September 8th, 2008, 06:28 PM | #1 |
smallponiesbigsmiles
Name: David
Location: Roswell,NewMexico
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 08 650 KLR 08 250 R Ninja & a few older bikes Posts: 6
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synthetic oil for the ninjette ?
what does any one know about synthetic oils for are ninjetes ???
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September 8th, 2008, 06:52 PM | #2 |
Never enough time
Name: Mark
Location: San Mateo, CA
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 690sm, ex250, kdx200, nc50, z50 Posts: 73
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After the ninjettes first 600 miles I glugged her full of full synthetic oil, let the beating begin!!
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"It's a lot of fun" |
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September 8th, 2008, 07:55 PM | #3 |
smallponiesbigsmiles
Name: David
Location: Roswell,NewMexico
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 08 650 KLR 08 250 R Ninja & a few older bikes Posts: 6
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2600 miles already,to late to switch to a synthetic ?
Thanks for the quick response Im full of questions ? alot has changed in 20yrs.Any way what type synthetic would you recomend ?do you need a different type fillter ?
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September 8th, 2008, 09:56 PM | #4 |
Never enough time
Name: Mark
Location: San Mateo, CA
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 690sm, ex250, kdx200, nc50, z50 Posts: 73
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I used Motorex PowerSynth 4T, and the stock filter (actually a Fram from Cycle Gear), I have faith that this will do the trick, For break in I kept it under 6k for the 1st 300 miles, then occasional non sustained runs to the 8k neighborhood up to the 600 miles, I have ridden it on the freeway a couple times since the oil change hitting 9k on occasion, I have yet to wring it's neck to 12k but I believe it will hold together just fine, the recomended break in was a bit of overkill in my opinion, 500 miles at a max speed of 36mph would have taken me a year.
I am planning a 6-700 mile trip in the next couple weeks and after seeing the video on kawasaki's website about the guy who rode an ex250 from Key West to Prudoe Bay Alaska, I feel the ninja is up to the task. Get some miles on it and have some fun
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"It's a lot of fun" |
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September 10th, 2008, 03:14 PM | #5 |
smallponiesbigsmiles
Name: David
Location: Roswell,NewMexico
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 08 650 KLR 08 250 R Ninja & a few older bikes Posts: 6
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Thanks S-V Mark for the synthetic info .
Thanks again , Yes sir i was freaking out on the 4k 35mph. as well.i bought a 650 klr back in june an o8,the owners manual same thing 4k but on the 650 its alot safer speed,got suspious. whent to the dealer to see whats up.Lucked out thier happed to be a Kaw rep.there,He said the 4ks there in case someone goes out & just blows the engine on like purpose.The Kaw peapole can come back and say ah ya exseaded 4k no warrenty. Said break it in like ya ride,if he only knew,do alot of city or in town alot of start stops cause youre breaking in the tranny as well,said thier was a rev limiter.if going on an exstened ride varry the rpms dont stay at a rs.Well thats pretty much how we did it back in the day,made the rest of my break in alot more in joyabul,i baybed it cause it is my little green baby 1st street bike ive ever owned and i Love it ride it more than the 650. Now i ride it up thier in the 11s & 12s ill change over to syn. after the 4000 check up.LORD willing i plan a trip to denver about 500mi from hear plan on takeing the ninja this week end or next.Any way thanks again i apologize for my poor spelling.Do from working 2 jobs and sleeping though high school so i could get a 250 ossa six day 1974 back in the day dont seem that long ago. anyway thanks David
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September 11th, 2008, 10:43 AM | #6 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Alex
Location: Belfast, ME
Join Date: Jul 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2010 Honda NT-700-V, formerly, Green 2008 Ninja 250R Posts: A lot.
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Synthetic Oil
I am not so sure that Synthetic Oil is worth the extra expense. An engine is really not truely broken in until it has 1500 miles logged. Synthetic, because it is so slippery, prolongs engine break in. For road riding at reasonable speeds, the oil Kawasaki recommends, its house brand, is more than adequate. Racing applicarions are a different story. You still need to change your oil and filter every 2500 miles. I have been around motorcycles and performance cars for 50 years and have rebuilt a lot of engines. I still think synthetic is overkill.
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September 11th, 2008, 04:00 PM | #7 |
ninjette.org member
Name: John-Michael
Location: Texas
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2007 EX250 Posts: 133
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I run Valvoline 10w40 in the 07.
