Kawasaki Ninja - Any thoughts Please

My brother has just bought a 2003 one. I rode it part way home for him and loved it. Cornering is so easy, although the shock is bloody hard (so much so that hes going to do something about it).

Just do it, I doubt you'll regret it

I like the first underseat model of the Ninja's, looks awesome in black! I'd shop around for quotes first though. P.s. are you sure you want TPFT on a bike worth that much? It might just be nice to have that guaranteed ability to claim should things go pear-shaped.

Ninja's are awesome. I've got the new '07 version.

The insurance is about £150 cheaper for a new Ninja than a 2nd hand Gixxer for me!!

Madness.

Originally Posted by HooliganDan

Ninja's are awesome. I've got the new '07 version.

The insurance is about £150 cheaper for a new Ninja than a 2nd hand Gixxer for me!!

Madness.

Why is that?

I have an 04' 636 and love it. It's very easy to ride, fast and handles well. The only downpoint for me is the suspension is too harsh, it fidgets around over the slightest road imperfection but mine is the B1H model and the one your looking at is newer and I think they made the suspension easier to live with on that one. Try and get a test ride...

I had the 04 model and it was a nightmare. The suspension totally ruins the bike and dictates the speed at which you can ride - which is a lot slower than you would want to. Budget for a quality steering damper (£300) and anything from £200 to £600 fixing the suspension on top. Riding position was uncomfortable too and just made worse by having your balls constantly smashed onto the tank.

I think my 04 was on a 55 plate or something because they had loads left unsold at the end that they were trying to get rid of for £4999 so be careful of what you are getting. I would honestly avoid one of those models and aim for the 05/06 underseat exhaust model which has the flaws fixed.

The ones I have been looking at are all the underseat model, mainly because they look cool and a bit fierce.......why are they so much cheaper to insure though I can't work it out.

The adult in me is saying the black or titanium coloured ones are best, but something in me is saying go for a green one, my two year old would love it as he has a green kawasaki bicycle, but I'm not too sure that I should base any decision on that!

Pay less for a used titanium as they were sold for less to start with. The titanium ones were always the last to go and sold off cheap pre-reg'd etc.

As for the insurance, a number of people on the Cliosport forums and a guy at work were looking at 600's a while ago and whilst I recommended the Kwak they all refused on the grounds that every insurance company they went to wanted more to insure the Kwak than any other of the 600's.

So frankly I am amazed at what I am reading here.

However I did find it was about the same for all 600's when I got quotes. I got an online quote for £1500 (comp) and when I rang them (5 mins later) and got a fresh quote over the phone they said £700!!! I even made them repeat everything twice to make sure they had entered it correctly but it was genuine. Same happened with the 10R, one week I was quoted £5000 and the next week it was £1100 so I bought one quick! No idea why that was and no idea why the other lads all found the GSXR was the cheapest by a long way. If you are happy with the quote then just get in there!

If I can get a GSXR quoted for a similar amount then that really would through me into a dilemma!!!!

I have sort of discounted a CBR-rr as it was far too tall for me and felt uncomfortable, are there others I should consider bearing in mind I need a daily (all year) commuter.