I have had this bike for a little over a month and have logged 700 miles. I still have to pinch myself to realize that this is NOT a 500. The performance and handling on this machine is amazing. Kawasaki`s engineers have struck a grand slam.

I've had my 2003 Ninja for almost a month and logged about 500 miles. I am still learning about it, but every day it grows on me. Amazing machine. I'd like to ride a new model just to see if it feels different.

I have a grin on my face the vast majority of the time I'm zipping along on the little ninja. Might not be the most powerful bike out there, but the fun factor is off the charts.

Took a four hour ride in the rain-intentionally-to see what this little bike can do. I have to say that I am very impressed. My riding companions were two veteran riders-one, riding a 1000cc BMW 4, and the other riding a Honda 1100SR. I had no trouble staying with them. On several ocassions I took the point and they said that my speed was fine. I really wanted to test this bike on Maine`s worst roads under adverse conditions. The Ninja gets an A+. There is definitely one change that I will make on this bike--a Zero Gravity Windscreen Part#23-281. The stock windscreen offered by Kawasaki scores low for extended touring. As I mentioned in an earlier thread, the tank bag, topper and saddle bags from Sam`s Club for $127.00 passed with flying colors. Their contents stayed dry. I have also been testing the waters in terms of fuel. This machine is perfectly happy with Regular Gas. There is no difference, in my view, between Regular and Mid-Premium in my experience. I plan to do some serious touring with this bike. I put 220,000mi on a 1958 BMW R-60 in the mid 60`s. We will see what this bike can do. So far, I am very encouraged

If you change the windshield, let me know. I have contemplated changing mine too. My bike is a little different from yours (2003 model). I'd like to know how it works.

A Ninja 250 is a win win situation, people expect very little from it, so if the guy on the 600/1000 has some talent and runs away,"hell what do you expect, I'm on an ex250 fer cryin out loud", But if mr. hypercycle is in the least bit squidly, you slide under him in the first or second corner and disappear into the twistiness and wait for em at the top of the hill, can't lose on a ninja 250:thumbup:

Don't forget the outstanding fuel mileage!!
I ride in-town, stoplight to stoplight every day and average 60 mpg.
(At 6' and 180 lbs at that)

Did a 1200 mile trip to Canada around the Gaspe Peninsula. The terrain was flat to very mountainous--at times necessitating a downshift or two to maintain a minimum of 7000 RPM. I was travelling with a 1000cc BMW and an 800cc Honda Sport Bike (somewhat modified--very fast) I had no trouble staying with either machine. The BMW was running about 3500 RPM and the Honda was running about 4500 to 5000 RPM. I was running between 7000 to 8000 RPM. We cruised at about 65 t0 70 MPH. The bike took it all in stride. It burned no oil and got about 55mpg. The seat was fine--I expected a sore butt doing 300 miles in one pop, but was pleasantly surprised. We spent 6 hours in torrential rains. The Dunlop tyres that came with the bike will probably wear like iron, but are nothing to write home about in wet conditions. The OEM windscreen is totally useless. It directs the rain into the bottomn of the helmet, putting spray on the inside of the faceshield. I am sure that this winter there will be a plethora of aftermarket acessories available for the 250EX. Zero Gravity already makes a windscreen which is 4" taller than the OEM. I may order one sometime in the off season. Overall, I am very happy with the bike. It drew a lot of attention with its bright green paint job. One woman commented that it looked like a frog. I thought that was pretty slick, so I named the bike "Kermit"

I've had my ninja 250 for about 3 weeks now, and have logged about 500 miles on it. So far, it has met or exceded my expectations in every area. My only complaint is the lack of storage (I'm used to riding a scooter, with enough room for 2 peoples gear, without additional storage), but with a little bit of creativity, you'd be suprised all the stuff I can hide in my ninja. :D

The performance is ourstanding! I love the light weight of the bike, it really makes it flickable and extremely easy to handle at lower speeds (can anyone say stopsigns without putting a foot down? :) ). Not that I couldn't handle more weight, but why would I want to? All in all, this is an awesome bike!

Maybe I'll get a bigger bike eventaully, but I can tell you now that this is one of the best overall performance/everyday combination machines ever. You get a solid everyday commuter bike with the heart of a sportbike. A win/win situation.

