Still sounds like an awesome deal with the trade and cash. I would totally do that one.

 

This is the DR350's forte. With the 6speed, it loafs at 55mph with S gearing. It's a 'sit-in' riding position with the how the tank creates a wall in front of you compared to the klx. The DR is very comfortable with the wide seat and relaxed ergo's. This works totally against you offroad or if you like to move about a bike to help handling. I found the stock DR motor to run out of breath quickly in each gear and was extremely slow. The E model was like a funnycar. Now I'm sure the klx would cruise at 55 also but the seat is thinner meaning less comfort over the DR for street duty and maybe the motor is probably on par. My 97 DR was about 290lbs wet with my 91 being about 278 wet. Hopping each up is easy and rewards the owner with a lot more power...just have to pick your flavor....(I'm with the modern klx)

 

My Klx is a 351 with 140/80 metzeler and 90/90 front metzeler enduro3 sahara tires.. the bike is rock solid at 80 MPH on the highway.. I can take my hands off the bars and steer easily.. Im so confident with this bike with the right tires and this is stock suspension.

The bike in the woods is nimble and burns out little strips all over the trails.. its so fun to ride.. reminds me of my 1995 DT.. light, fast and nimble..

If you can get a 2009 at that price go with it.. you get a brand new bike.. then add some mods over time.. the fun part is the enormous HP gains you can get by adding inexpensive stuff over time.. and end up with a finely tuned rock solid thumper.

 

I think the op may be asking about the roadability of the DR. A proper running DR will get to 80mph and beyond and be relatively ok there. Won't get there as fast as a modded klx but offroad the klx is much more competent. I rode for some time a 92 S model DR with a 435 kit and RM suspension and it was a fun bike. It still suffered from poor ergos but the motor was pretty good for trailriding. If it wasn't for the flexy frame\swingarm in the whoops and trailjunk, it woulda been a nice dualsport offroader.

 

DR350 and me don't get along. It's planted me face-first in the forest floor a bunch of times. Not for me. The KLX is a much better starting point to build the bike you want. Change the sprockets a little, add a pipe and decent air cleaner, do a little jetting and it runs really nice. Then respring the forks and shock to your weight and you'll have a waaaayyy better bike than you can make out of the DR.

The DR 350 and DR 650 feel like Sportsters to me. Suzuki really needs to work on their dual sports.

 

They haven't made the DR350 since 1999. The dr650 gets upgraded somewhat but is better offroad than the klr650. The 350 was like riding a la-z-boy. I had the stiffest springs available installed in mine and it was only ok.