This thread had been pending for quite some time.
Yeah this upgrade was from a 2001 Suzuki Fiero to 2012 Kawasaki Ninja 650.
History :-
I learnt riding bikes[geared] somewhere in 2000, I started off with my bro’s Splendor and then when I got a job, dad bought me a Suzuki Fiero this was after reading countless reviews. Today 11+ years later still no regrets. I still have the bike with me. As years passed the urge to get more power out of the Fiero started in me, so in 2006 I got a big bore job done on her, rode it on a big bore setup for close to 5+ years, the bike had started ageing the big bore setup needed more frequent servicing. Fed up, finally I got her back to stock state and she is fine today.
Around end of 2010 news came in that Honda was launching the CBR, I was glued to the Thai CBR forums for more and more info, finally booked the CBR in Jan 2011 hoping to take the delivery of the bike as soon as it was launched, but my elder brother had some other plans, he being a builder, believes a lot in Astrology, someone told him that the family should not buy a new vehicle till Nov 2011 and I had no other go but to wait, by the time November passed, I lost interest in the CBR, by that time the KTM was in news, but then that too did not excite me, so started looking at the Ninja 250.
Finally decided if I had to buy a bike it has to be a twin cylinder, the cost in Bangalore was 3.75 Lakhs when I last checked and then the Ninja 300 got launched, the waiting game was killing me, then one fine day me and my buddy were off to Chikmagalur on a bike trip and there it hit me why not the Ninja 650, discussed with my buddy and he too felt it made more sense to spend extra 2 Lakh and get the 650 over the 250.
I have to recall a person here who made my decision making a lot easier, @GSFerrari on XBHP, I dunno his id here, he is the guy who has owned a couple of super bikes, he sold off his Yamaha MT01 and bought a Ninja 650, I still recall reading his words about how practical the 650 was. I have never spoken to him or even messaged him. A big thanks to him, also a big thanks to Narula and Zimbly from XBHP for answering all my queries regarding the bike.
Hunt For the Bike:-
Anyone who has tried to buy a Ninja 650 will know what this section means. The KTM Bangalore guys talked about a lottery system and I was told there are 200 other guys waiting in queue, my heart sank on hearing this news, I guess I was reading Narula’s thread on his 650 ownership and someone over there mentioned about KTM Mysore, I casually gave a call to those guys, they just took my phone number and told me that would call me. I started bugging them daily, this went on for 15 odd days, I guess that receptionist at KTM Mysore would have been fed up looking at my number daily. I convinced them that I was a serious customer and would definitely buy it from them.
Then one fine day I get a call from KTM Mysore, one Mr Balaji Shetty speaks to me and tells me, sir there is a 650 available and if I am interested, I could not believe when he said that, he asked me to pay a booking amount of 3 Lakhs, I agreed immediately, took the DD and tanked up my Fiero and off I was to Mysore this was on a Sunday, when I introduced myself to the lady at the reception, she said “So It is you who kept calling” and the following conversation happened.
Receptionist :- "Sir you came to Mysore just to give the DD that too on a bike".
Me :- Yeah.
Receptionist :- And you will be leaving immediately now to BLR.
Me :- Yeah, she thought I was crazy . I told her "You should allocate the Ninja to people like me, who love riding and love their bikes".
Sometime later in the week, I received a call from Balaji asking me if I could wait for the next lot of 650, I was like what is going on I have paid 3 lakhs and now you are telling me to wait. It seems two of his friends were interested in the 650 and he only had one bike, if he gave the bike to either of those guys the other would be unhappy hence he decided to alot the bike to me and somehow one these guys got to know about this and started pressuring him how he could do this when they had booked the bike before me. Hence his request to me to let go off this bike, I said no way I am not letting this bike go at any cost as I was sure no one knows when the next lot of bikes would arrive.
The following Sunday, I was at a restaurant with the family and I got a call from Balaji saying the bike is in transit and will be in Mysore in another 3 days and I was told to do the remaining payment immediately. That probably was the happiest day of my biking life.
I had decided to pay the remaining amount through loan, contacted HDFC and I have to say the worst experience I have ever had with a bank, the KTM Mysore guys wanted to seal off the deal before the end of the month. The HDFC guys took more time than I had, finally cancelled the loan and decided to pay the remaining amount directly. Took the money, along with better half and son left for Mysore in car, little did I realize about the Cauvery issue, on the way to Mysore saw people shouting slogans, finally reached mysore and paid the remaining amount and saw the bike for the first time, words don’t do justice when I saw my second life partner for the first time in flesh, wife’s first reaction “This looks like a bull, so big”.
