Hello gentlemen,

Do you think the 650 would shake a little less then the 250 when going over 60? I'm not the biggest fan of the bike when getting above that speed. I love the bike, and I use it primarily for trips around town. However if I have to transfer for a job to a place 40 miles away, I don't think I will want to ride that long on the bike.

Any difference between the 250 and 650 on long trips and high speeds? Your thoughts?

Have a great day
D

 

yes the heavier bike will be more stable and less likely to be blown around by trucks and wind.

however the 250 shouldn't be shaking... are you reffering to the wind buffetting that can shake your body/helmet around?

if so that is usually fixed with an adjustment to the windscreen (like a taller one for a lot of people)

 

You ever get that weird wind when riding behind a semi? That scared the chit out of me back in the day

 

I read a blog written by a guy who has ridden thousands of miles on his Ninja 250 on tours of different parts of the country. For the life of me I don't know how he can stand it. It was all I could do to ride my 2007 on the highway 23 miles to downtown Dallas, and I was a nervous wreck when I arrived. While the bike gave me no real reason to believe that it was unstable or dangerous, every crosswind or wake turbulence had me fighting to maintain position in my lane. But I wouldn't describe it as 'shaking'. If your bike shakes, that's something that needs mechanical attention.

I sold the Ninja and bought a bigger, heavier, more powerful and older standard bike and traveled effortlessly on the highway. 4K rpms at 65mph is much better than the screaming 9K and it was nearly unaffected by wind. 200lbs heavier and nearly 700cc's more grunt made a helluva lot of difference.

In my opinion, the 250 is perfectly suited for inner-city traffic battles and not very at-home on the highway. If you're going to have a long highway commute, definitely look at a bigger bike.

Anyone care to chime in and help out with an opinion about the 650 on the highway?

 

A heavier bike is certainly going to be a nicer ride on the highway where there is wind.

I have a 2009 250 and I get buffeted a bit on the highway but from what it sounds like from peoples experiences on the pre 2008 250s my experience on the highway is much better. Can't say I'd want to ride across the country or something but 40 miles is not a problem. The fact that 65 on the new bikes is closer to 7000 rpms is probably nice too! I ride 75 at about 9k and feel plenty stable.

 

I couldnt' agree more. I guess it wasn't shaking, but just that I was a little nervous driving down US75. If I plan on doing a lot of highway riding, I may go rent a 650 and see how that does at high speeds.

 

Neither bike should br showing any signs of 'shaking' at 60 mph. The 250 will start to feel sstressed at around 80 or perhaps a little more, but nothing more.

If you're talking about being affected by turbulence, the perceived wisdom is that the 650 will be steadier, but the slightl difference in weight, with fuel and rider isn't very great. It comes down more to the aerodynamics of the bikes and the design of the fairings.

A non-stock screen made a big difference to my 650.

I do lots of 200 - 400 mile highway trips. I chose the 650 because I like a 100 mph cruise capability with power in reserve. The MRA screen was fitted as the stock screen deflects wind under the helmet and is very uncomfortable at speeds above 90. I couldn't sustain high speed for long periods with that screen. THe MRA/Kawasaki screen is fine. For shorter trips, or less frequent ones, the 250 does the job OK. Cruise at around 80.

Rob

 

Although it won't solve the turbulence issue, you might want to try swapping out your sprockets. I did a 15/41t swap and it has done wonders for this little bike on the highway. My biggest gripe with the bike was doing 80 mph @ 10,000 rpm. With this swap, I can get on the highway going 75 mph in 5th gear. 6th gear is an overdrive gear now, but it still has enough power to accelerate. I sit at 80 mph @ 8,000 rpm. It is a great mod. Just a thought.

 

I agree with the above posters, my 250 didn't shake at all at speeds around 60+ MPH. Wind was not that big of a problem for me either. I found the ride to only be troublesome on my butt.

 

change your chitty bias tires a good set of radials and it will be much more stable. the 650 isnt much more stable and vibrates like crazy due to its large displacement parallel twin. dont worry about the high RPMs, it wont hurt the bike and you'll get used to it after a while. I rode my 250 at 75-80mph for 100 miles a day for 6 months and never had any problems, but I did notice it rode 10 times better on the freeway with radial tires.