Rear Suspension Adjustment for M800

I've tried to adjust my rear suspension, but after removing the side panel and tool kit holder, there's no room between the frame struts to move the 'C' spanner through one click. Has anyone managed this supposedly simple task? i.e. am I an idiot?

As straight forward as Suzuki tries to make shock adjustment seem, they cover their collective asses wtih this little addendum I copied directly from the owner's manual:

"NOTE: If it is hard to adjust the
spring pre-road, remove the bolts
and move the battery box."

Haven't tried to change the adjustment myself but you're not the first owner I've heard ask what they may be doing wrong.

Bugger I was hoping I wouldn't have to do that.

On my Suzuki DRZ it was a right Bastard, I had to get a big big screwdriver in the right area an hit it to move it a bit.
Then repeat, then repeat, then repeat, then repeat

Would it could make a difference to how easy or hard it is to adjust it, if you jacked the bike up to take some of the pressure off of the spring?

captain crash wrote:

Would it could make a difference to how easy or hard it is to adjust it, if you jacked the bike up to take some of the pressure off of the spring?

No, unfortunately. There is not enough distance between the two frame uprights to move the 'C' spanner through one click.

Farmboy wrote:

"NOTE: If it is hard to adjust the
spring pre-road, remove the bolts
and move the battery box."

It seems I'm an idiot. You don't have to remove the battery box, just undo the back two bolts under the seat and lift it out of the way. Thanks FB

I took the opportunity to give it a lick of polish whilst the panels were off.

Prince 'O' Darkness wrote:

I took the opportunity to give it a lick of polish whilst the panels were off.

Thats what I do every time I take something off for any reason because you never know when you will get to that part of the bike again.

Prince 'O' Darkness wrote:

I've tried to adjust my rear suspension

So how would you know if your suspention needs adjusting?
Do Suzuki set it up for a particular rider weight?
Is it just the rear you adjust or do you do the front as well?

Sorry for all the questions but after Dave "The Intruder" said that the bluesmans tyre fitter needs fekin shooting or words similar to that for not putting the tyre pressure high enougth after fitting a new tyre, I also put a few more pounds of pressure in and found a massive difference in handling from the sloppy handling that I did have at the lower pressure.
So if there is other ways of making my bike better than it already is, then I want in :yeahman:

I find the ride to be a bit bouncy, especially on uneven roads. Plus I'll be loading it up with luggage at some point, so I thought I'd try different settings.

The manual says it's factory set at 3, out of a full scale of 7, though I found mine to be at 5, even though I'd never touched it before. Of course, when I bought it, the dealer could have thought "he's a bit of a fat knacker" and set it accordingly.

Prince 'O' Darkness wrote:

I find the ride to be a bit bouncy, especially on uneven roads. Plus I'll be loading it up with luggage at some point, so I thought I'd try different settings.

The manual says it's factory set at 3, out of a full scale of 7, though I found mine to be at 5, even though I'd never touched it before. Of course, when I bought it, the dealer could have thought "he's a bit of a fat knacker" and set it accordingly.

Well being being a bit of a "fat Knacker" myself I think I might have a look at mine at the weekend

captain crash wrote:

Prince 'O' Darkness wrote:

I find the ride to be a bit bouncy, especially on uneven roads. Plus I'll be loading it up with luggage at some point, so I thought I'd try different settings.

The manual says it's factory set at 3, out of a full scale of 7, though I found mine to be at 5, even though I'd never touched it before. Of course, when I bought it, the dealer could have thought "he's a bit of a fat knacker" and set it accordingly.

Well being being a bit of a "fat Knacker" myself I think I might have a look at mine at the weekend

Join the club, I am also a "fat Knacker" (never heard that one before) so as I am off work this week I will look at mine 2morrow, and if it's on the factory preset I will try it at #5 setting.
If it is at #3 setting of 7 then there is no way It can be right for me, I am probably 5st over what they set it for

Guys

How did you all end up with this one?

Since I've removed the 2 boat anchors of the back (mufflers) the suspension is shocking. I rode today and it was like a bucking bronco around back road bumpy bends.

It was embarising holding everyone one up and watching the ones in front disappear.

Wow I am shocked that it made that much difference, are sur that it is not just coincidental and you actually have a seperate issue with the suspension that has reared it's ugly head at the same time?

Who knows, rode similar roads the week before with few issues. How is the frame geometery designed to compensate for that much weight hanging of one side.

I'll do all the usual checks before I adjust anything

Members such as Bluesman have changed over to shorties with no reported issues, never read of an issue either & I do a hell of a lot of research on these bikes.

Check your rear tyre for blisters,also check that you have not lost your balance weights off the wheel.Altering your exaust should in no way make it handle that badly,you have only lost a few pounds in weight. Your statement:

Who knows, rode similar roads the week before with few issues.This seems to me that you have had issues before doing the exaust.

In any case I hope you find the problem and send some feedback.

ozrider wrote:

How is the frame geometery designed to compensate for that much weight hanging of one side.

It would make no difference at all and when you think about it its not very heavy at all.
If removing that amount of weight made a dramatic difference to how the bike handled then there would not be 4 settings on the suspension, the would actually need to be about 20 when you consider that there is no such thing as an average weight biker and the bike should reasonably expect to take a rider of between probably 8 to 25 plus stone. And I very much doubt that any of us are actually sat on the bike with our body weight evenly distributed on both sides of the bike.

Thanks for the input....I'll take it all on board.

Now back to the original thread topic.

Have any of you had any good / bad experiences with adjusting the suspension?

Done a few checks tonight.

- Tyre pressure front 28psi not 33psi, rear 32psi not 36psi, could explain a lot.

I thought it was only my pushbike tyres that lost air by themselves, guess a tube is a tube..

- Rear suspension hieght only drops 1 cm when I sit on it, would have expected more with my 100+kg lump on it...I'll check the pre load setting at the weekend. The pre load on mine has 7 settings.

Adjusted mine just after I got it ...had to soften it up for these ever so bumpy Valley farm tracks that they pass off as roads .... it was abit stiff to do but I had no problem and only lost a little bit of skin off one knucle!! But I remember thinking at the time "This'll be a bastard to adjust the oter way "

exile wrote:

Adjusted mine just after I got it ...had to soften it up for these ever so bumpy Valley farm tracks that they pass off as roads .... it was abit stiff to do but I had no problem and only lost a little bit of skin off one knucle!! But I remember thinking at the time "This'll be a bastard to adjust the oter way "

I might do the same, a lot of the single lane back roads we are riding would have been dirt roads at one stage that have been asphalted.

Could also just be that I am crap at going round corners

Hi there,

Anyone riding with setting #2? Mine is factory setting #3 I'm 70kg and still feel it stiff. My girlfriend is quite skinny 50kg she almost bounces off from the back seat after the smallest bump on the road.

Here I only read about hardening it up. But anyone tried setting #1 or #2? Please also confess your weight:)