Motorcycle Kawasaki Ninja 250R - an interesting motorcycle for beginners

Japanese motorcyclesKawasaki motorcycles

What do you think is Kawasaki's best-selling motorcycle model? Maybe you think this is the famous Kawasaki ZX-6R sportbike?

Or the acclaimed Kawasaki KLR650 enduro version? No, no and NO. The top seller was a motorcycle with a “two hundred and fifty cc” power unit.

This is the Kawasaki Ninja 250R - a motorcycle best suited for beginner motorcyclists. This is exactly how Kawasaki specialists position it. And it is this motorcycle that changes our understanding of this class.

Kawasaki Ninja 250 R review

If you look at the Kawasaki ninja 250R from the outside, it may seem that this is a 600cc version. The Ninja's design is in no way inferior to the design of its larger, larger brothers , whose appearance served as the basis for it.

And now it seems as aggressive and challenging as the ZX series motorcycles. Especially if the “250” nameplate is invisible.

The first Kawasaki Ninja 250R was produced in 1986, pointing other manufacturers in the right direction for the further progress of the motorcycle industry - towards road superbikes and touring motorcycles.

Which is quite far from its predecessors – huge outdated road mastodons. This year, two models of the Ninja family were released at once - the GPZ and GPX series. And, immediately, motorcycles hit the bestseller list.

Over the years since its release, the motorcycle has undergone many external changes and received a complete technical re-equipment.

What is the modern Kawasaki ninja 250R like?

conclusions

The Kawasaki Ninja 250 is the best option as a transhipment base for civilian motorcyclists, allowing them to understand the difference between a road bike or chopper with sports motorcycles.

The motorcycle is easy to ride due to its low weight.

The small volume of the internal combustion chamber causes weak acceleration, which, together with the mass of electronics, allows you to quickly get used to the bike . In this regard, the manufacturing company at the beginning of 2021 released a globally modified version, distinguished by a power of 39 horsepower, which replaced the old generation on the market along with the Ninja 300 model.

Motorcycle design

Viewed from the front, the design is defined as aggressive.
This is facilitated by the dual design of the head light elements.

The angular rearview mirrors, like the headlights, add to this aggressiveness.

The motorcycle and its components are covered almost completely with a plastic fairing with a large number of metal elements and sharp edges, which improves its aerodynamic qualities.

The front wheel fender and front fork fairing are made in the same style. The rear end, raised high above the wheel and with a pointed shape, also looks very sporty.

The rear two-seater, two-stage seat favorably improves the perception of the motorcycle and gives it a stylish look.

A large black muffler with a chrome tip seems to give the motorcycle extra power in appearance.

The instrument panel, modern and informative, is also clad in a fairing ending in a small windshield.

The instrument cluster includes a speedometer and tachometer in an analogue version with a white background and an indication unit with indicators for low pressure and high oil temperature, low fuel level and battery charge, low fuel level and air filter contamination.

The motorcycle comes in several color schemes:

• Green;
• Blue;
• Red;
• Black.

If you like 250cc motorcycles, pay attention to the Suzuki Bandit 250, whose characteristics are impressive, our article is about it.

A faithful friend has broken down, and the service is on the other side of town? Let's figure out the problem of transporting a motorcycle together.

Engine Kawasaki Ninja 250R

The motorcycle's powertrain is tuned to produce more torque at the expense of its peak power. Therefore, at speeds up to medium, the motorcycle has a good and reliable “pickup”.

During the modernization process, the engine's reliability was increased by introducing enlarged cylinder heads, strengthening the pistons in the piston pin area, and enlarging the piston rings. Optimization of the fuel combustion chamber increased operating efficiency. The evolution of the fuel system culminated with the introduction of the fuel injector.

Motorcycle transmission and chassis

The Ninja 250R is equipped with a six-speed gearbox with carefully selected ratios, which allows you to move comfortably both in the city cycle and on the country highway.

The rear wheel is driven by a chain. The front suspension of the motorcycle has a telescopic fork, the rear suspension has a Uni-Trak system with five-stage adjustment.

The brakes are equipped with discs of increased diameter. The wheels with a diameter of 17 inches contribute to good handling and comfort of the motorcycle.

Brakes squeal

The braking system only needs minimal grinding in to work at full power after just a couple of laps. The front brake disc is presented in a single copy, which, however, does not give reason to talk about the weakness of the dynamics of the braking process. Petal-type discs are excellent at dissipating heat. Therefore, even a series of sharp speed reductions will not seriously affect the effectiveness of the brakes. Both the rear and front modules of the system are well modulated. The feeling of fear will not affect the motorcyclist when making a turn with braking - the accident of the wheel slipping into a skid is minimal. Well, without any comments: this motorcycle does not have brake and clutch release adjustment. And it wouldn’t interfere at all with such a beast as the Kawasaki 250 Ninja. However, this is not a critical problem that you just need to get used to.

