- This topic has 6 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 7 months ago by Jiriki.
Considering a new 250 Ninja, I’ve got questions for 250 Ninja owners……..
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September 22, 2008 at 8:28 am #2126NoobacycleParticipant
Ok, I’m currently considering putting a down payment/deposit on a 2009 Ninja 250r. I haven’t even had the chance to sit on one or see one in person. I’ve read reviews here as well as in magazines and online and they were all excellent. I’ve sat on a Ninja 650r at my dealer and I liked the seating position since it was more upright and I heard that the 250 ninja has a similar seating position. I’m not really ready to dive into 7k worth of debt (just bought a condo) and buy a 650r ninja or SV650, therefore the Ninja 250 seems more practical.
I’ve passed my MSF course, got my waiver, and now got my interim class DM license. I have plenty of questions on the Ninja 250r.
1. How is this bike with Insurance? I heard insurance is mostly based on displacement of a bike. I live in New York State and would like to know what Ninja 250r owners pay per year in insurance and use other bikes as comparison.
2. If I am on a Ninja 250r and cruising down the highway at 70 mph in sixth gear, what RPM am I turning? Is it loud? lots of vibration? or is it comfortable? I just want to know since I intend to do plenty of mixed riding. Back roads, main roads, highways.
3. How costly is this bike Maintenance wise? Tires? Oil, carburator, and all that jazz.
4. How does this bike keep up with traffic? I’m mainly concerned about not being able to distance myself from the back of ginormus SUVs and trucks that crowd the roads.
5. How did you break in your Ninja 250? Where I live, there is a mixture of roads at various speeds. None of them seem decent for the break in schedule of the 250. As soon as I’d hop on the road, I’d have to be going a good 50-55 mph pace to stay in traffic. I’m sure that is well above the suggested break in rpm limits.
These are the main questions that concern me now. I thank anyone here that can answer my questions.
September 22, 2008 at 3:43 pm #12489bob250Participant1) I pay about $30 a month with state farm in Florida. I have full coverage on the bike. Displacement is a factor as is age, driving record, etc. A ninja 500 would have run me around $45 a month.
2) 70mph around 8 or 9k rpm. At that speed the wind is almost louder than the engine. Not alot of vibration and to me it is comfortable. I’m 5’11 210lbs. Cross winds will move the bike so be real careful.
3) The only thing I’ve had done so far is the 600mile maintenance and that was around $130. $70 of that was labor so I’m gonna be doing my own oil, chain lube, etc myself. I am not looking forward to finding out how much tires are.
4) The bike in town has no problems. Plenty of juice to get out of its own way. On the highway you still have some throttle left but not much.
5) I got my ’08 used and the guy said he broke it in according to book, which I think has you under 40mph and 4k rpm for the first 50 miles.All in all the ninja 250 is a great first bike but I kinda wish I would have gotten the 500 for the highway.
September 22, 2008 at 3:45 pm #12490JimParticipant1. Insurance is reasonable, I pay $112 per year with Progressive for just the required coverage. But I am 44 years old so if you are younger and/or living in a metropolitian area you might be paying more. FYI my car insurance company would not cover motorcycles no way no how no matter that I was only trying to insure a 250CC, so you might have to shop for a policy. But your insurance on a 250CC will be significantly lower than on a 650CC.
2. At 70mph I’m at about 7-8K RPM, it rides and handles fine at speeds, I’ve had it up to 80-90 mph no problem. It doesn’t rattle or vibrate. One thing about the 250 is it is very light and strong winds will push you around alot. You will get used to that though, but it will scare you the first time. I’ve ridden it comfortably over 8 hours on a couple hundred mile trip with no problems.Plus it is a fun little ride.
3. At 500 miles you need to take it in for service, mine cost $120, but I’ve heard of other shops charging $200+ for this 500 mile checkup. I put in about a quart of oil every month and half or so. That is the only maintenance I’ve had to do for 1800 miles I’ve put on mine in 3 months. I figure I’ll get over two years on the stock tires, and I’ve looked at replacements that cost about $300 for two tires and installation. Every 3000 miles you need to take it in for check ups/factory recommended service. Unless you are mechanically inclined and do it yourself. The 62 mpg is a definite bonus!