Travis

Did a 1200 mile trip to Canada around the Gaspe Peninsula. The terrain was flat to very mountainous--at times necessitating a downshift or two to maintain a minimum of 7000 RPM. I was travelling with a 1000cc BMW and an 800cc Honda Sport Bike (somewhat modified--very fast) I had no trouble staying with either machine. The BMW was running about 3500 RPM and the Honda was running about 4500 to 5000 RPM. I was running between 7000 to 8000 RPM. We cruised at about 65 t0 70 MPH. The bike took it all in stride. It burned no oil and got about 55mpg. The seat was fine--I expected a sore butt doing 300 miles in one pop, but was pleasantly surprised. We spent 6 hours in torrential rains. The Dunlop tyres that came with the bike will probably wear like iron, but are nothing to write home about in wet conditions. The OEM windscreen is totally useless. It directs the rain into the bottomn of the helmet, putting spray on the inside of the faceshield. I am sure that this winter there will be a plethora of aftermarket acessories available for the 250EX. Zero Gravity already makes a windscreen which is 4" taller than the OEM. I may order one sometime in the off season. Overall, I am very happy with the bike. It drew a lot of attention with its bright green paint job. One woman commented that it looked like a frog. I thought that was pretty slick, so I named the bike "Kermit"

You are awesome Alex, That was quite a trip:thumbup:, BTW how tall are you? I'm 6'1 and can ride it pretty comfortable like, But I have never spent more than a 1/2 day in the saddle. I'm riding with 1 or 2 guys on full sized BMWs on my tour later this month.

Mark, Since my Canada trip, two days later, I decided to ride from Belfast, ME to Syracuse, NY--a distance of 487 miles one way. Going there took two days because I experienced torrential rain in New Hampshire. The next day I had fog in the mountains of Vermont. The bike handled everything in stride. I saw my 95 year old mother and she thought the bike was simply beautiful and she was glad to see me riding again. (I am a road bike rider--bicycle--and average 15 to 20 miles a day) Saw some friends that ride H-D and they could not believe that I rode "that thing" 500 miles. Well, I am 5`10" at 190lbs and in very good shape for a 66 year old. Besides, the Ninja is quite comfortable. It will be even more comfortable when my wife reupholsters the seat using TempurPedic foam and black leather. I rode the bike back in one fell swoop--stopping periodically to eat, stretch, and fuel up. Two things the bike definitely needs are a taller windscreen and a tank pad (wrap around ) to protect the tank and to give the knees some traction when banking in turns.I may also get some wider footpegs and a more accessible shift lever.

Thanks Alex, I am considering a taller wind screen as well for longer trips, My body seems to tolerate the position just fine did about 240 miles with Alex and his crew this morning. Keep up the good work, allways look forward to your posts (BTW... I would have kept the "Monster Graphics".. just looking at resale someday;) )

Mark, I have a set of Monster Graphics that I got for $35.00. Should I decide to sell this bike--which is very unlikely--I can always put them on. I got them before I took the originals off. I did find a great set of fog lights (2.5 inches in diameter) at Wal-Mart for $15.00. They are chrome and come with all the w iring and a lighted switch. They do the job well.

Yea Alex, when I get a next gen 250 one of these days, I'll be looking for a green one:thumbup:

Yea Alex, when I get a next gen 250 one of these days, I'll be looking for a green one:thumbup:

The bad news is they aren't making any more green for 2009, the color was dropped. :eek: So it needs to be a 2008 model. Hopefully (and in all likelihood) they will bring the color back every few years, like they did with the green on the first-gen ninjettes.

I guess Green is Kawasaki`s signature color. It certainly elicits a lot of comments. The best one so far has been that it looks like a frog. I think Kermit is a good name for my bike.

I suppose that if there was a wide array of colours available, that I would have chosen Yellow. I have always liked the combination of yellow and black. One of my all time favourite cars was a 1957 Ford Sunliner (convertible) which was two tone yellow and black with a black interior. The interior also had yellow accents--a real "chick magnet" in its day. The Lime Green seems to elicit the same response. On our Gaspe trip people looked at the green bike, not the Yellow Honda 800, or the silver BMW 1000. I guess they opined that it took some bollocks to get something that flashy. I do like the colour--it is all Kawasaki, just like silver gray was Mercedes, and British Racing Green was Lotus. Certainly when I catch a glimpse of a Lime Green machine screaming down he road, here is no doubt that it was a Kawasaki. I thought that the Monster Graphics were a bit over the top so I took them off. I did, however get a spare set of the decals in case the bike becomes some sort of "Special Edition". I have a friend who does eletroplating and he will chrome plate my wheels and brake pedal. I will either find a more efficient shift lever in the aftermarket arena or will make my own. The footpegs are not exactl award winning, so the will also be changed. I build custom bicycles for very particular customers--which probably makes me particular as well. The EX250J is an exceptional bike an way you cut it. The late and great naval architect L. Francis Herreschoff once said, "You can always make a good boat better, but you can`t make a bad boat good". I think that applies well to the EX250J. It is definitely a good bike.

