Best thing to do is make sure the oil is change regularly.  But since the thread title is about carbs,  the answer depends on what you want to do to the other parts of the bike.  

If you keep everything else stock,  at a minimun,  once the bike is out of warranty, I suggest adjusting the low speed mixture which would be a screw under the brass plug on right side of carb.   Also , I would do the white spacer mod which will help the mid range response and will actually help the bike run cooler.    But, the white spacer mod can lead to slightly lower MPG .....  shouldn't because the bike should be running in a more efficient fuel/air ratio.... but the "smile" factor will get you.....

My top 10 list of things to keep it running:

1) Regular oil and filter changes
2) Use 20w 50 synthetic oil
3) Keep your air filter clean
4) Regularly wash the bike with a good overall cleaner like S100. Keep the cooling fins clean and use a soft brush.
5) Make sure the engine has time to warm up before you head out and open up the throttle.
6) Check your fluid levels, including battery level and electrical connections.
7) If you are going to store the bike for some period of time, add a fuel stabilizer to your gasoline.
8) Follow all the recommended service checks, and learn to do them yourself.
9) Keep your tires properly inflated.
10) Perhaps most importantly,  ride the darn thing as often as you can. The Savage was designed to be ridden by smart, good looking, friendly people who have a passion for riding. Other bikes are designed for air conditioned garages, museums and to impress others.

As for running "best", that is a personal set of conditions. If it is a certain sound you like, there is probably a muffler that will get you there. If you want to eliminate or minimize backfire, the white spacer and air mixture mods are described in this forum. If you want more horsepower, rejetting or a performance carb can get you there.  You can replace the belt drive with a chain.  If you want more comfort, there are better grips, seats and forward controls. But when it comes to those mods, "best" is what you define.

Overall, I'm with Jay that the bike is best left alone with perhaps the tweaks needed to adjust the air/fuel mixture. I'm sure Suzuki wouldn't have set the carb where it is if it weren't to please the infinite wisdom of the EPA.  But it's your call and whatever you want to do there is someone here to help you with it.

alcoa wrote on 09/05/08 at 12:15:32:


I guess the main question is:  "Are you happy with the way it runs now?"

I left mine stock...until I rode it thru it's first winter.  Below 55F, it would "surge" which was a symptom of running too lean.  I did the white spacer mod, which fixed that problem.  It would have been ok to leave it stock, but I couldn't live with that.  

Many people find that taking the white spacer out is too much, 1/3 to 1/2 seems to satisfy most...