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I just bought my first bike recently, a 2001 ninja 500. I was wondering if there is a certain RPMs that I should be upshifting and down shifting at? I have done a little experimenting but I don't want to be crusing around in a lower gear than I should be in, but at the same time I don't want to be in too high of a gear for my bike to be unresponsive if needed to accelerate or something.

Grats on the bike purchase! Good bike, too!

If you want the technical answer, which you were looking for, I'd recommend purchasing the owner's manual for your bike from Kawasaki. It'll run you about 16$, plus shipping, but it will have the exact information from Kawasaki which you are looking for.

Now then, the general answer which is also useful, is to just listen to the pitch of your engine. When you hear the pitch starting to get a little higher (which comes with higher speeds and higher RPMs) you'll recognize about when its time to shift. And really, paying attention to the sound your engine is making is going to help in the long run, since it'll leave your eyes available to be up and forward, scanning the road and traffic.

Still, though, purchasing the owner's manual is a good idea still, because it will have the maintenance schedule, fuel and oil requirements, and tons of other useful information which you'll want to know which will be specific to your bike. And yeah, you can probably find all that info online, but there are some things which are just handy to have around, and an owner's manual is one of those things.

Welcome to the road!

blackshirt77 wrote:I just bought my first bike recently, a 2001 ninja 500. I was wondering if there is a certain RPMs that I should be upshifting and down shifting at? I have done a little experimenting but I don't want to be crusing around in a lower gear than I should be in, but at the same time I don't want to be in too high of a gear for my bike to be unresponsive if needed to accelerate or something.

the only thing you dont wanna do is lug the engine. other then that use it how you want to. sportbike engines even your prehistoric twin in your ninja begged to be reved. keep clean oil in it and it will be happy.

keep in mind that your 500 makes peak hp(50) at about 9250 rpm while tourqe peak comes at 7750 rpm all 31 ftlbs of it. all those #'s of course ore at the wheel. not to bad for a 500.


p.s keep in mind that the owner's manual and kawasaki have to assume you have no skills and will recomend a shift speed to get the most economy out of the bike. not the best performace.

Thanks for the useful information about my

"prehistoric twin"!

Does lugging an engine damage it? I tend not to lug mine, but I am curious.

huh wrote: prehistoric twin

If a 2001 is a pre-historic twin what is my CB750K or my 81 Wing????!!!!!

pinger05 wrote:

huh wrote: prehistoric twin

If a 2001 is a pre-historic twin what is my CB750K or my 81 Wing????!!!!!

the engine used in the 500r ninja is 1985 technology and has not been updated since! so in terms of japanese sport bike years that is very prehistoric. but dont fear the price reflects that. but still a very good powerplant and loads above the =ly old suzuki gs500.



lugging the engine puts it under high load. high gear,low rpm stuff while twisting the throttle. the engine is trying to rev but is struggling. you can imagine.

ride'em like you stole'em. but change that oil offten

Randy wrote:Does lugging an engine damage it? I tend not to lug mine, but I am curious.

It probably doesn't do much outright damage, but the effects over time probably aren't all that great.

It's probably worse on the sprockets/chain/etc than the actual engine internals, but that's just an educated guess as I've never had to deal with repairing an engine that's been excessively 'lugged'.

Telesque wrote:

Randy wrote:Does lugging an engine damage it? I tend not to lug mine, but I am curious.

It probably doesn't do much outright damage, but the effects over time probably aren't all that great.

It's probably worse on the sprockets/chain/etc than the actual engine internals, but that's just an educated guess as I've never had to deal with repairing an engine that's been excessively 'lugged'.

well no its not gonna gernade on you. i was just saying thats really the only thing you want to avoid. it just induces a high load on the engine. like towing a trailer.

blackshirt77 wrote:I just bought my first bike recently, a 2001 ninja 500. I was wondering if there is a certain RPMs that I should be upshifting and down shifting at? I have done a little experimenting but I don't want to be crusing around in a lower gear than I should be in, but at the same time I don't want to be in too high of a gear for my bike to be unresponsive if needed to accelerate or something.

I'm guessing you want to be running at similar rpm's as the GS500s do. These engines don't pull much below 4k rpm and I find that running between 4-6 or 7k to be most effective when just moving along at a normal brisk pace. When riding at a fast pace, I run at 7-9k rpm thru hilly and twisty roads. The GSs redline at 11k but there is little to be gained by pushing it much beyond 9k or so except on occasions when passing or something where you want to keep revving and complete before shifting.

You are correct in wanting to keep it in a gear that will allow you to accelerate immediately if required. I've found that running at the 6-7k pace gives the same overall 60 mpg as just putting along at lower rpms will. Nothing to be gained by keeping the revs way down on these little twins.

I've listed the test figures from magazine road tests made on the GS500 over the years and where they came from comparos between the GS500 and Ninja 500, I've also included the EX500 figures as noted. You can see the EX(Ninja)500 power peaks are just a little above the GS500s. These figures may be of some interest to you.

I've always preferred the GS to the EX because it was naked over the years and I don't care for plastic coated bikes. If I were buying one new today, I would go with the Ninja 500 for it's better performance since both bikes are fully faired now as sold in the US. I've put about 100k miles total on my GS500s after having had 4 Hondas.

http://www.prodigyweb.net.mx/sergiodelr ... _tests.jpg