Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Nibblet99 wrote:...most 500s are tuned to give enough power for Woohoo moments, but not Oh "poo poo" moments...

The Ninja 500-R is an extremely forgiving bike. Being carbed it has a bit less zip than the efi 650-R. It is, however a bike you can continue riding. I have had a supersport and a big cruiser, and still commute on the Ninja 500-R and still love riding it.

The board has a start small ethos generally, but practically, you could get a Ninja 250-R, be sick of it in four months, sell it for peanuts and buy something bigger - or you could get a 500, respect it as a bigger bike, and keep riding it longer. Personally, I don't want to be sick of a bike before it is paid off

--Dave

+1

The other thing you have to think about is that not everyone is physically suited to ride a 250. For a bigger guy, it's really going to be a pain...

safety-boy wrote:Do you not agree with the sticky post on sport bikes and no 500's and up for first bikes? A 1/4 inch throttle turn at the wrong time can kill you, which is not true on a 500cc crusier due to power bands and generally what the bike is made for.

I believe the sticky is about 600cc+ sportbikes not 500cc or even 650cc standards/sport standards. The Ninja 500-R is one of the best beginner bikes out there and while not as beginner friendly as the 500 the 650r is definitely not a death machine.
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Loratab Rehab Forum

In the past month I put 500 miles on a Ninja 650R and so far have 190 on my new SV650S. So here's some quick, bit on the surface impressions/comparisons. Considering the low miles on both bikes, I can't get too detailed here....

Note this is the SV650S, which especially posture-wise is quite different from the SV650.

posture/comfort: SV is a good bit more aggressive, with lower and more forward bars, more like a super sport bike. Ninjas has you rather upright. Ninja is more comfortable overall, but not by much and the SV's seat I am finding to be more comfortable. So basically: SV wins in the butt area, Ninja wins in the arms and shoulders area.


Under seat compartment: SV's is half as long (it's only under the passenger seat), but 2 to 3 times deeper. The Ninja has mounts for a u-lock which was a nice touch and better helmet tethers. But the added space of the SV wins it for me, the Ninja has almost no space at all (and really does have no space if you don't take out the manual).

Shifter: Much prefer the Ninja's shifter. It was stiffer which I really liked. Also Kawasaki's "quick find neutral" is a nice touch.

ride: I can't talk much here. Other than the occasional moment of aggressive throttle on the freeway, I've been riding the SV pretty easy so far. It does seem the SV doesn't really "wake up" until above 5000rpms. Can any other SV owner comment on that? I'm curious if this is my imagination or other factors are involved or what. The Ninja always seemed eager to go at low rpms. The Ninja struck me as "peppier", but I also get the feeling the SV's got more to give at high speeds/rpms.

freeway riding: both bikes take the freeway very well, but the SV wins here. I think it's the riding position that keeps you down below the turbulence. Freeway riding is smooth as can be and a pure joy.

speedometer: Keep in mind the SV has a digital speedometer! I much prefer analog, but I'm ok with digital too. So Ninja wins here for me. The SV does have a large, prominent analog tach which is nice.

mirrors: I know Nalian disagrees, but I thought the Ninjas mirrors were 100% useless. It was just something I accepted at the time and planned to get extenders. do a search for "mirrors" on ninja650.com and you will find a lot of unhappy people. SV's mirrors are far from perfect, but they are at least 70% usable.

ummmm: SV has a passing trigger, Ninja does not even though the manual says it does (or if it does, wow, I could NOT find it!) SV requires clutch to be in to start, tiniest bit annoying. SV has a digital engine thermometer which is nice.

overall: I can't say. I don't have enough time on either bike to give a definitive opinion (nor am I really that educated of a biker in general anyway...) I can say both bikes pleased me greatly and I really enjoyed the Ninja greatly for those 500 miles and the SV has left me with no buyer's remorse whatsoever.

What is a passing trigger?

IcyHound wrote:What is a passing trigger?

It's not a big deal. On the left handlebar grip is a yellow trigger that turns on your brights whenever its down. So you hold it down while you are passing someone or whenever you feel you need to be made more visible.

(if you know what to look for, you can actually see it in my avatar)

IcyHound wrote:What is a passing trigger?

it switches on high beams while you're holding it. It does absolutely nothing if high beams are already on.