Quote:
Originally Posted by poo poo
wondering what you think of your new ride. how's the seating position on the ER-6N? i'm interested in getting one, but i hate to give up my commuter ninjette.... i'm afraid the larger size of the bike will interfere with my lane splitting.  |
It's pretty close to the Ninja. It might be a bit more upright, and the seat is a little higher off the ground, but not by much. I put less pressure on my wrists on the ER than I did on the 250, and that helps a lot, particularly at lower speed.
Power wise, it's got the 250 beat, obviously. It's double the HP, but the torque down low is really useful for loafing along on the street. The 650 is not a high strung, peaky powerplant like a 600 is. It pulls well from 4,000 to 10,000 RPM, and is reasonably fast, but very tractable.
The ER has better performance in
almost every way as a commuter. The 250 has it beat in:
1. Very low speed performance. The Ninja is easier to flick around in a parking lot. They are lighter and lower. At 20+ MPH, it's a wash. Plus, the mirrors are fixed on a Ninja. This makes it easier to back out a doorway (for when you park inside an office, for example.
2. Fuel mileage is better on the 250. No surprise, however, I got about 10 MPG better on the 250. There is not a huge diff to the wallet between 45 and 55 MPG. But it is measurable.
3. Ninjettes have better wind protection. The wind blast at 70 MPH is
much more noticeable without a little windshield to duck under.
As far as lane splitting... Don't know. The ER is a pretty narrow bike, about as wide as the 250. I bet you could exploit a gap a bit quicker on it than on a 250.
I really liked my 250, I like the ER-6 more. I'm more likely to go for a 2-3 hour ride on the ER than I ever was on the 250. The 250
felt more sharp and responsive handling, the ER-6 feels a lot more comfortable.
Not sure if you ever ride 2-up, while the 250 was capable with me and my 100 pound son on it, the 650 handles it much easier, with a larger chassis and more power (particularly down low, where the Ninja was a bit... sluggish) it's a fun ride. If you ever do one, be careful winding it out in 1st gear. I lofted the front wheel pretty easily in 1st with my son on the back. He approved... me? Not so much.
Quote:
Originally Posted by choneofakind
with those horns, do they draw enough current that I would need to wire in a relay and have the horn activate the relay?
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The answer is.... maybe. I ran them on my 250 with no problem. Wired them right off the horn wiring on the bike, and they worked fine. No relay needed. On the ER-6n, they blew 2 fuses without making a noise. Instantaneous, so I wired in a relay. A friend of mine runs a single (low tone) on his Versys, no relay, no problem. On both bikes, at idle, they draw enough to noticeably dim the headlight. Fun!