I have run Wal Mart brand (maybe the same as Castrol GTX) oil in my cars and trucks for years. I am not so much a believer in the type of oil/filter that you use, I think that timely regular maintenance is the key. Oh yeah, I have NEVER believed in the 5,000-7,000 mile oil change hype. Based on what I have seen, fuel gets past the rings and contaminates oil. I 100% agree with the 2,500 interval. |
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September 11th, 2008, 04:57 PM | #8 |
Never enough time
Name: Mark
Location: San Mateo, CA
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 690sm, ex250, kdx200, nc50, z50 Posts: 73
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I would have postponed the full synthetic thing a few more miles had I known it wouldn't be fully broken in till 1500. But since I had accelerated the break in procedure and not followed the manufacturers guidelines precisely (see above) I figured it wouldn't hurt (and I had a gallon sitting in the garage left over from a different bike.)
I do believe you should allways use a motorcycle specific oil, since it lubes the transmission as well, and avoid standard automotive type motor oil. I think I'm ready to ride the bike without babying it now. good times
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"It's a lot of fun" |
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September 11th, 2008, 05:19 PM | #9 |
ninjette.org member
Name: John-Michael
Location: Texas
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2007 EX250 Posts: 133
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About a year ago, I read an article from a guy they call Moto-man. He claims that a motorcycle engine is 95% broken in at 50 miles.
I did not follow the Kawasaki break in recommendation. It did not feel right bogging the motor for so many miles. I rode soft for about 200 miles and then let 'er fly! |
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September 21st, 2008, 02:36 PM | #10 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Alex
Location: Belfast, ME
Join Date: Jul 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2010 Honda NT-700-V, formerly, Green 2008 Ninja 250R Posts: A lot.
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Synthetic Oils
Mark, You should be OK with your bike. If it starts to use oil, then I would go back to conventional MC oil until the bike was broken in. Personally, I use what is recommended--10W40 Kawasaki Oil. In my Yamaha Outboard, I use Yamalube. They have their own additives that their engineers know work best. Again for racing--use what the racing guys use. My stance is that if you ride on the road--even "performance ride", it is not racing. Racing demands a whole new set of expectations from your engine. Racing oils can gum up your engine if used in road riding conditions. We have a guy here who has a Honda Sport Bike and uses Sunoco 260 gasoline and synthetic oil that costs $15.00 a Qt. His bike does not spec out as well as the EX250R in terms of compression and peak RPM. In my view, he is throwing money away. I doubt that his engine will last any longer than mine.
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September 21st, 2008, 04:36 PM | #11 |
Never enough time
Name: Mark
Location: San Mateo, CA
Join Date: Aug 2008 Motorcycle(s): 690sm, ex250, kdx200, nc50, z50 Posts: 73
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Yes, I think it will be fine, after todays ride with the flogging I delivered the bike, it seems just fine. I have seen some abused ex250s that were together after tens of thousands of miles, I think the engineers got the bugs worked out of this design
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"It's a lot of fun" |
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September 22nd, 2008, 08:53 AM | #12 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Alex
Location: Belfast, ME
Join Date: Jul 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2010 Honda NT-700-V, formerly, Green 2008 Ninja 250R Posts: A lot.
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EX250J Engineering
My father-in-law is a retired manufacturing engineer who was previously a tool and die maker. This is a person who is a stickler for precision and quality. His impression of the Ninja is that it is a well thought out, well made, quality machine that is certainly worth the money. It is really all the machine anybody needs. If I were to go touring, I would probably consider a metric cruiser in the 650 to 750cc range with a sidecar.
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April 9th, 2009, 10:55 PM | #13 |
The Sexy Filipino
Name: Jordan
Location: Bakersfield, Ca
Join Date: Dec 2008 Motorcycle(s): Ninja 250R 2008 (da black one) Posts: 312
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First Synthetic Oil Change
I hit the 5000 mile mark today and decided to switch over from using conventional Castrol motorcycle oil to Shell Rotella® T Synthetic with API CJ -4 Technology. Can I just say wow. Shifting was smooth, like slicing through butter.
The only drawback that I noticed was that my engine did not idle steadily at 1500 RPM, its almost as if it was running rich, so that means I have to go back in and adjust the mixture screw settings.
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Area P CF Standard,Airbox Removed,K&N R-0990,Factory Pro Jet Kit 3.0, Zero Gravity DB I'm not riding too fast... I'm flying too low. |
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April 9th, 2009, 10:57 PM | #14 |
Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.
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what is the idle speed set to and what are the symptoms of the idle problem? don't understand what you mean by seems to be running rich.
