[Pazzoguy1983]

Hi guys I just came up with a wild idea!! There's a guy down the street who has a Yamaha dt400 with a running motor but the bike is stripped and no title, but I'm wondering if this motor will fit in the tw? Those were originally street legal bikes so I would imagine the gearing is already pretty good for street and trails. I I really like the tw but I hate that its somewhat underpowered! I may have forgotten to mention I'm short at 5'7" I can't comfortably handle a taller bike!! I know lowering a bike is an option but terrible offroad so ya that not for me either!! Maybe some other motor is a decent fit? Any and all feedback is appreciated!!
Thanks
Evan

Ciao Evan

 

[Mistervelocity]

DT was 2stroke, if that matters to you. I grew up riding a DT250 and remember it being a heavy tank.

The "will it fit" question has been asked several times. Short answer is, no.

 

[Pazzoguy1983]

Yes I do realize it's a two stroke! I thought of that motor for the punch it has!! Maybe something slightly smaller would be a good choice a 350 I'm not sure about that either!
I know the tdub is more of a mountain goat but let's face it your average moped will out accelerate it!!
Ciao Evan

 

[troll]

You know anything will fit depending on your fabrication skills and how big a pocketbook you have. I don't particularly like 2 strokes but they are about as light a motor as you can get.

 

[Pazzoguy1983]

It doesn't have to be a 2 stroke. I was just thinking. Two stroke usually makes more power than a 4 stroke. That being said I don't know when fit with minimum. Fabricating? I'm just wondering. What the bigger Motors people have transplanted in these bikes?

Ciao Evan

 

[Mistervelocity]

XT and TTR variants have been fitted. The offset of the drive sprocket to match the wide TW tire is the main sticking point.

 

[raffles]

Yes I do realize it's a two stroke! I thought of that motor for the punch it has!! Maybe something slightly smaller would be a good choice a 350 I'm not sure about that either!
I know the tdub is more of a mountain goat but let's face it your average moped will out accelerate it!!
Ciao Evan

Here is an idea , you could sell the tdub , and put the money towards something that fits your requirements, something “ modern “ and water cooled with fuel injection and decent suspension etc, basically not a design from the late 80,s

 

[Pazzoguy1983]

Here is an idea , you could sell the tdub , and put the money towards something that fits your requirements, something “ modern “ and water cooled with fuel injection and decent suspension etc, basically not a design from the late 80,s

Anything newer with a little bit of power is way too tall for me! I used to have a honda CRF230L and that felt underpowered! So putting a 225 motor isn't worth the effort to me! The idea was to put a powerful motor in the tdub and not only have something different nobody has, but have something badass in the woods with the power to loft the front wheel when I needed!! That being said I just wanted to see what people have done with this bike!!

Ciao Evan

 

[Fred]

I suppose with a bunch of frame modifications, welding, time, money and fabrication skills you could mount darn near any 350 or 400cc motor of your choice. Staying air cooled might be best. Would need to align the driving with the driven though, so either fab a two chain jackshaft or mount the new motor about two inches to the left with counterbalancing lead weights on the right side.
Either way you end up with a unique machine that would I imagine would dangerously overwhelm the brakes and suspension.
I ended up with a TTR 223cc 6-speed in my 2003 TW. Stepping up to milling a custom 250 modified motor from there was well beyond my budget.

Another option is to dip into the past for an older suitable machine without the sky high suspension travel of modern bikes but still some trail worthy performance. Some states will let you plate an enduro with the addition of appropriate horn, lights, battery, etc. I did this with a KDX once.

 

[Pazzoguy1983]

Speaking of vintage bikes, the other bike I looked at was a Yamaha xt550!! It sits low and will wheelie thru the 3 gears!! A real torque monster!! But they only made it for two years, so finding parts could be a problem!!

Ciao Evan

 

[raffles]

Anything newer with a little bit of power is way too tall for me! I used to have a honda CRF230L and that felt underpowered! So putting a 225 motor isn't worth the effort to me! The idea was to put a powerful motor in the tdub and not only have something different nobody has, but have something badass in the woods with the power to loft the front wheel when I needed!! That being said I just wanted to see what people have done with this bike!!

Ciao Evan

Mmm, !!! A powerful motor ??? Got it !!! 😃 tz750 , it will go like “ stink” 😆😆😂
Sorry could not resist the temptation

 

[doc dogg]

I imagine would dangerously overwhelm the brakes and suspension.

The drum brakes on my TW are overwhelmed by the stock engine, I can't even begin to imagine how hair raising it would be with a 400

 

[Apolloha]

Go for it !!! If you are young and have ideas, try them. Don't hold back. If you are old, just remember you don't have that long to recover.

 

[GaryL]

The TW is what it is and is NOT well suited for a much more powerful engine. I can't speak for others but having owned my share of excellent running TWs I can say I never felt real comfortable on one when I got it up to or past 65 MPH.
Wheelie power could and has been achieved by changing the final drive gearing to something like a 55 tooth rear sprocket. Of course in doing so you lose top speed capabilities. Those here who have done deep engine upgrades such as 6 speed transmissions married to the TT 230 or XT 225/250 engines may have increased some performance characteristics but at a rather steep cost.
In your search I would suggest as Fred mentioned, find a vintage enduro bike from before when the long travel suspensions came into the picture. The seat heights will be more to your stature but again and as you duly mention, parts availability probably will be an issue.
Not sure if anyone here has attempted this but the 350 motor from a 1986/87 BW 350 just might be a workable swap with some fabrication. That motor is a monster power plant and it is also possible that motor was also in some Yamaha ATVs, Warrior I believe. I recently rebuilt a real nice BW350 and once done I was absolutely amazed at the power it had but it did require a very highly trained rider to handle the throttle and massive tires.

GaryL

 

[Trail Woman]

Yeah the wide tires loose traction at higher speeds offroad. Not only that but the suspension isn't dialed in for quick enough rebound. A ttr 230 or xt250 6 speed is the most power you can reasonably put in one.

 

[GaryL]

Yeah the wide tires loose traction at higher speeds offroad. Not only that but the suspension isn't dialed in for quick enough rebound. A ttr 230 or xt250 6 speed is the most power you can reasonably put in one.

Actually TW I found those wide ATV tires hold way more traction and also way more weight so you need the ability to horse them around much more so than even the fat bottom TW . With more power and traction to the rear and more weight in the front it was real easy to get over yourself real quick if you didn't have the weight and strength to correct it.

 

[Roostfezza]

A custom bike shop near me successfully added a turbo to a small motorcycle motor, so that might be an option! You can do many things, but very quickly you will get to a point where the money is not being well spent.

 

[martianone]

IMHO, much more power would ruin the TW concept ?

 

[Pazzoguy1983]

So the reason I asked is my previous Enduro was a 2008 Honda CRF230L. While I did have a ton of fun on it, it struggled to keep up with local traffic at times!! Also sometimes in the sandy trails of the NJ Pine Barrens the front wheel would was out! I didn't get the chance to try out a different front tire since it was stolen before it was six months old!!! I feel like the Enduro bug has bitten me once again!! But I think I want something a little more powerful this time hence the reason I thought about building a modded tw!! and also it has to be street legal from the factory!! NJ park rangers have a list of all the street legal bikes so getting a bike plated won't work in this situation!!

Ciao Evan

 

[Mistervelocity]

Respectfully, it really doesn't sound like a TW is right for you.