- This topic has 5 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 14 years ago by aantionetti.
new rider – ’08 ninja 250 questions..
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April 4, 2010 at 5:32 pm #3839aantionettiParticipant
Hi all,
I recently purchased my first motorcycle, black ’08 ninja 250. I absolutely love it and am very glad I decided to go the 250 route instead of the heavier Shadow or more powerful SV650 that I really wanted. I got a good deal and feel comfortable knowing that I won’t be out a ton of money if/when I drop it!
SO, a few questions for experienced riders and/or ninja 250 owners:
1. I know this isn’t a powerful bike, but it seems like it rev’s pretty high when I am cruising at 60-65 (8-9k rpm) is this normal or am I shifting too early? Do I just need to get on it all the time, and will that ruin my mpg?
2. Eventually I would like to ride with a passenger (the wife is really excited), will I need to adjust the rear shock? if so, can I do this with a regular tool? (the factory tool kit is missing) Will I have to adjust this back for solo?
3. How often do I need to lube the chain? How does one go about doing that?
4. What should I expect for gas mileage? it seems like I am getting around 50 mpg, but i was hoping for a little better…
Thanks for any and all advice, I am having a great time and am very glad I found this site!!
J.H.
April 4, 2010 at 9:26 pm #25399eonParticipantI have never owned your bike (or even a bike with a chain for that matter) so these are just generic answers. I’m sure an actual owner will be along soon to give specific answers.
1. 8~9k Sounds about right. You should be able to tell by upshifting. If you feel the engine struggling to pull at that speed then you were probably in the correct gear to begin with. Higher RPMs generally mean lower mpg but unless you are just cruising down the freeway you want to be in the optimal gear for your speed.
2. Factory tool kits tend to be extremely basic pieces of crap so a regular toolkit is probably a better choice. A spanner is a spanner after all. You will want to stiffen up your suspension for a passenger and you may even want to change it for just yourself. Not sure if you need a special tool to do that on the ninja. My scooter has a weird shaped tool to do that so this might be tricky.
3. Every 500 miles is standard I think. There are special brushes and cleaning supplies to do this. Simply put it up on the center stand (if you have one) and rotate the wheel and clean the chain. Not difficult and I’m sure there will be videos out on YouTube to show you how it is done.
4. Not sure about mpg on the Ninja. That does sound a little low but it depends a lot on your riding conditions. If you are in town a lot then your mpg will plummet.
April 5, 2010 at 2:08 am #25407eternal05ParticipantEon got everything right, but just so you hear it from an authoritative source (another ’08 250R owner):
1. Yes, 8-9K at freeway speed is normal. With the Ninja, you have two options: ride it for MPG or ride it for safety. By “safety” I mean that, since you have somewhat less power than, say, that SV650 you wanted, you will want to be more careful about where you are in relation to the engine’s powerband so that, if needed, you can still power your way out of a tough situation. If you want good MPG, keep your revs under 7-8K or so. This is perfectly reasonable on normal roads, and the 250R has plenty of grunt in the midrange at lower speeds to keep you out of trouble. On the freeway, however, I HIGHLY suggest that you err massively on the side of caution. When I get on a freeway onramp (assuming it’s straight), I’m usually at full throttle and shifting around 9-11K rpm. The Ninja has much better brakes than it does engine, so if you need to slow down to merge, that’s not ever a problem. If you get on hot, however, you can get past that grandma that insists on driving in the merging lane at 45mph and then matching your speed as you try to merge.
Note: Any vehicle, car, boat, motorcycle, etc. will burn DRAMATICALLY more fuel when at WOT (wide open throttle) than at “cruising speed.” So yes, if you constantly ring your Ninja’s neck, your MPG will suffer…to like, maybe 45-55mpg? Not so bad for the fun you get to have. If you want better fuel economy, see my response to your last question.
2. First piece of advice: stick to the “eventually” in your original post. Do not rush riding with a passenger. It’s very tricky, especially with a light and top-heavy bike like the 250R. It’s much more predictable (though not necessarily easier) on a heavier bike with lower COG, where the passenger’s weight doesn’t play such a big role.
Now as far as suspension goes, depending on your weight, I’d definitely firm up the rear just for you. I’m about 200 lbs wearing all my gear, and I have my rear shock maxed (still have the stock shock). The 250R is made for little people (both size and weight) and even with the suspension firmed up, if I really cared, I would be better off investing in an aftermarket fork and rear shock. So for riding with a passenger? Definitely firm up that rear shock. You’re also going to want to add a few PSI to your rear tire (see the manual for cold PSI w/ passenger). Make sure that you undo both your changes to the suspension and to your tire pressure when you go back to riding solo.
