tip. Have been doing that for years. And you can even put a strip of masking tape over the bolt heads to make sure they don't fall out when you accidentally step on them.
100% quality instructional video! Thanks for making the time to film this.
I have seen many "HOW TO" videos but your video ranks among THE VERY BEST!!!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.
Great video! I did the job yesterday and this was a great aid. The job was pretty straightforward. I was lucky that my gasket came off attached fully to the case, so I was able to reuse it. The screws on my NSU were actually not loose at all. In fact, they even made a popping sound when I began loosening them. I think it took me about 3 hours total, as it was my first time and I was going very slow. I filled with AMsoil oil and it seems to be shifting snappier than before.
Great news. I'm opening my dr this weekend to do the job, looking forward to it!
Good, clear, illustration...thanks!
Great "How to" video - thanks ! Would sure love a hint on how to get the old gasket off the clutch cover. Mine was baked on for 13 years ! Had to pour lacquer thinner into cookie sheet, soak the clutch cover for half hour, scrape. Repeat the whole procedure several times. It added hours to the job.
Used this to get my own done. Took me a while, but I got it done. Thanks!
Awesome, glad the video helped out!
Great video!
To the point yet thorough.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the feedback and views!
I have to replace my clutch plates. Thank you for clear instructions.
I did see a similar video, can't remember which one, but instead of using thread locker 'red loctite', this maintainer used screws with holes in the heads of the screws and safety wired them together. Sounds like a good solution. I do safety wire every day at work and it's a proven method.
Yes. Procycle sells a kit for this job with safety wire. Loctite is fine, but wire guarantees the bolts will never move.
Yes, I did both…..blue loctite and a safety wire. Some say it’s overkill, but who cares? It’s easy and cheap.
As a aircraft machanic, you are right. Even planes like 787 uses this method in a lot of places
Extremely well done video. Very clear instructions. Thank you very much.
Thanks for watching and for the feedback.
Thank you. I've been putting off doing the fix as I assumed it was going to be a PIA, however after watching this video I found doing the screws to be fairly simple. Instead of using thread-lock I went with the safety wire - 6 of one, half a dozen of the other.
Thanks for the assistance in keeping our bush pigs running healthy.
Haha you got it *Danny!*
Excellent video thanks man.
Is there a way to know the actuator arm on the cover is engaging the clutch push rod before you tighten the clutch case screws down?
VERY WELL DONE!!! Best kick stand video yet. You were clear, showed each step with out extra talking. Very simple to follow. I WILL be using this video to do mine. I ordered the kickstand repair kit from pro cycle. It comes with safety wire.
Suzuki started putting threadlocker on these bolts back in 2017, so newer models probably don't need to worry about this.
Posting in case a new DR owner is freaking out. 😄
Thank you for that. May I ask you where you got this information?
I have a 2019 but it still freaks me out thinking that such a small issue like this can wreck an entire motor!
It's worth investing in a JIS screwdriver for this bike or (or any Japanese bike for that matter) because you really don't want to deal with one of those screw heads stripping out. Take it from the guy who learned the hard way..
4:02 wrongly specified as Philips instead of JIS. This is indeed a very good point that you made here
Thanks for the tutorial. I just used your link to buy the gasket as well as the shaft seal retainer from you guys. Both of the jobs seem like cheap insurance
Great video. Now if I weren't so lazy...
that cant be philip head screws. Most of japanese bikes use JIS screws.
i learned the hard way years ago trying to remove screws with a philips PH2 bit. JIS screw bits are a must have in the tool box. the Japanese screws and bolts are made of butter if you dont have the exact size tool, they will strip
The recovery tool kit that comes with the bike has the correct JIS bit.
I JIS every time I screw.
You would have thought he knew about JIS but maybe not!!!
Everyone should buy a JIS screwdriver if they own a Japanese bike or you WILL end up drilling out screw heads eventually.
Very thorough, thanks
did my 07 today , one of the screws was out 2 turns ,
anybody thinking this won't happen to them . think twice ..
Great instructions 👌
Hi, I have a 2014 dr 650 that I plan on doing this to. One question though, do you put loctite on the breather cover screws before reinstalling them?
is there a parts list somewhere?
Thanks for the video, it's helped. Just need to ask if after the 4 bolts are tightened up. Should the centre piece be solid and or should I be able to rotate it by hand? Because I've had 2 scenerios presented. One after the bolts were in I was able to spin the centre piece easily but but it didn't look like face plate was positioned properly. So I took it off and did it again to check and saw this time it clicked into position. But this time after tightening the bolts I can't spin the centre piece (not the funny thing that attaches the the clutch lever) anymore. So I'm wondering if this is the case, that the whole thing should be solid or not? Hope this all makes sense.
It looks like the last steel plate (closest to engine), concave washer and it's seat, and the thin wire retainer, can stay in place when the clutch basket is removed? Is that correct? It looked like it at 5:46 in the video. Thanks for the video, good job.
Yes. It is. Strange wire protection. It's there.
