A couple of ER6F reviews

aardvark · Post by **aardvark** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 3:13 am

Download a PDF review from Bikeland.org
http://www.bikeland.org/articles/650ninja_06.pdf

And a quick review from Keith Code:

I had the chance to ride the new Kawasaki Ninja 650R yesterday and I came away pretty impressed. While it may not be as exciting as a ZX10, the little twin is pretty rad. I rode the bike around on some city streets and a little bit of freeway. Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to ride any real twisties, well except for a couple off ramps.

So for those interested here’s a short review…

The ergos on the bike are very comfortable. The seat height is pretty low but there is still a decent amount of leg room even for my 6’ frame. You sit pretty upright and the reach to the bars is pretty short. I didn’t much care for the angle the bars are swept back though. The upright riding position would be great on a long ride. The windscreen throws the wind nicely over your head and there is no buffeting. The bike feels very narrow between your knees and the tank has nicely shaped cutouts for your knees to fit in while hanging off.

The engines power was surprisingly strong. I didn’t really want to rev the bike I was riding out as it was not broken in yet, but I did give it full throttle at lower revs. The parallel twin offers lots of the low end grunt you would expect from a twin. I would guess that there is even more power up at the top of the rev range as parallel twins tend to make their power with a few more revs as opposed to vees. The sound from the under bike exhaust isn’t all that impressive. It kind of sounds like an EX500, not real loud.

The bike handles great, it’s stable yet turns in easily. The new ninja feels very light when turning into a corner and yet it holds its line very well. It seemed to me that Kawi set the geometry more towards stability but because the bike is so small and light you can still turn it quickly. The suspension was a little more taught then I would have expected. This is defiantly not a bad thing as the ride is still comfortable over freeway expansion joints and other road imperfections, the suspension movement is just more controlled then I expected.

All in all I like the new 650. My friend is thinking about racing one out at Willow this year so I guess we’ll see how it stacks up against the competition (SV650) pretty soon. I think on the street the new ninja has a lot to offer. I really like the way it looks and I think it has much more to offer then some of the other bikes in its class.

Nanna10r · Post by **Nanna10r** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 12:30 pm

Top find Jason. I reckon Mr Code would have to go to the top of my Bike reviewer's list. I hope the sell bucket loads of them.
I think they are still a bloody good option for any one stepping up from a toofiddy thats under 5'6".
Cheers Brett

rtyuiop · Post by **rtyuiop** » Sun Dec 18, 2005 1:21 pm

I'll certainly be taking one for a testride when I want to upgrade (hopefully sometime next year)!

Danny

Mizz ZZR · Post by **Mizz ZZR** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 11:44 am

Well I just sat on one and broke my heart. 790mm seat height and I was just touching tippy toes on each side and that's it.

There's not enough foam in the seat to sculpt any out.

They're investigating suspension options with the manufacturer, so all is not lost just yet.

I've taken some pics so I'll post them later.

Stereo · Post by **Stereo** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 11:45 am

Ever thought of wearing platforms?

Mizz ZZR · Post by **Mizz ZZR** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 11:47 am

Stereo wrote:Ever thought of wearing platforms?

Sorry Stereo, all the jokes just aren't funny anymore

Mizz ZZR · Post by **Mizz ZZR** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 6:44 pm

The pics I mentioned...

Ratmick · Post by **Ratmick** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:57 pm

Mizz ZZR wrote:
Stereo wrote:Ever thought of wearing platforms?
Sorry Stereo, all the jokes just aren't funny anymore

Yes, we've heard them all so BACK OFF!!!!

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 7:57 am

i'd back off, except even when im standing near karen it looks like she's a mile away in the distance...

Mizz ZZR · Post by **Mizz ZZR** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 9:53 am

Ratmick wrote:
Mizz ZZR wrote:
Stereo wrote:Ever thought of wearing platforms?
Sorry Stereo, all the jokes just aren't funny anymore
Yes, we've heard them all so BACK OFF!!!!

Geez Mick, why don't you tell us what you really think???

At least I tried to be polite.....

Ratmick · Post by **Ratmick** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 2:52 pm

Mizz ZZR wrote:Geez Mick, why don't you tell us what you really think???

At least I tried to be polite.....

It was a joke by the way.

I thought six laughing smilies would have given it away...

Duane · Post by **Duane** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 3:00 pm

Ratmick wrote:
Mizz ZZR wrote:Geez Mick, why don't you tell us what you really think???

At least I tried to be polite.....
It was a joke by the way.

yeah, see he couldnt care less if someone called you a shorty...