Kawasaki Ninja 250R

2012 Kawasaki 250r – I recently bought this bike. The engine has enough torque, but the gear ratio is awful. The first gear is very short. From stopped position It accelerates fast from second even third. When you shift from gear to gear you barely feel a difference. When I ride on sixth gear the speed is around 30 mph on normal RPM. It does 40 reving too high. I changed the rear sprocket to a smaller one now its better a bit.  Show details

LAMS approved bikes – Great bike to gain confidence on and still have a bit of fun. Very economical, very reliable, very forgiving. Kawasaki have been making parallel twins for decades so they know what they're doing. Easy riding in traffic, great on the open road. If you are starting out or making a comeback you won't go wrong with one of these.  Show details

Great learner bike – Bought this as my first bike and it was very easy to learn on. The power is not too great which is something I wanted after a few months of learning how to ride. You'll find that alot of cars can easily overtake you at lights etc. The fuel efficiency is 10/10, where a full tank can get you approx. 400kms. In comparison, my current 600cc yamaha gets me 180km a tank.  Show details

Best first bike! – It was my first bike . It is not too powerful, it's pretty good for city rides . Not sure if it's best fit for long distance. It's all fiber body so pretty easy to easily scratch or break . Servicing and maintenance is pretty cheap for these bikes .  Show details

Great first bike – I got one of these for my first bike. It was an amazing bike to learn on. I was able to go fast but it was not powerful enough to slip out too easily from under me. I have sadly since sold it to a friend. Highly recommended for a learner who wants a sports bike.  Show details

Great all rounder – These bikes are friendly to operate , forgiving and inspire confidence . Costs are low , registration and parts , easy to maintain with general knowledge and are also quite quick when ridden hard , which these motors love , they spend their lives in high rpm. Only fault If that , is a manual choke , but it's never presented any problem .  Show details

my Zzr250 So good,comfortable to ride – Great bike I'm 2nd owner have all service manual ,repairs nuthing great black motorbike just cruses 12,000 Ks on clock well looked after ,Great to Ride ,Really easy to handle on the road,cost me $1000.00 great buy would sell to write person its kept clean a d Rwc,my black beauty I say  Show details

Good cheap bike for beginners – As a beginner this was my first ever bike. Reliable, super easy to use & light which made it easier to learn on. The 250 though soon becomes a small bike with not much power once you get the hang of it and you feel the need to upgrade straight away, however for a beginner it is a cheap and good alternative.  Show details

Excellent Ride, Great for Beginners – Learner legal bike, relatively light and easy to maneuver around. Great for city riding and ok for country riding. The reason for this is because the bike gets thrown around with the wind on open roads and the 250cc engine doesn't really give you enough power to overtake at speed. A full tank gives me approx. 330km on the bike. Overall, a great starting bike but an upgrade would need to be considered once you have passed your Ls.  Show details

The best bike ever – What do you mean discontinued??? This is such an awesome bike. Plenty of power and is nimble and quick. I have the one in Kawasaki Green and it's been through thick and thin with me. I even took it to Melbourne from Adelaide once and there were no issues with it. Fuel economy is good too, so don't be expecting to break the bank by riding this baby  Show details

Ninja 250r what a super bike – Traded my fireblade for this little bike as I was driving fast everywhere on one wheel it was getting silly ! Kids wife at home ...somthing had to give. picked up my ninja 250 r and omg wot a great bike handles fantastic brakes are solid just overall a really lovely bike with out bein silly ! Will get you too shops or out with mates on a Sunday I'm having more fun on this little bike then on blade....real world power...5star  Show details

Spot on ! – What a fantastic bike, every ride is an absolute ball ! Quick, almost telepathic handling . Reliable , the most reliable bike I've ever owned. Nippy performance - not fast , but feels fast . Good pickup and mid range but runs out of puff above 10 tho , rpm . Practical top speed ..140 kph , just right for NOT getting a ticket . I traded down from a… Read more

GSX 1400 , and i ended up with the better bike . Dirt cheap to run - fantastic bang for your buck !

Great For A Learner – Was my first motorbike and had for 18 months before upgrading to a 600cc. Shortest way to describe it, I loved it. PROS: - Plenty of go for a start off bike - 300kms out of a full tank ($17 to fill, NSW Australia) - Really nimble and lightweight, goes incredibly good out on the twisties - Looks like a full sized Ninja 650 - Decent resale,… Read more

could have been better if the Ninja 300 wasn't released

- Bulletproof engine

- Extremely reliable, I've never had a issue or breakdown

- Easy to service

CONS:

- Carburettor

- No power in the top end

- High revs past 100km/ph

- Light bulbs seem to blow out quicker than expected

What awesome start out bike for a learner or someone just wanting to commute in the city, Kawasaki have made a great product that will even surprise the people on the bigger bikes. The only reason I'm upgrading is for more power, other than that the ninja ticks all the boxes.

