$30.00 Suzuki petcock fix
 

Some might know that Suzuki has a vacuum petcock on many bikes, It is for people who always forget or don't know to turn the fuel off when the bikeis not in use. It is fine until the stupid thing fails and leaks an entire tank of gasoline all over Your floor and causes a fire hazard. I did some research and decided to put it all togethor in one thread to make it easy for any other Suzuki owners or soon to be Suzuki owners.

This is the original ^%$^% petcock

http://inlinethumb39.webshots.com/41...500x500Q85.jpg

The failing point is the rubber diaphragm that is opened by the vacuum port on the carb, And You find out there is no kit for the Dr200SE

http://inlinethumb33.webshots.com/45...500x500Q85.jpg

So after searching for an answer, I found out that a petcock off of a Raptor 660 will fit

http://inlinethumb16.webshots.com/18...500x500Q85.jpg

30 bucks off ebay, A guy named adventure wrencher who was awesome to deal with.

I also grabbed some of the good stuff, You can never have too much of this around

http://inlinethumb56.webshots.com/46...500x500Q85.jpg

Here are the two side by side, You will lose some reserve with this swap

http://inlinethumb18.webshots.com/45...500x500Q85.jpg

http://inlinethumb14.webshots.com/11...500x500Q85.jpg

Installed on the bike, Fit like a glove.
http://inlinethumb42.webshots.com/46...500x500Q85.jpg

One small issue is that the new petcock is 3/8 line and the carb inlet is 1/4, I clamped the snot out of it and picked up a reducer the next day.
http://inlinethumb29.webshots.com/26...500x500Q85.jpg

And last thing is to cap off the vacuum tube on the carb....
http://inlinethumb10.webshots.com/45...500x500Q85.jpg

This is a simple project with no actual thought required to do....Kinda lame to post it but I found very little online that explains everything. Hope this helps any other Suzuki lovers out there..........Whoo hoo time to ride.

Thanks for the post. The vacuum port that you plugged off would be a useful tuning aid. I'd be inclined to believe that if you connected a vacuum guage, you could pinpoint the correct air / fuel mixture by observing the highest reading.

Good point, Never thought of that :D .

I see that you would loose some reserve capacity due to the shorter tube for the main part of the tank. Question, Does the short tube need to be that long? If it was a little shorter would you gain Reserve capacity?

It's not the short reserve tube that determines reserve capacity, it's the long main one. The short reserve tube is a filter that will pull fuel right down to the base of the valve. The shorter version of the long main tube uses more of the available fuel than a longer main tube would. Therefore, there's less reserve available to you when you switch over.

Looking back over the picks I now see the filter screen. I thought it was a tube that drew from the top of it. Makes more sence.

BTW:

1) those $2 GIO Monster fuel tanks come with a similar petcock (it will fit)
2) TNT (those aftermarket folks) will sell you an aftermarket petcock (from Thibault vacuum only, no reserve, for a Yamaha scooter) for $15
3) a 2002 Raptor 50cc, or 80cc, petcock will go, $25 (my local dealer) and it's 1/4 inch.

It's a good idea to use fiber washers under the bolt/screw heads.

for years I never knew how a petcock really worked because they never failed me. Got curious one day just to see....So dang simple yet work so well. Unless You have a vacuum one.... :lol:

Yah they might fit, But bolt spacing is never assured, also the way they seal on a metal tank vs a plastic tank could be an issue. also cheaper might not last as long as a well made one. And the point was to eliminate a vacuum petcock because they fail, Not replace it with another that will fail again. This retro fit is for pretty much all Suzuki DR models, It is one part that will fit the majority. Some others may work but this one does for sure. I'd rather spend 30 bucks and be sure it will fit vs spending 10 here and 15 there and getting ones that won't. I do understand where You were going and what You meant though, And if people want to try it I welcome it to maybe find an even better solution :D .

Oh I forgot, The reason this one works is the drop of the petcock vs a shorter one. The pinch on the tank will block a shorter one from turning because of where it mounts. Just for anyone who wants to experiment.

Everything I listed uses the same gasket (plastic, or steel tank), they are all interchangeable here, bolt spacing the same. The aftermarket vacuum petcock I just threw in there. I *suspect* that all this stuff is made in China anyway, no matter where you buy it, probably for peanuts, otherwise they would supply kits?

Right, I gotcha. Hell throw a pic up...If it will work better it would help a bunch. A lot of the times people will run across stuff like this by Google searches, So it could save them a lot of heartache :lol: This is just what I found would work and was so easy I never cared to try to dig any deeper. PLus most Dr's use 3/8 I was suprised mine did not.

Thanks for posting the helpful thread, AZ! :) The Raptor 660 fuel petcock looks very much like the Yamaha, TW200 fuel petcock I installed on my Zong's Clarke fuel tank. ;)

Spud :)

Thanks Spud, I just took the bike for a ride......Now my nose is running my eyes are dry I can't feel my fingers or face and I can't find my You know whats.........WHoo hoo I got to ride. The fix worked perfectly.

Show Low weather. 40 degrees wind 26 MPH. Hard core buddy. Rock on. Tomorrow looks great for you to ride more.

I'm glad you got to ride, AZ. :) You will be sweltering in the summer heat before you know it! ;)

Spud :)