What motorcycle should I get?

I had very similar needs as you in a bike, plus the desire to do some longer trips... researched ALOT and ended up with a dr650, couldnt be happier, my brother has a klr650 and I much prefer the DR while off-road.

 

Yeah did some research and realized the yz450f is not for me. Looks like the DRZ would be a better choice. If a DRZ supermoto is 4 stroke, what additional maintenance is there as opposed to the bigger cruisers I'm used to?

 

Very similar, the cruiser bikes you had previously were also 4 stroke motors.

 

My two bikes ive fine tuned over the years. Crf450x supermoto on the road and a ktm300xc with a plate on it as well. The x is for straight pavement ripping with a set of ice tires for when the lakes freeze up. The xc is just a woods weapon. Ive owned crotch rockets, cruisers and dirtbikes and out of all of them these two are my favorite. Pics to follow there in the trailer and its dark out. Best thing you can do is ride a couple buddies bikes and see what your looking to get out of it. If its that 30 miles to the hawgs pen to drink all day or the anguish of chasing a billy goat up a mountain. Whatever you end up getting just dont be affraid to twist that fuckin thing!

 

Yeah but aren't the YZ450f's 4 stroke as well? I'm wondering why those specifically require so much maintenance

 

They are high strung race bikes. WR450 might be worth looking at.

 

^ This. The motor is tuned for the best performance rather than a mellow powerband and longevity between service. I know on my CRF the manual specifies a new top end every 30 minutes

 

Indeed my 300xc gets a new topend every 4 races. Works out to be about 40 to 50 hours. Enduro races are a full day. I would definitely recomend the crf450x as well, the chassis is a little dated but the power is all there. I mean its got the most wins out of any vehicle raced in the baja circuits. I bought the bike ripped off the emmissions junk, jd jetting, couple small mods with a 450r cam and the thing is no joke. Most people that take it for a rip dont want to get off of it.

 

that they dont. my 15 yz is 0.7qt

a drz is a way better choice. you can go 3000 miles on oil changes. no huge maintenance, just check valves over winter if you feel the need.

the yz is a strict race motor. sure people ride them on the street but they are just high strung and meant to be raced

shameless plug of my yz sm i race

 

Stay away from the KLR. what no one has told you is the engines are crap. they last about 20k before something goes wrong. when it was poosible to make money as a powersports wrench (i am a master powersports mechanic), I personally replaced 10 KLR engines in a 2 month period ALL newer than 09.
The pig burns oil and does not like to be run at high rpm for long, EVERY one that had an engine swap was run on the street at 70 or higher and used the way they were designed.....rods let go, cams go flat, oil pumps fail.
Kawasaki does not care, powersports is 2% of the egg for them. Poor quality on the newer ones.

The DRZ is a better bike, in stock form it has no legs so you will need an enduro fuel tank. not a ton of issues with these, the cops use them and have well over 30k on these bikes.
first gens were finicky, the fueling is still to lean (EPA) but, that is the bike I would go for.

buy a service manual and learn to do the services yourself, it will save you $$$ ( typical valve adjustment/service will run 550 or more in labor at a dealer.......independent shops.......probably cheaper, but, be careful, these days the shops are flooded with MMI grads who can't fix a sandwich let alone your bike.)