8.5/10

Good Bike – PROS: - Quite fuel efficient - Looks bigger than a 250 - Lightweight with excellent handling - Cheap on insurance - Keeps resale value quite well CONS: - Carbureted engine - Lacks power. Slow acceleration over 60 MPH - Needs to scream and rev high to get its power. You will find yourself constantly needing to open the throttle all the… Read more

way on the highway.

- Gears are short

- Revs high at about 7,000 RPM at 60 MPH stock. I changed the sprockets ($50) to make the gears feel longer and rev at 5,800 RPM at 60 MPH.

Great Bike – I got the ninja 250 (the cool green one) in January 2011 and have been riding it for about six months. It's the first bike I had owned and rode in over 20 years so I was really starting from scratch in terms of experience. This is a forgiving bike and ideal for us learners. A few times I have had minor incidents with cars pulling out in front of… Read more

me etc. The bike handles well when you need to stop suddenly or pull away from danger it responds well.

The bike handles well overall and is a real pleasure to ride. Make sure your tire pressure is right with this bike because you can really feel the difference when it needs some air or had a little too much. But this is most likely the same for most bikes.

The bike is a bit difficult in the cold. Harder to start (needs the choke) its higher revs make it a little more difficult to handle until it warms up. Handles great in the summer months.

You tend to feel the wind push you around a bit on this bike which is a little annoying

Like a few other have said it could be good if it had a temperature gauge and I agree...but I do like the natural neutral finder.

I am not an expert but think this bike would suit new riders. Its a great look! Cold starts suck

Great learners bike. One of the best purchases of my life – I loved this bike (my first) the minute I rode it. Had a smile from ear to ear the whole time! It stands out (mine's red) which is important for safety and has good brakes as well with a solid feel and progressive resistance. The big fuel tank means very good range for a bike. I like the handling and adjustable rear dampner. When left in the heat… Read more

or just after riding, the tank makes a very noticable whistle from the breather hole. It seems funny at first but then just gets annoying. Even worse, when you go to start the engine, on occasion it will make a loud backfire sound. You never know when it's going to happen. You press ignition and then bang! Talked to others and found it's quite common. I found you can reduce it by leaving the tank cap slightly open for 10 mins or so after riding to reduce fuel pressure. Either way it's a bad design flaw. The instrument cluster is very much out dated, but simple to read at a glance and bright lighting at night. The rear compartment is so small, you can barely fit a bike lock in it. But the real highlight is the smooth engine. My friends rode it and first thing they said was how smooth it was. Has good power for a 250 and feels very solid. It does inspire confidence - perhaps a little too much. Plenty of info out there on the web for those that want to maintain it themselves. Resale value is high and so is the build quality. Had it for almost 3 years and no rusted bolts, loose fittings or leaks. A tank protector is a must unless you want scratches all over it. I take pillion passengers and they enjoy it as well. Exhaust on the side means no burning bum for the passenger, although rear handles would be a nice addition. Helmet lock is a nice feature that I use all the time. Looks great, smooth, solid brakes, huge fuel tank, comfy seating Exhaust 'bang', fuel tank whistle, dated instrument cluster

A Small Pack That Might Be Deceiving – This is my wife's bike, but I could ride it a couple of times and, of course, I've been observing her riding. At first sight, one might think, as it's a 250cc, that this bike must be a poor performer. I thought that, too, maybe because my standard for comparisons is my 118HP VERSYS 1000, a two wheeled wonder. But I began to change my mind when I… Read more

saw my wife following the VERSYS at close range in traffic: that thing could really speed up when needed.

We rode from Adelaide to Whyalla and Lucky Bay the other day, a 1,050 km round trip during a single weekend, and my wife went riding it. The BABY NINJA could sustain 100 Km/h or more easily for hours, and was not short of power to overtake other vehicles if needed. Surprising! And it reached Whyalla, 375 km away from here, consuming only 12 litres of petrol; an outstanding mark. The small bike behaved constantly and steadily well all the time, and was not left behind by my VERSYS and the huge and proud HARLEYs and HONDAs of the other guys in our group. It's a bit of a road tourer, once it's equipped with a 17 litres tank, enough for more than 400 km on the road.