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April 9th, 2009, 11:01 PM | #15 |
The Sexy Filipino
Name: Jordan
Location: Bakersfield, Ca
Join Date: Dec 2008 Motorcycle(s): Ninja 250R 2008 (da black one) Posts: 312
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It is set at 1500, so when I blip the throttle, it falls below the set point and then takes awhile for it to come back up. Doesn't that indicate it running rich?
Before the switch, when I blipped the throttle, it would return to the set point right away.
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Area P CF Standard,Airbox Removed,K&N R-0990,Factory Pro Jet Kit 3.0, Zero Gravity DB I'm not riding too fast... I'm flying too low. |
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April 9th, 2009, 11:04 PM | #16 |
Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.
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yep, that's a sign of a rich idle circuit. can't imagine why changing the oil would make a diff, though.
I assume you're doing this after the bike is fully warmed up? |
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April 9th, 2009, 11:09 PM | #17 |
The Sexy Filipino
Name: Jordan
Location: Bakersfield, Ca
Join Date: Dec 2008 Motorcycle(s): Ninja 250R 2008 (da black one) Posts: 312
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Yeah, after I took it for a 20 mile spin was testing how it idled thereafter and found that it was running rich. Thought it was funny that it would be doing that after switching to synthetic, so just wanted to see if it that was common or odd.
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Area P CF Standard,Airbox Removed,K&N R-0990,Factory Pro Jet Kit 3.0, Zero Gravity DB I'm not riding too fast... I'm flying too low. |
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April 9th, 2009, 11:12 PM | #18 |
Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.
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adjust the mixture screws and let us know. when's the last time you had the carbs synced?
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April 9th, 2009, 11:19 PM | #19 |
The Sexy Filipino
Name: Jordan
Location: Bakersfield, Ca
Join Date: Dec 2008 Motorcycle(s): Ninja 250R 2008 (da black one) Posts: 312
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Synced them with the ghetto bottle method around 3k.
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Area P CF Standard,Airbox Removed,K&N R-0990,Factory Pro Jet Kit 3.0, Zero Gravity DB I'm not riding too fast... I'm flying too low. |
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April 9th, 2009, 11:27 PM | #20 |
Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.
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should be close then.
try adjusting the mixture screws and see what happens. let us know if the idling condition improves. |
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April 9th, 2009, 11:30 PM | #21 |
ninjette.org dude
Name: 1 guess :-)
Location: SF Bay Area
Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE Posts: Too much.
Blog Entries: 7
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/moving to 2008+ section
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Montgomery Street Motorcycle Club / cal24.com / crf250l.org / ninjette.org ninjette.org Terms of Service Shopping for motorcycle parts or equipment? Come here first. The friendliest Ninja 250R/300/400 forum on the internet! (especially Unregistered) |
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April 26th, 2009, 07:28 PM | #22 |
Ramen Rider
Name: Gary
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2015 BMW R1200R, 08 Honda VFR800A (sold), 09 Ninja 250R (sold) Posts: A lot.
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took my bike out today for the first time since switching to semi-synthetic oil. i usually have my idle set to about 1300 rpms. today after riding around for a bit, it was running at 1900 rpms. i meant to adjust it back down when i got home, but i forgot to.
this may have been answered before, but does the rpms usually rise after swtiching over to synthetics? other than that, my bike ran fine. actually the loud "clunk" i usually get at 1-2 and 2-3 has been replaced with a "click", so i am happy. |
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April 27th, 2009, 07:53 AM | #23 | |
ninjette.org sage
Name: Wayne
Location: Brookfield, MA
Join Date: Nov 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Honda CBR250R Posts: 585
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Quote:
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May 2nd, 2009, 05:59 PM | #24 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Lil One
Location: NB Canada
Join Date: Mar 2009 Motorcycle(s): '09 Ninja 250 Black Posts: A lot.
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i was wondering if i should switch to synthetic oil. my dealership said he recommended it. is there really a benefit?
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May 2nd, 2009, 06:48 PM | #25 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Sean
Location: Mary Esther, FL
Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250 1998 HD Road King Posts: A lot.
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May 2nd, 2009, 07:07 PM | #26 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Lil One
Location: NB Canada
Join Date: Mar 2009 Motorcycle(s): '09 Ninja 250 Black Posts: A lot.
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any difference in power and does it accelerate smoother?
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May 2nd, 2009, 07:33 PM | #27 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Simon
Location: Linden, NC
Join Date: Feb 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R Posts: 81
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when should u switch to fully synthetic?
im at 700 now and about to do my first oil change i wanted to do it sooner but i keep pushing it back and im drawing the line here lol |
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May 2nd, 2009, 07:40 PM | #28 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Kim
Location: mundo de ensueño
Join Date: Nov 2008 Motorcycle(s): '08 250 Posts: A lot.
