Prophet

Its late, just got off my bike again for the first time this week. Damn staple sidelined the bike for most of the week. Anyhow, here is my general feelings and synopsis of Kawasaki's Ninja 650r. Someone asked for it, so here it is.

A little info for you. This bike is actually a model EX650raslkdfjsdkfj.... something or other. In Europe its an ER-6 or the fairing model (mine) is an er-6f. It was originally designed for the Euro scene as a naked bike. It doesn't look bad w/o clothes, but just like myself, it'll keep its clothes on. There are a few people who ride their 650r w/o fairings.... just not my cup of tea. This is the second year for the bike, last year you could get it in silver or (super sexy) black.

I'll readily admit, this is a chick bike. Its perfect for the ladies as long as they can modulate the throttle properly. This bike is going to my wife when I'm done with it next year. She really wants to ride.....

Style: Its a short compact bike. I'm 6' 260 lbs and I'm almost to big for it. Its a Ninja though. Its got killer looks and a killer color. This year they only came in two colors, red and blue. I chose blue, which is the color I wanted for the wife's Mustang but we got red and the red for the Ninja is almost pink in my eyes.....

Stock 17" rims (much better design than other Ninja's, IMHO)with 160/60 on the rear and I can't recall the front. Stock tires are Bridgestone Battle Axe BT020. They are nice tires so far. I don't feel uneasy on them at all. I haven't felt any bit of squishiness or lack of grip. I've tossed them around the best twisties in my area doing 60 or 70 in some areas and powered through them.... again as my skill grows, maybe I will find the limit, but I hope not.... Supposedly the tires are sport touring tires and should last a good while. Something in the neighborhood of 10K+. Cheapest rear I found was $130 shipped. Locally it was $186 before mounting.

The seat isn't bad, its a bit hard but its ok. (Corbin does make a seat for it) I also don't think under accelleration its all that great, I've felt like I was going to slide off the back of the seat on more than one occassion. Maybe thats how it is for all sport bikes, but I have to squeeze the tank. I guess that may be something I have to learn is how to crouch and accell properly.

After about an hour and a half your ass really feels it. We've got a highway here that runs through Huntington, Indiana north to HWY 30 right at a shit-hole town called Larwill. It has some really nice twisties and I felt pretty much at home on the bike. We rode for 100 or so miles and I was ready for a break as we headed home.

Performance: 649cc parrallel Twin. Meh.... 72 HP and 60 (something) ft. lbs of torque. Not bad. I've been told that the zx-6r or other 600cc class bikes have only a little bit more power. Granted I'm sure there is more technology in the suspension and what not.....

I've really not tapped the power a whole lot because of my inexperience and lack of ability. I'm slowly but surely taking it up a notch at a time. I've got very small maybe 1/4" worth of chicken strips on my rear tire. She likes to lean and loves to power out of the corners. Its very stable so far as well. No wiggles, no worries.

My only two complaints is the throttle pull. It seems to be really long. I complained on another board that it was like 180 degrees, but I think its more like 100 degrees. Other bikes I've seen have really short pulls.

Also, she is a bit twitchy with the throttle. Its almost like an on/off switch. Not much room for in between. She's got the torque down low. Peak torque if I recall correctly is at 5 or 6K and she red lines at 11K.

I layed her down within 30 hours of owning her. It was a very slick parking lot and I was feathering the clutch (to launch) and it wasn't moving, so I gave it a wee bit more throttle and way to much clutch. Any other time, it would have stalled, but this time it slid right out from under me. Damaged the left fairing but I was lucky no cracks. The freak thing of the lay down was it grabbed a really tall curb and skidded 90 degrees. That is what did all the dmg. The following Monday I learned about frame sliders... go finger....

Cost: The bike cost me $6,200 out the door. Another $320 a year in insurance and $145 in plates (Indiana of course). 29 married 2 kids, 4 cars, mortgage all on the same policy.