Ohh... Alex, I was a yellow guy until I recently sold my last yellow stuff, in addition to the vehicles pictured below, there was also an 2002 Suzuki SV650 standard (naked) and a 2002 EX250, both yellow, Recently It's black stuff and white stuff, 2 black bikes and a white truck. I used to be a huge fan of yellow but I think I'm getting over it

The bad news is they aren't making any more green for 2009, the color was dropped. :eek:

So not true. The only color changed for 2009 was Candy Plasma Blue. It was replaced with Candy Thunder Blue. Here is a screen shot for proof off of Kawasaki's page.

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w160/focusw8/Ninja/2009green2.jpg

They dropped the green, and replaced it with that tricolor (green/white/black). Which is more than they told dealers awhile back:

46

According to that memo from the end of July, all the dealers could expect was red, blue and black...

Actually the Green, White and Black is quite snappy. They should sell a lot of them. It is really a nice looking machine.

SVMark, Love that yellow Porsche! I have really found that I like Kawasaki Green. The other day a fellow wanted to swap a 2005 Ninja 500 with 750mi. on the odometer (the bike was mint--colour was silver with orange accents) for my bike--even swap. I have to say that I was tempted. I didn`t trade even though the 500 would probably been better suited for touring. I really got quite attached to this little bike--and I love the smoothness and the quiet.

Alex, I know what you mean by getting attached to the little bike, some people question why I would choose a 250, I think it's self explanitory, Basicly it's more fun to go fast on a slow bike than slow on a fast bike, (I think I'm paraphrasing our host Alex here) I was never really moved by the EX500, but I have never riden one either, If I was in the market for a 500 twin, I think I would rather have a Suzuki GS500, I realize that it has significantly less power than the 500 ninja (being an air cooled 2 valve per cyl motor) but I like the looks of the perimeter chassis. Some people just can't seem to understand... If I wanted 150+ horsepower motorbike with top shelf suspension, I would just go buy one. :cool:

BTW, are you still riding or has winter gotten there yet? I have been to your beautiful state in the summer, nice place:thumbup:

Mark, I`ll probably ride till the snow flies. I should also get some days this winter. Since I have a heated garage/shop, I don`t have to winterize the bike-just shut the petcock and let the gas run through the carbs. If I were to go bigger, the 650R would be my choice.

The 650r is a nice bike indeed, my other bike has 653cc, It's a lot of fun also, Oh.. here's a picture

I picked up my '07 in Nov. '06 and have put over 20k miles on it already. 95% of those have been urban commuting in Austin, TX. I average 75mpg city and have pushed over 80mpg highway. I have dropped it twice, once from a rear-ender. All cosmetic damage, insurance paid for repairs and more gear. I definitely recommend it as one of the top beginner bikes out there, or for someone looking for an inexpensive commuter.

I have little trouble going against the grain. Almost everywhere you read anything about this bike, the word "beginner" comes up. I know quite a few people who have ridden many years--50 in my case, who do not ride the machine to its full potential. I certainly don`t. The reality is that the EX250 is a high performance sport bike. Horsepower per displacement is phenomenal. Converting it to a track bike would be an afternoon job. A person could easily run it as a privateer. It is in effect, a racing bike in street trim. I would be interested to learn how the Euro version of the EX250 performs with fuel injection. Tweaking one with a Power Commander would be interesting.

Actually the Green, White and Black is quite snappy. They should sell a lot of them. It is really a nice looking machine.

+1...with a set of clipons, exhaust, rear hugger, rearsets...you'll have a fine machine, indeed.

Good thread.
Enjoyed reading all the posts. I have 3 bikes in the garage and the 2008 Ninja is my commuter bike of choice. The other bikes are a 1200 Bandit and an 1100 Guzzi. The lightweight flickable Ninja is my bike of choice in city traffic. It doesn't have the punch of my liter bikes but makes up for that in manueverability. Great brakes and suspension, good looks too. My bigger bikes are what I'll use for performance and/or long distance riding but I've done 200 mile day rides with the ninjette and I'm very pleased with its open road performance. I find the mid range of 40 to 80 MPH to be truely impressive for such a small motor.
Cheers, Bill