So I got rid of my 08 Ninja. I lost $150-$200 after a few months of riding it. So that's fine. Btw I know the 250 feels fast, but I ran the strip, I couldn't break into the 15's. I hovered in the low 16's. With an absolute perfect run I could prolly have hit the very high 15's, but I didn't want to damage my bike by racing it repeatedly. Also on the street it couldn't pull away from a crown vic, which was pretty embarrassing considering it looked like I had a sport bike
. I upgraded to a 2006 Suzuki DR650. It was great for about a year (3200ish miles), then my eyes started wandering again. It was fun for light off-roading and commuting but for true off-roading it was too heavy/tall (I'm 5'6" with a 29" leg) and on the interstate it was lacking due to the lack of wind protection. However it was pretty quick power wise, it would take a sports car to outrun it (5.4-5.6 sec 0-60). If I lived somewhere with more light off road (think Jeep trails) areas within an hour or so ride time I would keep it, but I don't enjoy the long rides on the interstate with so much wind buffeting. Now I've upgraded to a 2012 Ninja 650. I just did a 270 mile road trip. It has plenty of power (all I'd ever need plus some
). Maybe not quite warp speed, but also if you goose it too much on a corner you could lose it. I am happy with its performance. It's fast enough to keep me satisfied for now
(it would take about a 500+ HP car to beat it 0-100). After that road trip, I am definitely considering some lower foot peg mounts because my knees were killing me. Maybe after some more seat time my knees may get used to it? Time will tell. Overall I am very happy with my purchase. I purchased mine slightly laid over from the previous owner for a good price (maybe they goosed it to much in a corner) and I must say bikebandit.com has awesome service. I definitely didn't want to be riding around on a bike that looked like I wrecked it. So I fixed it first. Getting the parts delivered for free and putting them on myself was way easy and better than going through a stealership. They have tons of OEM and aftermarket parts and technical diagrams so you can be sure of what you are ordering. If you love your Ninja 250's riding position, seat height and overall ability but wish it were faster, the 650 is what you are looking for. Insurance is way less than the 600+ss but more than the 250.