Picked up my motorcycle yesterday...

Picked up my motorcycle yesterday...

04 ninja 250
4k miles
scratches everywhere - little rust on scratched metal
plastic cracks

engine sounds good but needs carb cleaning. engine stays revved after releasing throttle. tech told me it's because the carbs need cleaning.


Plans (soon
drain fuel tank
flush coolant
change oil and filter
change air filter
oil chain
change plugs
try to do some carb maintenance

Plans (later
change tires
do something about rust spots
change clutch/front break levers
change bulbs to LED

I ordered a Haynes repair manual this morning. As soon as that comes in, ill try to do the fuel flush to make sure it is eating good food.

Pics up later.

picture?

pics or it didnt happen

Not at home right now and dont have pix. Jeebz guys. Give me the benefit of the doubt :'/


I turned down another deal before I got this one. The dude was selling a 91 suzuki bandit 400. One reason I turned it down is because it has 23k miles. Also, unlike the ninja, I will probably not be able to sell it for the same amount I buy it. It also needs carb cleaning. Price was 900$

The reason why I considered buying it, take a look for yourself:




It looks sexy. Reminds me of Mariah Cary.

And here are the pix.





My first mod... I forgot my gremlin bell in the 10th gen

it looks good, thought i'd be scared shitless driving it.

For me the most scary thing about 250's is the acceleration feel like its just barely enough to keep up with traffic. I didn't even bother lane splitting with it.

Terrible idea. Ares. Don't do this.

Ares, nice find. Looks like its in good condition.

Kind of off topic. I know alot of the crotch rockets redline at about 12-14k rpms, but if I ever get a bike I would get a cruiser. Around where do the cruiser bikes redline. I'm looking at a rebel to start, and would probably stay with a Honda or maybe a Yamaha V star

Congrats on your purchase! Bike looks pretty decent. Looks like it hasn't seen much use, hence the scratched and little bits of rust here and there. Doesn't look like it got laid down or anything from the photos - but you'll know more once you service the bike. Looks like a case of just needing some TLC and it would be good as new.

A 250 is not bad - good for a new driver. Even a heavier guy like me can get that bike up to 60MPH in 5-6 second range, 1/4 mile is between 15-16 second range. Doesn't sound very fast when compared to other bikes, but plenty fast if you're not used to air pushing you around.

Though I'd have to admit, once you get used to it and the speed - can't get enough of that adrenaline rush. Only go up from there - just don't drive beyond your abilities. Drive to fast in a car - crunch and maybe roll it, chances are decent that you'll walk away from it. Do the same in a bike - and you're hamburger, more likely to get scraped off the road than walk away. Pretty gruesome and sobering - but if you keep that in mind, you'll stay safer out there. Happy riding.

Thanks for the tips fishexpo101. It has cracks left and right specially where the turn signals are. Also, scratches on the metal are now rusting. Any idea how to get rid of those?

I will be using the bike MOSTLY for school and back. 15 min commute of back roads with only 1 traffic light intersection and relatively low traffic.

IMO the bike feels fast enough. Although I was shifting at less than 10k rpms, I was up to 70 in no time... I have yet to do freeway passing times so I will let you know how that goes if ever I reach that point.

@nyrican52884:
I would love a cruiser. It feels so laid back, sounds good, and good ergonomics. Ill definitely get one later on. On the RPM question, I have not seen a cruiser with a tach so I won't be able to help with that. I bet they go to 7k more or less...

That's a lightly modified corolla range

Minus the airbags, sheet metal, glass, and insulation.

you can run constant 16's with just IHE.. with a 5spd ofcourse.

it's also highly illegal in every state but California.

i live in CA They taught lane splitting in my MSF course back when I took it.

...ok?

yeah, but Ares isn't in Cali.

poor guy

I still wont be lane splitting... I am a good 40mins away from houston and traffic.

Nice! I'm taking my classes in two weeks now. Will probably buy a 250 of same sorts next year as it would be impossible for me to ride it in Chicago winters lol. I really like the 08 model but those are a little costly for a first bike so we'll see what I can find.

The thing about ninjas is that their sell value is pretty much stuck at 1.5-2k depending on miles and looks. At least thats what I found out at craigslist. People buy/sell for about that price easy.

Speaking of ninjas.

^ definitely not true.

So you prefer this one then?

Nice dude congrats! Enjoy, have fun and mostly be safe out there..... Maybe next time I'll go to Houston I'll have my new bike and we'll go cruise the extremely long and non twisty roads out there haha.....

^ thanks. I rode 2 hours worth of nice backroads yesterday. Some high speed turns here and there...

was my route