Don't remove the breather cover. It's not in the way if all you're doing is removing one neutral-sending-switch fastener at a time, applying threadlocker and reinstalling. If you were removing or replacing the switch, yeah, then the breather cover is in your way.
Better remove it. Soft sand paper the surface for improved contact.
Great video. But will add some more info:
1. Better also softly scratch the switch surface before re-install. With some thin sand-paper.
But more important - To whom having similar blinking neutral light:
Is it happen only when the engine become hot?
Test - is it turned back on when its cold?
For me - after fixing the NSU as shown in the video, tightening and applying locktite , the problem did not disappeared.
It seemed like a problem with the NSU itself, stopping to work on hot engine...
Good I opened and did the above Fix, but in my case - the NSU itself was faulty.
Did you happen to replace your NSU? Mine appears to be the same and I'm wondering if it is something I could attempt myself.
Is that lock washer reusable?
How long do you think this would take a suzuki dealer to do for labor
Pro Cycle sells a complete safety wire kit for this and it's not necessary to remove the breather cover to do this.
I see you used red loctite, what if you have to replace the nsu in the future?
Why hasn't Suzuki addressed this known issue?
this "known" issue.... well i had 96' DR did about 40k + 20k previous owner and never had that issue ... not that known issue i guess
Same at the SP44b ?
Nice Vid !!! Thanks :-)
A super video and well explained Thanks.
You bet! Thanks for watching.
@4:02…..anyone know what part number or name of that brown plastic gear is?? Thanks!
I'll safety wire my NSU screws. I don't trust thread locker inside my engine.
I have to agree, that's a more permanent solution.
Sorry, I just saw this after making the same idea.
Man, looks like a lot of work.
Did Suzuki fix this issue with newer models ?
Yes this issue has been fixed with the newer models after 2017.
nice video bro.
Thanks.
So no need to use wire and bolts, just the high strength thread locker?
yes thread locker should suffice
The tool on the left side (I don't mean key) have a special name? In 5:41
Should not need high strength Thread Lock? Medium is fine Make it so much more difficult if you do have a strip down to do later
Also just a drop on each bolt is plenty AND the breather cover screws!
Do the new DR650s also have this problem?
It'd be hard to replace this bike. Nothing else has so many good how to videos. I've got 60,000km (37,500 miles) on mine and the clutch slipped bit today under hard acceleration at high speed (140 km/hr, 87 mph) in 4th gear. Thinking I should check the clutch and do this at the same time. Anyone try EBC CK friction discs? Maybe new stiffer clutch springs?
It's hard to believe that after all this time Suzuki wouldn't have thought about this
Excellent!
WARNING: Do NOT use 7ft-lbs on the clutch cover bolts like this video says. These are standard 6mm bolts only rated for 4ft-lbs. If you use 7ft-lbs like this video says, you will probably snap off the bolt in the engine case, just like I did using UNDER 7ft-lbs with a torque wrench.... just a word of experience. 7ft-lbs is for the oil cooling hose connection on the side.... NOT the clutch cover bolts. If you use 7ft-lbs, be ready to order new M6x35mm bolts from suzuki and have some bolt extractor bits on hand because you'll need them ;)
So what does Suzuki say? What does the manual say?
If you are correct then this important info needs to be shown or the vid changed.
I checked internet and best I come up with is tighten to 6Nm or 4.42 lbs/ft. Use loctite blue, and keep checking for a month for peace of mind.
The NSU screws loosen due to the cover heating and enabling the screws to loosen, but whatever, just fix the issue and be safe.
@@johnrogers5825 In most cases, when a torque is needed, the manual says it in the section for that particular install, right next to the pictures. But in the case of the clutch cover bolts, there is no specified torque listed in the part of the instructions where it has you reinstalling the clutch cover, so you have to find the size and type of the bolt (standard m6) and find it in the general bolt size torque chart. Even there, there are two m6 type bolts listed, regular and hardened. The weaker or "standard" m6 bolt torque listed there is 4ft-lbs. Rocky Mountain ATV's dr650 ATV video says 7ft-lbs, which is for the stronger m6 bolts, not these standard ones. If you use 7ft-lbs like Rocky Mountain says, you'll break bolts. You have to read the manual carefully and discover it's a regular m6 bolt and use the chart correctly and only use 4ft-lbs. So technically, the suzuki manual is correct, but it's not very obvious and people such as Rocky Mountain often make the mistake of thinking it's 7ft-lbs which will break bolts.
@@johnrogers5825 Yes, 4ft-lbs on the clutch cover bolts would be safe. This video says 7ft-lbs but that snapped my bolts. The Suzuki manual is technically correct because it does not list a torque in the clutch cover install section....instead, you have to know it's a Standard m6 bolt, and you have to use the generic bolt torque reference chart in the manual which says those type bolts are 4ft-lbs. People mistakenly think its the "hardened" m6 bolts and try to torque it to 7ft-lbs and break bolts. But if you read the manual carefully and know what kind of bolts these are, you'll see the manually actually says to use 4ft-lbs not 7 like this video says. I was working off this video and snapped a clutch cover bolt at less than 7ft-lbs. I bought a new one and used 4ft-lbs and everything's perfect. No leaks. The manual was a little unclear, but techinically correct if you read it carefully and don't make assumptions.