Note: Do not take my suspension settings as doctrine. I’m just a lunkhead like everybody else, so play around, read some literature on the topic, or see a qualified expert if you need help deciding on a proper suspension setup for yourself.
3. Eon is dead on with this one: every 500 miles. The problem is that you don’t have a center stand. What you’re going to need (for this, and in general) is a rear swingarm stand. I HIGHLY recommend Pit Bull (Pit Bull Spooled/Standard rear stand allows you to work with both spooled/unspooled bikes).
Second thing to note–it’s common sense really, but it’s amazing how uncommon that is these days–is that you should not, under ANY circumstances, think it’s a good idea to turn the engine on, put the bike in first clean/lube the chain will the engine’s spinning the rear wheel. Just one Google search on the topic will provide you with plenty of gruesome evidence that it’s a REALLY bad idea.
Third, lubing your chain isn’t hard, but doing it the best way possible and with minimal fling onto the rest of your bike is a bit tricky. I’d find a good article on the topic, preferably from a reputable magazine rather than CBR600dude on YouTube.
4. As far as your mileage goes, I’ve found the single biggest factor to be where you ride, not so much how you ride. If you ride on the freeway (60-75mph) your mileage will suffer because it forces the Ninja to be very high in the rev range. More engine cycles means more gas used, given a particular throttle setting, so revving high will kill your MPG. You’ll also find that if you’re in lots of stop and go traffic (or just commuting through lots of stop lights and signs), your mileage will also suffer. I think this is both because you are constantly losing your momentum and having to waste more gas to get going again, but also because the Ninja’s 1st gear is very low, and you really have to gun it to pull away from the line at a reasonable speed.
So, if you’re mostly riding on arterial streets and windy highways (30-50mph), your mileage can be very good. Mine has gone over 70mph ONCE (I don’t usually try to conserve fuel), but more often than not I’m in the 50-60mpg range. Then again, I do tend to ring the little Ninja’s neck, so you may have better luck.
So, there you have it: way more than you wanted in response to your questions. Do let us know if you have any others, and enjoy the crap out of that bike!
April 5, 2010 at 3:00 am #25412Gary856ParticipantHere’s what I do:
If the chain looks dirty and grimy, I’d clean it first w/ WD-40. I’d spray WD-40 onto an old towel, then wrap the towel over the chain with one hand, while rotating the rear tire with the other hand to pull the chain thru the WD-40 soaked towel. After that, I’d switch to a clean towel to wipe off the WD-40.
For lube, I use Bel-Ray Super Clean Chain Lube. Just spray onto the chain and it leaves a waxy, white residue. I hold a piece of cardboard behind the chain to block the overspray. This lube doesn’t fling off and make a mess at all. I read that a lot of dirt riders use this lube because it doesn’t attract dirt and gum up.
The typical chain lube intervals I see is 600 miles, but that depends on your riding conditions – wet, dry, clean, dirty, short trips, long trips. I’m a little lazy so I tend to do it close to every 1,000 miles.
By the way, I have a SV650, but I’m itchy to check out a ’08 or newer Ninja 250. The Ninja looks like a very fun bike to ride.
April 5, 2010 at 3:25 am #25414CBBaronParticipantGreat bike. I have the older version a red `06.
For lots of good information I have found the FAQ at ninja250.org to be very helpful. It does tend to concentrate a little more on the pre-08 model but still plenty of good information on the new version and much of the information is the same.
ninjette.org seems to be a god forum for the `08 and later model but I have not been there much.The 250r does like to rev. In 6th gear 55mph is about 7000rpm. However that is just starting to get into the powerband for the engine and it tops out about 14000 so there is plenty of room above that. If you are running at slower speeds below 7000rpm be prepared for a quick down shift if you need to accelerate.
As for fuel economy, with any vehicle high speeds will really start to hurt the fuel economy. The 250r is not a real aerodynamic vehicle so you start seeing a significant drop in efficiency above 55mph. It can help considerably to tuck in behind the windscreen to reduce drag and ofcourse slow down. Stop and go seems to hurt less, probably due to its light weight and small engine but if you ride it hard it will burn gas much faster. I have seen people get between 40mpg and 90mpg with most between 50-70. The older model actually gets a little better economy but usage will create a bigger variation.
Craig
April 6, 2010 at 12:43 am #25438aantionettiParticipantgreat answers! thanks!
That makes sense with the mpg, I am usually riding 55 down the highway in the open wind, so I guess it makes sense I am getting around 50mpg, I was just hoping for a little better. I will try using lower rev’s/shifting and ducking down to see if that helps.
Thanks for the advice on chain lubing, I will check out info online. Wow, definitely will keep the bike turned off, I’m not the brightest bulb in the pack but wrapping a towel around a moving chain sounds like a fast road to hurt city!
Thanks again, been raining for two days here, but already have my next ride planned out!
J.H.
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