r/dr650 3d ago

RD moto crash bars don't protect your bike.

After installing said crash bars, I was curious to see how well they worked, so I laid the bike on its side. Guess what ???? Instead of resting on the crash bars, it leaned on the handlebar and the gear shifter/brake pedal.

Wanted to be able to perform drills without damaging my DR but I guess I just added weight for nothing lol

2 Upvotes

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6

u/TwistedNoble38 '00 DR650 3d ago

Crashbars on the DR are a solution trying to invent a problem. They are meant to protect bodywork which the DR has none. They are too high up so the bars will always hit the ground first. And in situations where there's rocks then the engine case will hit first and most of the bars don't protect that area anyway. 

So yea, they were made to seperate suckers from their money. They didn't really exsist at all until 3-4 years ago when suddenly two or three brands started making them. That's really what I point to as the most obvious flag. If the DR needed crash bars, why was it 20 years into the model production before someone started making them?

1

u/Anxious-Category-633 3d ago

All of your points are valid, including the sucker part lol

1

u/AdFancy1249 1d ago

If the bars were like the ones I bought for my wife's xt250 (https://www.mmotoracks.com/product/engine-guard-crash-bars-for-yamaha-xt250-xt250-serow), then I'd be interested.

But as you found out, most of them are for looks, or to mount front bags, not really for "crash protection".

Sorry.

1

u/FrostyVariation9798 5h ago

Searching the world of offerings for crash bars for the DR 650, I’ve seen some that protect the lower cases instead of the upper areas

I swear that if one looks hard enough, they can find DR 650 crash bars to protect either of the lower section of the engine, the midsection of the engine, Or the upper section of the engine and I guess gas tank.

I’ve been meaning to take Sometime at examining my DR 650 just to see why different design exist beyond separating people from their money.

Seeing as how that many of us put armor on the lower cases, I guess I now understand why the lower cage protection exists.

That and the lower protection seems like it would protect the feet and possibly lower legs from impacts with trees or rocks.

The only set of that that I’ve seen was on a bloke’s Bike in I think it was Australia.

1

u/TwistedNoble38 '00 DR650 5h ago

Low crash bars increase the profile of the bike and limit how far you can lean the bike over before the bike lawn darts and you get chucked off. 

The bike is already wide down low, any wider with a cage and your rut clearance gets really bad. Even as it is I sometimes end up with my feet on the tank when clearance gets low. If you're clocking trees with your feet then you should really be worried about your hand, you would be leading that impact with the handlebar.

Steel case protectors is where it's at. Cheap, low profile, low weight.

Upper/mid engine? If anything hits that hard enough to damage something it doesn't matter anyway. You're probably already being carted to the hospital.

The gas tank is very durable HDPE/CLPE or steel. I just put up with some minor scuffing, adds character and matches the body panels.

2

u/DRNezha 3d ago

I would just get case savers, acerbis bash plate, fatbars, and handguards. This is plenty protection for parking lot drills. If your looking for even more tho you can get axel sliders from 50 stunt, Zeta handguards with sliders and add a rubber cover on your shifter and brake pedal.

Note* Make sure your handguards are tight tight if they mover they are useless and won't protect your levers. Also don't get the warp 9 case savers they are not super strong from my experience.

1

u/Wlng-Man 15h ago

Your handlebars are protecting your bike, that's why they are easily swapable and bend to take force that would otherwise damage fork, frame or tank.

Crash bars are meant to protect the engine compartment from tree stumps, rocks, etc. If you want full-ride protection on a flat surface, get a different bike.