@@steelmilkjug It is a shame that Suzuki doesn't explain and detail things exactly for the millions of dollars they make. Many companies are like this too.
I haven't heard a first hand case of a worst case scenario for the screws coming loose, but I'd like to know what could happen
It's possible those screws get caught in the transmission, the bike locks up, engine gets destroyed, the rider gets yeeted off a mountain.
I'm about to fix this problem on my xf 650. It's almost the same motor and same problem.
this a prob for the 2018 model?
Any ball park number of miles at which to start thinking about this? I have a new 2023 I just bought a few weeks ago
You don't need to, Suzuki started doing it in 2017
Its the same like dr600?
does the dr650 engine feature gear shift indication?
Nothing more than a green neutral light :) ... Justin
Does all years have the same issue. Should I do it to my 2017 dr650?
I read somewhere else that Suzuki addressed this issue in 2017 models..
Can it happen with all production years of the DR650? Mine is from 1992 :)
There are people that have had this issue with their older models. If you haven't checked them before, it would be a good idea.
Does the DRZ400S also need this fix?
the drz 400 has separate concerns regarding the stator bolts that tend to need thread lock applied like the dr650 NSU bolts. i think this is suzukis way of making sure people keep buying bikes :)
other known issues of the drz 400 are
:steering stem bearings, wheel bearings, swing arm bearings, swing arm bolt tend to be left without hardly a drop of grease applied to them from the factory. these can be taken care of in a day. once a year apply grease and the bearings will last for years to come.
Kick stand kill switch & Clutch kill switch should be removed once you are comfortable with the bike. these switches are silly and can leave you wondering why your bike wont start.
the drz 400 petcock can potentially leak over the years, replace with a manual petcock (yamaha raptor will do)
i may be forgetting another potential problem that can be fixed but thats the jist of it. the drz400 and dr 650 are great bikes with little maintenance and reliable machines.
I dont want to state the obvious but I'm going to.
Why.....doesn't suzuki fix this problem.
How many people want to have to buy all that extra tools,etc to fix a problem that suzuki should.
Not to mention someone who doesn't have the capabilities to do the work is gonna have to pay for it
Is suzuki gonna pay for the labor cost....I doubt it.
Fix the problem suzuki.
Then I'll by a dr.
Thanks
They did - they now use loctitie on the NSU bolts. Only 20 years late.
can you delete the switch altogether ??
Yes you can remove the switch altogether if you want.
@@rmatvmc cool thanks man...
I'm considering getting a dr 650 next year.
But seeing this mess makes me think twice.
Perhaps Suzuki should remedy the problem.
Every mfg has it's little idiosyncrasies. Trust me this is an easy one to fix.
A tiny problem in an otherwise bulletproof bike.
If you get an 2017 model and up Suzuki finally started putting locktite on these bolts
Before my vacation i disassembled my carburator and now i forgot how the hoses where connected 😅 can somebody help me out?
3:45 What is a tool?
That is a ratcheting wrench with a flex-head.
What even is a netraul sending unit?
The neutral sending unit is a device that sends a signal to the neutral indicator light on your dash letting you know when your bike is in neutral.
@@rmatvmc oh,do the older ones like 2007 or so have them?thanks
Yes, every DR650 will have one even going back to when they were first released in 1990!
Love the content, however money spent on backgrounds and appearances are insignificant compared to the genuine and helpful commentary. Authenticity is everything
I did everything exactly as in the video. Now the bike has lost its power. Where could I go wrong ?
Problematic installing the clutch plates?
@@NirLouk No problems. The previous owner replaced the entire clutch a year ago. I think I made a mistake with the assembly. I just don't know where.
@@Unknown_Noise maybe the order of the plates? If they are not in the right order it can cause an issue.
Other possibilities - weak springs. Wrong torque on springs.
@@NirLouk I was keeping an eye on the order of the plates. Wrong torque on springs - this could be it because I screwed on without a torque wrench. Many thanks for your interest. You helped me a lot.
Guys, be extra careful with that plastic gear. Mine broke and clogged a oil line that goes to the camshaft.
Isn't that too much red Loctite for those threads? It could be a pain to take them off later if needed.
Nah.
those screws aren't philips: they're JIS and they're more likely to cam out if you use philips
Can you just remove the switch? I don’t care about a neutral light.
Sure you can!
Can't you just remove it completely from the engine?
If you don't mind not having a neutral light, you can remove the whole assembly.
@@rmatvmc I don't need neutral light. It will be safer if I delete everything:) Thanks. Cheers.
Di che anno e
I think this is out of my paygrade.
"torque to 7ft/lbs" 😂
this looks like a pain in the ass
It's really not unless your impatient. You know what is a pain in the ass? A screw coming loose and destroying your engine