Reborn: Torn down & customised – DR-Z400

We got to know the guys at Brisbane’s Ellaspede Custom Motorcycles a few years back, when we first started planning Red Bull Day in the Dirt Down Under (Transmoto owns the license here in Australia). They also run those epic Dust Hustle events, which have been a big part of Day in the Dirt for two years now. Transmoto’s new ‘Reborn’ series will feature some of the custom builds the lads have been taking on up there in the Sunshine State.  

All words are from Hughan Seary from Ellaspede. And if you’re looking for a restoration, some custom parts or making some upgrades to a newer model bike, be sure to get in touch with them here: Ellaspede Custom Motorcycles.

The DR-Z400 Project

For those who already know of this DR-Z400 build, this build bio should probably start with, “A long long time ago…”. For those who don’t know, this build has been a back-burner project for Leo (one of the the co-owners of Ellaspede).

The build was meant to be a quick three-month turn around, but as with any good project, the more bits Leo took off the bike, the more ambitious the build became. At Ellaspede, we always tell people to have a plan and stick to it for the best results. Well. that didn’t happen with this build. Definitely do as we say, not do as we do.

The donor bike is a 2009 Suzuki DR-Z400E. Leo was searching for a thumper that would be nice and nimble for the city streets whilst allowing for a somewhat easy styling transition to what he had in mind. After looking around at a few different makes and models, the DR-Z400E was bought based on lineage and the fact that Yoshimura made an absolutely wicked set of pipes for it. It sounds weird to base the entire purchase of a bike off a set of pipes, but as Leo puts it, “Look at the suckers; they’re so dope!”.

The bike got the same treatment all bikes get through Ellaspede, which is source inspiration, sketch, concept, tear down, build, test and ride.

From an inspiration stand point, Leo has been heavily influenced by late ’70s flat track bikes as well as modern interpretations of what the future of motorcycling will look like, through bikes such as the soon-to-be-released Husqvarna 701 designed by Kiska.

First thing to change on the bike was the height. Yes, Leo is short, so the bike was dumped about 100mm with shorter springs and spacers for the rebuilt front forks and some simple adjustments to the rear shock. A set of Excel 19-inch front and rear rims were laced up to the stock hubs with some Mitas H18 street-legal flat track tyres completing the wheel set-up.

Leo had sketched out a design for a tank with the idea of getting the Ellaspede crew to hand fabricate one, but during some late night eBay trawling, a mint vintage Suzuki tank presented itself. That’s where the plan started to derail and change. With some minor adjustments, the tank was fitted up.

Due to the shop being so busy, the bike was hauled back to Leo’s house. Thanks to an understanding wife, the bike made its way into the spare bedroom for mocking up of the tail, radiators, seat, battery box and bashplate to begin.

As with all projects, there are periods of love and hate. The weeks started to tick by with little progress as life got in the way and customer builds took priority. Soon deadlines were set and missed, while questions of “how is the build going?” turned into ridicule. After losing two cartons of beer to his brother in-law, Leo decided to start burning the midnight oil, double down on the beer bet and get the build finished. With a new design mapped out – that incorporated and accentuated the vintage tank – the build was re-ignited.

The rear tail cowl section, headlight, tail light, and fork brace/front guard mount were all designed and CNC machined from billet blocks of ABS, Polycarbonate and T6061 Aluminium, respectively. Leo wanted a clean rear look, which could mount the number plate, indicators and at some stage in the future maybe even a rack.

To date, the engine internals remain stock, with power mods limited to an airbox removal, free breathing colour coded UniFilter, and the gorgeous set of one-into-two Yoshimura pipes.

The main frame remains stock, while the rear subframe was de-tabbed, shortened and ‘flattened out’ to better match the visual line through the bike. The lower rear subframe also lent itself to Leo’s seat height requirements too.

The custom seat was foamed and wrapped up in a combination of smooth and perforated UV vinyl with a contrast yellow stitch subtly continuing the colour scheme. Under the seat, a custom battery box houses the simplified electrics, drawing power from an Antigravity lithium battery.

The gauge is a new style analogue and digital Daytona item, which features a separate instrument panel and cool little start-up procedure. A custom Ellaspede aircraft-grade wiring loom was made to suit with the majority now hiding up under the tank.

Lighting is care of a ‘halo’ headlight in a custom housing, LED rear stop/tail and Posh Chamfer indicators signalling direction changes in traffic. An Ellaspede Ninja Star licence plate holder hangs off the rear to mount the number plate, plate light and rear reflector.

The front guard was fabricated and mounted to the custom CNC aluminium Ellaspede fork brace sitting snugly above the front tyre. An aftermarket bashplate also went under the knife with a cut-out and new mounts to play guardian to the under-slung exhaust on off-road adventures. Leo keeps an eye on the dirt squirting out the rear via a pair of LSL mirrors.

The stock radiators remain, albeit attached via custom mounts to fit snugly under the vintage tank and clear of the forks at full lock. Bringing the Renthal bars back to within Leo’s reach are custom CNC aluminium bar back risers.

As a conscious ‘tip of the hat’ to the previous owner being an avid off-road enthusiast, Leo left the frame scuffs and engine scratches as a sign of the initial intended purpose of the bike. It was never meant to be a show bike, with regular excursions planned for dirt roads and the Ellaspede Dust Hustle events.

The toughest decision of all was of course, the colour scheme. The eBay tank came in an original mustard yellow, but the original concept for the bike was going to be predominately white with hints of charcoal grey. Deciding to pay respect to the late ’70s Suzuki style, Leo went with the bright mustard yellow as a key colour and offset it with a pearl white muscle car style stripe. The only thing left was to put the whole thing back together for display at Dust Hustle 2016 to win back those cases of beer.

On a personal level, Leo wants to thank the Ellaspede crew for all of their help. A few late nights from everyone really helped to get this beast on the road. With registration in hand, the maiden shakedown was completed at the local Brisbane hotspot, Mt Glorious. The DR-Z400E didn’t miss a beat, the tyres gripped well on road, it handled nicely, and Leo has overcome his shortness complex as the upright seating position gives him great visibility.

Like all custom projects, there are plans to tinker with it some more. Leo’s weighing up a flat plate style headlight, Ohlins rear shock and some hard-mount radiator hoses. But for now he’s just glad to be riding his ‘back-burner’ project bike.