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Simon - wait until you have a couple of oil changes out of the way before you switch. And if you keep your eyes peeled, I should be posting a guide to the 600-mile service tomorrow.
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May 2nd, 2009, 07:50 PM | #29 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Simon
Location: Linden, NC
Join Date: Feb 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R Posts: 81
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alright cool, sorry bout all the questions, just want to stay informed lol
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May 2nd, 2009, 08:10 PM | #30 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Sean
Location: Mary Esther, FL
Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250 1998 HD Road King Posts: A lot.
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May 3rd, 2009, 07:18 AM | #31 |
ninjette.org sage
Name: Wayne
Location: Brookfield, MA
Join Date: Nov 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Honda CBR250R Posts: 585
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Wish I could say the same. The improvement in ease of shifting is noticeable, but this bike still shifts like a dog. I still have to kick (and I mean kick) it down the gears coming to a stop light at times and it's still clunky as hell. I've never had a wet clutch that was so stiff and I typically use a lot of clutch. I'm hoping it will loosen up a bit after it has more miles on it.
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May 3rd, 2009, 08:10 AM | #32 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Lil One
Location: NB Canada
Join Date: Mar 2009 Motorcycle(s): '09 Ninja 250 Black Posts: A lot.
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that's funny i fell that i already shift with ease. you might want to have your clunky clutch checked out but what do i know this is my first bike.
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May 3rd, 2009, 08:24 AM | #33 | |
Ramen Rider
Name: Gary
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2015 BMW R1200R, 08 Honda VFR800A (sold), 09 Ninja 250R (sold) Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showt...ighlight=shift |
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May 4th, 2009, 07:24 AM | #34 |
ninjette.org sage
Name: Wayne
Location: Brookfield, MA
Join Date: Nov 2008 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Honda CBR250R Posts: 585
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I've tweaked about everything I can to make the shifting smoother. Between that and switching to synthetic oil there has been some improvement, but it's still pretty "clunky". The fact that I could notice the slight difference in shifting with the synthetic oil makes me think it's the design of the transmission itself that's the problem. This is my second '08 Ninja and I had the exact same stiffness and clunkiness with the first bike. My previous 2 bikes were Yamahas (250 & 400) and they were very smooth. The shifting on the Yamaha 250 compared to the Ninja 250 was like night and day. The shift lever easily popped into the next gear with just the slightest of input and I never had the problems downshifting that I have with the Ninja. Not that it happens every time I shift, but it happens enough that it's noticeable and distracting. I'm hoping that things will improve as the transmission wears in a bit. This is a comparatively inexpensive bike and it's never going to shift quite as well as a top of the line F1 or CBR1000 with a slipper clutch, but it would be nice if it shifted at least as smoothly as my old Yamaha 250.
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May 5th, 2009, 10:07 AM | #35 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Mike
Location: Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Join Date: Mar 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R SE Green Posts: 217
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700??? WOW, i'm on my 4th oil change at 1000km, doing my first filter change though.
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May 7th, 2009, 12:30 PM | #36 |
Ninja Newbie
Name: Ben
Location: Austria
Join Date: May 2009 Motorcycle(s): EX250K9 Posts: 126
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Isn't that rather unnecessary? The 250's service chart says one needs to change the oil and filter after 1000km, and after that every year or 12000km, and "more frequently" under severe conditions ("...dusty, wet, muddy, high speed, or frequent start/stopping").
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May 7th, 2009, 03:23 PM | #37 |
Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.
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May 8th, 2009, 05:50 AM | #38 | |
ninjette.org member
Name: Mike
Location: Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Join Date: Mar 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R SE Green Posts: 217
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Quote:
Also during the break in period, they do recomend doing it more. Now that I've done my 1000km change I'll do another at 4000km and then chainge to synthetic at 8000km(unless I do more track days then expected) I do ride my baby hard..and I'm a little rough on my bike as well lol so having good lube is important lol |
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June 17th, 2009, 04:22 PM | #39 | |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Dave
Location: Michigan
Join Date: May 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 650RTE & 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R (SOLD) Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
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June 17th, 2009, 04:26 PM | #40 |
Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: Too much.
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essentially the same. I believe the newer is an updated product of the other. I remember PMs that islanderman and myself had about the differences and from what I could tell from the Shell website, the new oil is acceptable to use in our bikes, though not all of the specs are the same, as you mentioned.
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