The first look
I was told to collect the bike anytime next week, I decided Thursday to be the D-Day, reached Mysore bus stand and was shocked to see no Volvos, the cauvery water dispute had snowballed, all Volvo’s were stopped, finally after a lot of discussions KSRTC decided to send one red bus the basic one, I was not sure what to do, decided to take a chance and boarded the red bus, the bus avoided all those places where the agitations were going on and finally reached Mysore after 5 hours of off roading etc.
Reached the showroom gave the showroom guys sweets and thanked all of them and decided to leave. I was given a brief intro about the bike, I was least interested, my only worry was how do I reach BLR, the route that the bus had taken was horrible and I could not even dream about taking that route back, all of a sudden decided to take the Mysore – Hassan – BLR route. Though the route was lengthy by around 100 kms, the route was scenic and beautiful, the Ninja kept everyone on the road hooked on to her, she is such a beauty, from front most think it is a Fazer and ignore her, but as soon as they see her from side on, boy, you should see their expressions. Maybe a 100 villagers told me the headlight is on, I kept nodding my head, whenever they informed me about it.
Mysore -> KR Nagar -> Chennraypatna -> Kunigal -> Nelmangala -> BLR
Total distance around 250+ kms.
On the way to BLR
Postives :-
- Looks :- She looks big and beautiful.
- FE :- 20+ easily even in the City.
- Power :- No need to downshift to overtake cars on the highway, twist the throttle and off she flies.
- Ergonomics :- She is perfect and I haven’t had any back aches.
- Ride :- ride quality is far better than I expected.
- Headlight Adjustment: - You don’t need to open the fairing to adjust the beam.
Negatives:-
- Weight: - move her from standstill, you will know you are moving 200+ kilos bike, but once on the move you forget everything.
- Headlights: - Intensity could have been better.
- Ground Clearance: - I have scraped twice already.
Accessories :-
I have bought the following
- R & G crash protectors
- R & G tank pad
- Zero Gravity Double bubble wind screen
All the above from Performance Racing.
Next on hit list, Morrimoto projector setup, will be ordering this one shortly.
@All :- Do not curse me for the Saree guard not being removed, since the registration is yet to be done, I cannot remove it.
I use the Fiero for my daily office commutes.
As of today, the bike has done 930 Kms, will give her for servicing shortly and get all the accessories fitted on her. There are plenty of snaps to be posted, will do as I am through with processing them.
Hearty Congratulations Rbp.
Pretty cool bike you got there!!
You are doing the right thing by getting PBK to install all acessories. Please put a synthetic & the STOCK oil filter in your first service itself. There is a school of thought that suggests a K&N or similar while being high flow does not filter as well. Also read about Engine Ice (cycle logic) coolant and the lower engine temperatures. If one is using the bike everyday then it does really help if the bike does not sizzle. On night rides with minimal traffic its perfectly fine but it does heat up in stop/ start city traffic
I too bought the Zero Gravity DB screen. Actually an impulsive buy and one that I almost regret now. I installed it myself and I found a faint buzz coming from it when you revv the engine which was not so with the stock screen. Its not that I didn't tighten it adequately. When I put both screens together I realised that the pre drilled holes do not match a 100 %. Finally a neat black padded tape affixed onto the bracket stopped all the buzz and if u encounter something similar U know what to do! Actually a neighbour replaced his stock screen on the Busa to a PUIG and he had identical problems but he is not as finnicky and rides as is.
Good luck & ride safe as it has a wee bit more grunt than your fiero:D
Rgds
Looking good. I often tell my friends looking for a new superbike how the 650 is the perfect bike for our country. The color looks great. Ride hard , ride safe.
Congratulations rbp on the Ninja, the best sub 1k street bike in India. It should give you years of driving pleasure. Kindly remove the horrendous saree guard asap. Ground clearance seems an issue and I am also concerned of the water wading capabilities of this under belly exhaust.
I find the colour of both the 250 and 650 quite similar as is evident in your daylight photos. But some people differ in this view.
Drive safe and fully strapped...
Congratulations rdp, a head turner indeed. Please do the due diligence of acquiring some protective gear if not done already. Ride hard, ride safe.
Congratulations rbp, that's a beauty, lovely pictures too. The road from Mysore-Hassan looks great, should try it someday. Keep us updated on your ownership experience.
Congrats rbp. You might want to connect with Guru and Venkat Shyam (Auto Service) as they have upgraded the brakes and headlights on the previous model 650 with significant results.
AFAIK, Guru has upgraded the rotors and the pads with EBC and he said the bike brakes a LOT better and has more bite... almost on par with the 250 if not better.
Wishing you many happy and safe miles. :thumbs up