It has a 4.1 gallon tank. The first run through I got 48 MPG the last I got almost 52. For the most part its paying for itself in gas savings alone. I was paying damn near $300 just getting back and forth to work. Now comparatively speaking I'm back to paying under a buck fitty for gas.

Sound: It sounds like a sissy Ducati. Most of the aftermarket slip-ons only make this worse. It sounds pretty good with the stock muffler once you get into the power. The stock muffler is just a really small modified car muffler. It fits the bike though. Small, compact, and fits at the bottom with a nice little tip. It looks asthetically pleasing.

Comfort: Pretty comfy bike. Lets face it, this isn't a a supersport, its a sport touring bike. I'm comfy on it whether I'm crouching or sitting up. I've ridden this thing to work every day for almost 3 weeks straight. 45 mins one way. I get to my destination and my knees are a little stiff, but I'm no worse for the wear.

Aftermarket: A lot of stuff comes from Europe. There are a few shops dedicated to the 650r. You can get just about anything you want. From slipper clutches, to tail tidy kits, different windscreens and race fairings. Lots of after market slip ons and someone actually has made an exhaust that is the classic style off to the right side with a long can on the end. Most others are slip ons that fit in the stock location and exit out the right. Like most bikes there is a power commander and some other bits...... but not a whole lot more.

Over all I would highly recommend this bike as a daily commuter and/or a starter bike. If yer a big guy a 250 and a 500 is to small this bike is for you, then this bike is for you. If you don't like the upright position they do make a different set of handle bars and a set of clip ons if you want to lower it. I do not plan on trading this bike in when I do upgrade. As I stated before its going to the wife and that is what she will ride permanently. I may even keep riding it to work everyday if the supersport I do get isn't barable for the 45 minute commute.

Around here used bikes in dealerships are like 4 leaf clovers, you can find them, but its pretty tough.... My buddy who got me into riding, his fiancee had a 650r. She got it from a kid who works at the dealership a year prior. She upgraded to a different bike the same Friday night I got my bike. The following Tuesday, it was sold again. She got a descent trade in value for it as well.

Anyhow, hope my spelling wasn't to bad and that it was a good read for you. Good night!

-JD-

gt702

Nice write up, thanks

Use this bike to decide what you want in your next one and it will help you narrow your choices so you are happy with the next one. And keep on the slow incremental pace on the riding skills, this is the best way to learn without getting into trouble.

For the on-off feel of the bike, make sure there isn't too much slop on the throttle cables. You want the throttle to just move before you start pulling the cables. If there is too much room to move, then your hand can't smoothly control the on-off.

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tigerblade

Glad you're enjoying your "girl bike". I know I enjoy mine.

The modern 600s are putting out about 40% more HP than your Kawi. Nothing to sneeze at, and an inline 4's power hits when you reach the powerband, which is quite different than most V-twins' linear power. Not really trying to dissuade you from "moving up" to a bigger, more powerful bike. Just try not to get too confident too soon.

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MotoVegas

'atta boy. A fellow "write-up" kinda guy! Had a buddy with a 650R. He rode the crap out of it for about a year and then got a ZX-6.

Moderate horsepower with solid torque is always a smart move for any intro bike imho!

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TraumaOne

Any updates? Still riding?

Prophet

Well.... not really. Its been sitting for a while because I killed the battery. Since I got my "jikser" I don't spend much time on it. I need to get it going again for the mileage.

-JD-

Crash

Thanks for the write up. I saw in the latest issue of one of the rags that there is a race team running this thing. It never occured to me that this bike could run with the SV650. I'm curious if there are others out there running this bike as a racer like some many have done to the SV?

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Prophet

Yeah there is a shop in Alabama or something that runs these things. BRP is the shop name or something. He usually is found on ninja650r.com forums or another forum.

After getting the battery in and riding it around a short distance, man I can't believe how bad the body vibrates and how noisey this bike is, taking the motor in consideration.

-JD-