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Old 16th July 2015, 16:56   #571
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by Bookkeeper View Post
Anyone using their 650 as a daily ride? How is 650 as an everyday motorcycle? Parking aside what difficulties does one face?
I use my bike for an everyday commute from Malleshwaram to Electronics City (for those familiar with Bangalore, you know the traffic). I do not ride when rain is predicted but almost every other day.

I find it a totally usable bike for everyday conditions and also use it on the weekends for the Sunday morning ride also.

Like someone else has mentioned, the ER6N may be more suited to traffic but does not have wind protection (for high speeds - easily corrected with a good visor) and does not have the road presence of the Ninja 650 (for those whom this is a plus).

If I had a choice now, I would go for a naked but thats just my preference.
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Old 23rd July 2015, 13:40   #572
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

Just finished my ride to Chikmangalur and back. Must say I want to kick myself not going for a long ride before this. This truly changed my perspective of the bike and now I finally understand what this bike is capable of doing. Glad to say Indian roads are definitely improved and should be great for potential big road trips.

So my partners were a Harley Fat Boy, A Verna with 17 inch alloys and to top it an Audi RS5. The Route was Chennai -> Hosur -> Chikmangalur. The Onward journey we stayed the night in Hosur and the return journey was in one stretch.

My bike could easily cruise along with the Harley for long distances and occassional short bursts along with some fun on the twisties. The Verna had some trouble keeping up with us and we had to stop to wait for it. We could not keep up with RS5

After crossing the NICE Road, the roads were a delight, completely empty and well laid.

Overall a magical trip for me along with some good company.

Note from Support - Mention of speeds removed. Please also avoid posting links to external sites.
Attached Thumbnails
Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review-imag2109.jpg  

Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review-img_20150720_222639.jpg  

Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review-img_20150721_210447.jpg  

Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review-img20150721wa0119.jpg  


Last edited by n_aditya : 23rd July 2015 at 13:59.
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Old 23rd July 2015, 14:05   #573
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by xtremeshock View Post
Just finished my ride to Chikmangalur and back. Must say I want to kick myself not going for a long ride before this. This truly changed my perspective of the bike and now I finally understand what this bike is capable of doing. Glad to say Indian roads are definitely improved and should be great for potential big road trips.
The route to Chikmangalur is one of the best (especially after Tumkur) and good to know you enjoyed your ride. Though N650 is comfortable for long rides, there is still a problem of getting soar butt for very very long rides. So how did you manage it ? Of course taking frequent breaks can be a workaround. Better would be to get gel seats for such long trips.
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Old 23rd July 2015, 17:03   #574
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by shan_ned View Post
The route to Chikmangalur is one of the best (especially after Tumkur) and good to know you enjoyed your ride. Though N650 is comfortable for long rides, there is still a problem of getting soar butt for very very long rides. So how did you manage it ? Of course taking frequent breaks can be a workaround. Better would be to get gel seats for such long trips.
Surprisingly I did not have too much of a sore butt at all, it could be because of the excitement, the only thing I had a problem with was the temperature increase after Krishnagiri, this really took a toll on me and had to stop to take a nice cold coffee.

We had frequent petrol pitstops as the harley drank petrol. We managed to start from Chikmangalur by 8:30 am and reach Chennai by 4:30pm, with breakfast and lunch pitstops also. I think it was quite decent.
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Old 24th July 2015, 09:35   #575
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by xtremeshock View Post
My bike could easily cruise along with the Harley for long distances and occassional short bursts along with some fun on the twisties. The Verna had some trouble keeping up with us and we had to stop to wait for it. We could not keep up with RS5
You had to stop to cool while Harley guy didnt have to? Why? Coz he sat so ( check pic )

Can you post details of your riding jacket? Looks great/very protective.
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Old 24th July 2015, 13:35   #576
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

The riding jacket looks more like 'body armor'. #xtremeshock pl do enlighten us about it. On a side note, casual sneakers are not recommended for such long rides. I suggest you get a pair of decent riding boots asap. The ankle is by far one of the most important part of the body which needs to be protected while riding.
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Old 24th July 2015, 15:40   #577
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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You had to stop to cool while Harley guy didnt have to? Why? Coz he sat so ( check pic )
Lol , very true, if his fuel kept automatically filling he could go all day, surprisingly that guy did Goa - Chennai on a single day, thats close to 1200kms

Quote:
Originally Posted by jkdas View Post
Can you post details of your riding jacket? Looks great/very protective.
Thats Cramster Bone Armor, it protects everything, elbows, shoulder, chest, spine, it even has a lower back protection. I feel very protected in this gear. Apparently its supposed to be an add-on to a casual leather jacket.