4. I don’t have to ride on interstates on my commute, but I do travel 50mph city roads every day. I travel about 60MPH and run about 6K RPM. If you keep it in a lower gear and run the RPMs up to 11-12K you will leave the SUVs in the dust. At 12K+ this little bike wants to go! It just takes a little longer to get there than a 650+ bike.
5. Break in – I just tried to vary RPMs on the bike, not run at one RPM for long periods of time. City driving pretty much ensures that with stop lights and such. http://www.ninja250.org/ has a great FAQ on the Kawa Ninja, there is lots of info on break in procedures there, plus maintenance help, etc. It is a great resource.
All in all it is an awesome little package for the price, I bought mine for $2800, $3200 out the door from the dealer and love my bike. Do I look at sweet 650’s and yearn a bit? Sure I do, but I don’t have a $6000+ bike loan to pay off, my bike does what I bought it for. Great to learn on, without killing myself, saves me alot of money in gas compared to my 18MPG car and is fun as hell to ride.
Hope the info helps.
September 22, 2008 at 4:49 pm #12495briderdtParticipantI just called Safeco on Friday to ask about adding a MC. For full coverage (similar to what I have on my cars) would be $606/year for the Ninja 250, and the Suzuki S40 (the one my wife is looking at — 650cc) would be $650/year — so basically $50 a month). The guy on the phone said that the rate wouldn’t change much at all until you cross the liter mark, then it goes up significantly. If you have less coverage, then the rates would be lower, of course.
September 22, 2008 at 6:24 pm #12499bob250ParticipantDon’t forget your deductible will also determine your premium.
September 25, 2008 at 2:35 pm #12734Clenzer72Participant1) Just liability in the ca Bay Area is 100 a year with gieco
2) I have about 550 miles on the bike and have only spent 1 mile of that on the freeway. I’m not comfortable with the traffic and speeds yet. in that time i noticed lots of wind noise and high reaction to wind. with time it will be no big deal, but when first starting it is very intimidating and infamiliar. But i have read 65-70mph is around 7k in 6th
3) I’m about to go in for my 600 mile service and have been quoted by two dealers a little over 200 bucks
4) The bike has plenty of power to keep up and outrun most cars, it’s all up to the driver and how agressivly you ride.you can ride a liter bike and let cars past if you don’t ride it “fast”
5) I did lost of research before getting the bike to decide on a break in procedure. the books way is rediculious, hasn’t changed in decades…..first 500 miles under 4k rpm. with todays manufacturing there is not purpose for this. After reading numerous websites/books/articles/and talked to seasoned riders and instructors i decided to break in the bike like I have been riding it all my life. with the exeption of varying the RPMs and not letting it sit in one place for extended period of time, like 6k in 4th gear for 15 minutes. Trust me, you will get very impatiant keeping it under 4k. I personally don’t believe anyone that says they did it to the letter. just too damn hard, and we all fail to temptation at least once!I’m 6’1″ 190 and the bike does feel a little small, but I’m ok with that. I do not feal cramped in any way, I just feel a little too big. As a beginner the bike is very forgiving while learning the fundamentals of riding on two wheels and I am a huge proponent of learning on a 250 rather than a 600/650/750 ect. There are many threads around here with great advise and some articles that you will find interesting, suck as the 600 is not a beginners bike.
Good luck and keep us posted.
September 26, 2008 at 9:36 pm #12827JirikiParticipanti broke it in by staying under 4k… i just went on really twisty roads in the bay area where you can’t go above 30-40 mph…
and it is 4k for first 500, 6k for second 500 miles…
when i got to 500 miles, i was comfortable enough with the bike to increase my speed from 30 to 40 mph in the twisty sections… now i go through much faster, but it was a good way to learn…
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