The engine is surprisingly smooth, given its size. Very low vibrations, a pleasant roar and an impressive throttle response. This should be due to its twin engine, naturally more balanced than a mono, and the hidden power it houses: with 32.6 HP, the bike is learner legal only because they calculate the power to weight ratio considering a full tank; half tank will put one a bit above the 150 w/kg threshold valid for South Australia.

Handling is superb. Even my wife, a not so experienced rider, rapidly became able to perform a number of slow and difficult maneuvers. Again, the low centre of gravity, the fairly light weight (170 kg with full tank), the smooth twin engine and the well balanced design gave their fair contribution to her recently developed ability.

The downside is its low seat height, but only if you're a tall mate: at 77.5 cm, it's a bit too low for my taste. And, of course, treat it with kindness, using 98 premium fuel (KAWASAKI says it runs on regular, but the high compression ratio recommends otherwise) and don't try to use it on dirty roads: it's stiff, short suspension was not made for that.

Finally, it's a bike easy and cheap to maintain, requiring very little service, and a bike that you can sell, after enjoying it for long months, without losing much money. Extremely reliable, resilient, cheap on petrol, great style, excellent power for a small engine, excellent range. carburetted, unstable idle speed, an occasional bang when engine starts, seat a bit low for taller riders.

Excellent – Bear in mind I'm a new rider. I've just passed the 'official' run-in period (1,600kms). I aim to update this in 6-12 months. I can't help but look at it up close and admire the build quality before I sit on it every morning. It amazes me how perfectly the machine is put together. The look, feel and ride just shout "QUALITY". That quality is… Read more

reflected in the price though. If you HAVE to get a 250cc and you're able to spend a little more, this bike simply doesn't disappoint. It's a minimalist bike (no centre-stand, plain non-digital console, etc) but any more on it might spoil it. A temp gauge showing when the engines up to temperature would be nice though.

Gives you lots of confidence to accelerate at lights, get up to speed in no time and overtake on the freeway, brake late and throw it around corners. Engine and gearbox seem to be bullet-proof. We'll see how things are after a few months of (even harder) riding.

Nice to know they generally hold their value so should I end up getting a bigger capacity bike (everyone says I will), my time on the 250R will be well spent. I would be surprised if I felt more thrill going onto a 600+ from this than when I first started riding this. Stunning looks; impressive build quality; agile and incredibly fun to ride Lack of temperature gauge and lack of fuel injection (European models only...boo!) mean it's not the greatest starter in the cold; indicator lag.

Good – If you are restricted to a 250CC then you can't go past the Ninjette. The bike looks 'big' yet it is very light and has a low seat height, a great combination for a first bike. The bike is forgiving and can be thrown around but don't drop it as parts are not cheap. You can always buy after market crash knobs (I believe that you may need to get… Read more

these ex-USA) that will prevent a smashed indicator of faring in the event of a drop or low speed off. Locally there is an increasing range of bling and though some will tell you that their aftermarket exhausts or dyno tuning are performance enhancers, on a bike like this it's all just expensive bling that adds little. On the downside, this bike takes a little while to get up and going and I have had the unfortunate experience to fire it up, take off up the road to a t junction, stop, make the turn and lose the revs mid turn. I'm sure it looked like some freaky delay to others but I'll not be doing that again. Sticking with those revs, this is a 250, and it goes like one so after you have seated in the engine and had some fun on the throttle, the lack of power does get boring. Still, it's a great looking bike....... Just look at it... It's a 250cc

Excellent – Hi. As a learner bike this is the best NEW bike money can buy period. I looked at the opposition (read my PS below), asked long-term bikers and read all the available reviews etc and it all pointed to the Kawasaki. Out of the box, it is a gas to ride and does its intended job (learn and keep a smile on your face)everytime. However, I have fitted a… Read more ·  1

Dynojet Jetting Kit ($80.00 USD - get one whilst the exchange rate is so good) and removed the air box snorkle from my bike. If you have a Ninja or are going to buy one, the difference is amazing. JUST DO IT!!! you will not (I repeat) not be wasting your time/money.

Happy Safe Riding

PS Anyone even thinking about a Korean built (even if a "unnamed" Japanese racing engineer designed it - don't the Japanese engineers design them all?) Hysoung GT250RS should only do so if they are over 6 foot plus tall (it is a bigger bike seat height wise than the Ninja) and then sell it before the warranty expires (read IMMEDIATELY!!!). However, even if you are over 6 foot, test the Ninja anyway and you wont buy the heavy, poorly built, under powered (air cooled) Hysoung. Price, Looks, build quality, power (yes it has some) If you really wanted to push me....power (but it is good for a learner) - but fixed by a jet kit.