Quote:
Originally Posted by coolrain View Post
The riding jacket looks more like 'body armor'. #xtremeshock pl do enlighten us about it. On a side note, casual sneakers are not recommended for such long rides. I suggest you get a pair of decent riding boots asap. The ankle is by far one of the most important part of the body which needs to be protected while riding.
Have explained about the jacket above.

Yep agree with you regarding the boots, generally use this bike for very short rides, mostly as a commute a friends house or so, so have not invested in riding boots, for this trip I was supposed to borrow some-ones riding shoes to also see if they are comfortable before buying my own, but unfortunately could not find the time to take it so had to make do with sport shoes, definitely not recommended.
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Old 28th July 2015, 09:45   #578
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

Xtremeshock, have you wrapped the upper portion of the front fairing? Your bike looks on Offspring of 2014 and 2015 model with a Black Front Fairing and a Green Tank ..

Actually, it looks better that 2014 or 2015 model...
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Old 28th July 2015, 11:26   #579
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

^^ 2013 colour scheme.
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Old 16th August 2015, 18:37   #580
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

Looking at the CBR pricing, this thing now feels more VFM than ever! Is 2015 model available in India? Its all green and looks modern!
Anyone considering this bike in coming months?
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Old 17th August 2015, 12:15   #581
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by sudeep.pandya View Post
Looking at the CBR pricing, this thing now feels more VFM than ever! Is 2015 model available in India? Its all green and looks modern!
Anyone considering this bike in coming months?
Yes, the 2015 model is available in India.
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Old 17th August 2015, 13:10   #582
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by shan_ned View Post
Yes, the 2015 model is available in India.
Is it all green or still having that black patch above headlights?

As per nagpur KTM. The on road price is coming to 5.88 lakhs. Discounts running around 50k! So roughly it should be around 5.38 lakhs on road.
Wondering if it is a good deal or any better option available in market other than CBR 650F which I feel is overpriced for those extra 2 cylinders.

Last edited by sudeep.pandya : 17th August 2015 at 13:30. Reason: Additions
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Old 18th August 2015, 10:52   #583
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by sudeep.pandya View Post
Is it all green or still having that black patch above headlights?

As per nagpur KTM. The on road price is coming to 5.88 lakhs. Discounts running around 50k! So roughly it should be around 5.38 lakhs on road.
Wondering if it is a good deal or any better option available in market other than CBR 650F which I feel is overpriced for those extra 2 cylinders.
It is full green including the headlights section. If they are offering discount, please check if that is a 2014 model. When one of my riding buddies asked for 2015 model, the dealer was trying to push the 2014 model for clearing the old inventory. He refused the offer and finally got the 2015 model. Anyway, if the dealer is quoting 50k discount on the 2014 model and you are convinced with that price, you can still go ahead and buy it (provided you like the 2014 color scheme). So it is your call to go with 2014 or 2015.

Ninja 650 is the most VFM bike in the 6Lakh category, but Benelli 600i is also part of that VFM catgory. Other than these two, there are no VFM bikes in that range.

For your reference, I have attached the 2015 model photo.
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Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review-ninja650.jpg  

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Old 18th August 2015, 11:00   #584
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by sudeep.pandya View Post
Is it all green or still having that black patch above headlights?
The bike on the right is the 2015 model (IronHawks)so you can see the color scheme. compared to the 2013 model on the left I feel the 2015 looks betterKawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review-img20150816wa0032.jpg
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Old 18th August 2015, 11:33   #585
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Re: Kawasaki Ninja 650R : Test Ride & Review

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Originally Posted by shan_ned View Post
It is full green including the headlights section. If they are offering discount, please check if that is a 2014 model. When one of my riding buddies asked for 2015 model, the dealer was trying to push the 2014 model for clearing the old inventory. He refused the offer and finally got the 2015 model. Anyway, if the dealer is quoting 50k discount on the 2014 model and you are convinced with that price, you can still go ahead and buy it (provided you like the 2014 color scheme). So it is your call to go with 2014 or 2015.

Ninja 650 is the most VFM bike in the 6Lakh category, but Benelli 600i is also part of that VFM catgory. Other than these two, there are no VFM bikes in that range.

For your reference, I have attached the 2015 model photo.
Thanks Shan, so I believe they are trying to push the 2014 model. I will try to fetch some discounts on 2015 model. Is there any facelift/all new Ninja 650 expected in the near future?
Quote:
Originally Posted by goandude View Post
The bike on the right is the 2015 model (IronHawks)so you can see the color scheme. compared to the 2013 model on the left I feel the 2015 looks betterAttachment 1404923
Thanks buddy, are there any other changes apart from the colour scheme between the two?

Last edited by sudeep.pandya : 18th August 2015 at 11:35.
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