The Ninja 250 greatest limitation is not one of performance but of reputation

[rcruz17]

ive always had a car thats known for reliable and fuel economy first one was a 96 mazda protege then a 1999 honda accord now a 2003 honda accord both accord are 4 cylinder version dont see a need for a V6 this gets the job done.

[CycleCam303]

Originally Posted by iceknyght

Yes and no... I would definitely agree that motorcyclists would be more enthusiast based... You'll have more motorcyclists riding just to ride than people driving a car, but that doesn't mean there aren't similarities...

And I am not making the comparison that they're the same. Just that people call the 250 (which is a cheap, entry level bike) a "Beginner's bike" while a cheap, entry level car is not considered a "Beginner's car"...

I understood the point you were making. Truth is sportbikers are a very tiny margin of motorcyclists. I imagine most motorcyclists have little to no interest in the sport side of motorcycling. Taking what you said a step further, miatas and civics are considered beginner/learning tools in the car racing world. But just like motorcycles few people can get the most out of them. Example, @rojoracing53 was doing 1min 53sec lap times in a Nismo 370z at laguna seca. My supermoto mentor raced cars professionally and did 1min 49s in a spec miata. A 1990 Miata is worlds apart in performance compared to a 370z. My supermoto mentor drives a Honda Insight in the street. It gets good mileage and he commutes a lot for his job. He hauls ass in that thing. If he showed up to a street race or canyon run in an insight would you take him seriously?

It's difficult to compare cars to bikes in any sense. A ninja 250 is utterly pathetic compared to any 600 supersport in the last 10 years. Then strap a noob to the bike and the already impossible gap grows wider.

It's easy to see why riders don't take a ninja 250 seriously or their riders. The closest car example is comparing a civic si or miata to a ferrari f430 or corvette z06. I guarantee that a ferrari or vette is going to feel much more confidence inspiring and the driver will instantly notice the higher limits compared to a civic or miata.

[rojoracing53]

The reason people don't think of the civic as a begginers car is because everyone is under the misconception that driving a car is their birthright and is a necessity to survive. When you think about hot headed teenagers getting an M3 as their first car from mommy and daddy then crashing it in the first few months, do you ever think maybe be should have started in a civic. If not then maybe you should because its all just a matter of perspective and nothing more.

I don't give two $hits about any things anyone rides or drives because I'm confident I could probably take whatever it is and control it better then most and I believe in the possibility that so can that person as well.

If you really think about it you can relate every reason people call the 250 a beginner bike strait over to a civic. It only a matter of perseption that give them more or less respect among their brethren.

[subxero]

Definitely think the car comparison has some merit, but unfortunately Cars and bikes are worlds apart especially in price and money is generally one of the biggest factors for just about anything
If the 250 is the entry level sport econo bike, and a civic si, vw gti, BRZ ect... is the comparable car. Then a SS 1000 is comparable to Lambo's Ferrari's, higher end porsche racing type cars. A ninja 250/300 around $4k-$5k SS 1000 $12-$14k
Civic SI, ect... $23k - $26k So already an entry level car costs twice as much as high end motorcycle, then for a high end car you are looking at around $100k for some of the cheaper ones like GTR clean through $400k. Few people have that much money to spend on essentially a luxury item. $15k for a street legal race bike though... chump change.

And again like others have said, just cuz you can afford it, doesn't mean you can drive it.

One of my favorite Top Gear episodes is the one where Richard gets to drive an F1 car and needs to do 2 complete laps with out spinning out/crashing. It takes him several tries to finally accomplish it because he can not drive the car fast enough and hard enough to keep the tires warm for traction, or to generate enough down force.

It's all about the limiting factor... often the rider/driver

[broken neck]

Originally Posted by KawiKid860

I think it would be hard to say a motorcyclist isn't an enthusiast... very very few people buy a motorcycle for the same reasons they would buy a corolla.

Maybe in North America, but around the world, sometimes, motorcycles is the only means of transportation affordable for a lot of people... Especially those small engines...

They could be compared to civics or corollas...