Specifications

Dimensions and weight

The curb weight of the bike is 170 kilograms, which is quite small and is a plus for a car considering its class. Therefore, fuel consumption is not too high - only 3-4 liters per 100 kilometers of road. And taking into account the fact that the gas tank volume is 18 liters, the bike can travel up to half a thousand kilometers without refueling. But do not forget that consumption largely depends on driving style. The size of the motorcycle is average for the sports class.

Motorcycle cost

The high level of sales of the motorcycle was due not only to its stylish design and interesting technical characteristics, but also to the company’s affordable pricing policy.
The cost of the model for a long time remained within three and a half thousand dollars. Successive modernizations of the motorcycle gradually increased its cost and, now, the price of the new Kawasaki ninja 250R in Russia is about 240,000 rubles.

The price of Kawasaki Ninja 250 R on the secondary market starts from 100,000 rubles for 2008-2009 models, up to 230,000 rubles for 2012 models.

It should be noted that the price is approximate and can easily be reduced with the right approach to buying a motorcycle . And the correct approach is a mandatory and, one might say, meticulous inspection of the vehicle.

It is recommended to check according to the following parameters:

• Inspection of the frame. The absence of changes in geometry, cracks, dents, and paint rebounds on the welds is checked.
• Front fork. Check that there is no fluid leakage when the fork moves vertically.
• Chain drive. The degree of chain elongation from normal parameters is checked.
• Brake discs. The wear of the discs is checked, which should not have a pronounced decrease in thickness.
• Tire condition. If the rear tire is worn more in the center than on the edges, this means that the owner is a fan of hard starts, which, in turn, may indicate that the motorcycle may have increased wear on the engine and transmission.
• Availability of technical fluids. The level and condition of working fluids in the engine, cooling system, and brake system are checked.
• Engine. It is checked in start-up mode, warm-up mode and in a warm-up state. There should be no obvious soot or oil discharge from the exhaust pipe.
• Radiator. The integrity of the radiator and the uniformity of its heating are checked.
• Electrical equipment. The functionality of all electrical appliances is checked and the brightness of the headlights does not change when the engine speed changes.

You can read more about the inspection before purchasing your first motorcycle in our article: “Which motorcycle to choose for a beginner.”

The Kawasaki ninja 250R motorcycle is not the same Ninja of 1986, but its popularity has not diminished at all, and still remains the blue dream of many motorcycle lovers. This bright, attractive example of modern motorcycle technology can introduce a beginner to the grandiose action of circuit racing, and simply attract the attention of others.

Is it necessary to have MTPL insurance for trailers? The answer to this question is in our review article.

400 cc representative of the Honda motorcycle family: . Brief overview and technical specifications.

Biker's convenience

When driving, especially at high speed, the ergonomics of the driver's seat plays an important role. Once you get behind the wheel, you get the impression that you will be driving not a sportbike, but an ordinary road bike. The seat is soft and quite comfortable, the footrests are at such a level that you don’t have to reach for the steering wheel at all. This makes the rider's position straight and relaxed. This makes it possible to drive around the city for quite a long time, go on a long journey and not think about the prospect of getting tired. Racing on the track is also very comfortable - this landing maintains a feeling of confidence in control over your two-wheeled friend, which makes it easy to make sharp maneuvers.

It should be noted that the bike’s body tilts a lot when going through a sharp turn; from time to time the toes of the rider’s boots touch the asphalt. Therefore, it won’t hurt to purchase motor boots with sliders.

Photo gallery

This motorcycle brought many modern riders into the sport and continues to this day. The low cost, outstanding characteristics of the motorcycle and its versatility in terms of the possibility of use, both in sports and in everyday life, help its owner determine his preferences. We present to your attention a small photo selection of the Kawasaki ninja 250R.

Positive points

Despite the modest engine size of the Ninja 250, you can’t say that this motorcycle model is somehow inferior in comparison with its more powerful brothers. Many men who only dream of a bike, who have never sat behind the wheel of such a vehicle, see just such a car in their dreams. Beginners’ poor understanding of the power of the Kawasaki 250 Ninja (the price of which, by the way, is a bit steep) and its explosive power can negatively affect their safety. After all, having developed speed on such a device, it is very easy to lose control and even crash into something. Therefore, those who want to buy a sportbike just because of the “coolness”, who want to immediately start with the “600” or “liter”, whose combat power goes off scale beyond the 100 hp mark. s, are at great risk of encountering certain troubles that plague novice motorcycle racers. This is where it will be just right to master the necessary skills on a more obedient “motorcycle friend”, which in some way forgives the shortcomings in the riding of its owner. Therefore, the presented model looks very advantageous as the first sportbike. In addition, the rather cool appearance will not leave the owner of the device without due attention. And after acquiring the required level of control of your two-wheeled friend, you can easily begin to master models with a more serious engine capacity.

But buyers who have set their own criteria when choosing a motorcycle and know what they want at the initial stage immediately begin to understand that they have settled on a bright specimen that will bring a lot of pleasure during motorcycle rides and will allow them to show off with pride in front of their friends. Don’t let the sports bike’s appearance mislead you – it won’t let you doubt its versatility. It performs just as well on short race runs as it does on long journeys.