I just bought my 250 on monday and ive been riding it since tuesday.I was thinking of buying a 650 myself but since this was gona be my first bike i went with the 250 and so far im loveing it.I'ma be useing it as a dd like to go to work and what not and when i have more gear and more experince i will pick up a bigger bike.

 

there are a few members from 05 still in here. Although as in every forum, we do lose a few for what ever reasons. Good to see you. Wait a minute...I was a pollywog in 05! lol

 

I appreciate all the replies to this thread. I don't think I'll ever be able to come up with the money for a 650 and I believe the 250 suits me best anyhow. I told myself why get a 250 when I can get an older CBR, but the 250 gets great gas mileage and I don't want to over-do it as a beginner. So once I start this new job and get some funds I'll probably be going to pickup an 08 250 from a local seller this winter. Still dreading the time I have to wait, but it will be well worth it. Thanks for the help.

 

congrats tporter, sounds like good thinking. Invest in your gear though, that will outlast any ride in the end.

 

Dumb question here: Why is the choice the 250 or 650 with no conversation about the 500? I'm just now learning about the Ninja lineup, so maybe I'm missing something. If the 250 is too small and the 650 is too big isn't the 500 the happy medium?

 

it may be a matter of styling at that point, but the 500 can be a good bike.

 

I read this post from another forum and felt that it said a lot (there's a lot to read but do yourself a favor and read all of it) about how one should approach buying a first bike. It's a gut-check if you are open to it.

http://forums.sportrider.com/70/5918...ted/index.html

The post titled "NEW RIDERS PLEASE READ THIS - updated" by Trevitt talking about Chris' older post.

 

Ahh. I get it now. I just looked at the Kawasaki site. The 500 styling is much different. Looks old school.

I'd love to get into a Kawasaki board meeting and learn why they have 3different "lower" power sport bikes in the a 250, 500, 650 and then why they make the 250 and 650 to look similar but do nothing to the 500. Interesting corporate strategy.

 

I had actually considered the 500 for a while after I posted the thread because they can be had for fairly cheap, but I could never convince myself that it was good looking. I'll take a 2008 250 over a 95 500 any day. Around here the 500's are getting close to the prices of some 08 250's. By the time I start actually looking at bikes the riding season will be over and the 2010 250 will be coming out so I'm gonna be seeing some sweet deals.

 

Neither the 500 nor the 650 are primarily sports bikes, although the 6f is very sports styled. That is marketed (unfortunately, imo) as a sports bike, while the 500 never pretends to be anything more than it really is.

The 500 is a solid workhorse and is probably the best of the three if you want reliable everyday transport. There is little to choose between the n version of the ER-6 and the 500, apart from about 15 mph and a useful bit sharper acceleration but the 500 is softer and more forgiving for the less experienced rider. Neither of the bigger bikes is ideal for the new rider. The 250 is by far the best learning tool and plenty fast enough for an experienced rider to enjoy.

If you must ride longish highway distances on your first ever bike then there is an arguement for the 500, but you won't learn to ride as well as if you'd started on a 250. The 650s are a bit too much of a handful for a new rider, and people starting on these usually never become really good on a bike - although all the 12 months and 4K miles egoists will deny until the end of time that their skills are lacking.

Rob