Sunny,
As I said, I totally loved your presentation for the Ninja 650R, and it's really so nice of you to say about the video. I've always respected you as a person, as a mentor and above all as a biker and it's these hearty gestures of yours which are subtle and always takes that bar of respect higher in my eyes.

Coming back to the Ninja 650R, I would love to know your views more on the bike's performance and over all package (of course now we all know that it's an amazing VFM)

Looking forward to see some more from you on the Ninja 650

Nice Review

Good Job Sunny

Nice Review & as usual awesome clicks....

i would still prefer 250R in terms of over all features.

Gs, kk and sajal: you all are right. The video is not what I meant it to be, the too much stress on the R tag is due to inclusion of retakes of the same damn subject by the video editor in my absence. But it was too late by then and it had been rendered and uploaded. I must get myself a Flip or something ( you hear Mr.subramanium?).

I did was not happy with how the video came out, however I feel that people should know that this time my excuses are: 1. Very less time for the video 2. Battery and card gave up on us pretty much at the same time before we could shoot the rest of the review or riding shots etc.

Rest assured we will be giving video a more serious thought, and who knows if we get a capable video editor you can expect to see high quality video stuff from us in the times to come.

It's all about time and resources more than anything else.

Coming back to then R tag. I spoke about that ONCE ( that was the intention ) and that too because off late sub brands have been used by companies where they are not supposed to be - like the cbr on a bike which should have been a vfr 250 and now the ninja.

However it makes perfect marketing sense to piggyback on a well known product line rather create something out of the blue again.

Rest assured this baby is an absolutely wonderful tourer, also in retrospect we did not know the price while doing the video otherwise we would have been more elated.

Well said GS.

Apparently its human tendency to end up comparing everything .. a few weeks back it was about the Honda and Kawasaki Quarts.

Bloody .... some where comparing the Ninja to Cars when I bought it.. you can't stop 'em.

Its a never ending story.

+1. LOL, you put it so nicely, I just pray that this bike does well.

I don't know about negative/positive reviews and there is a tendency for people to get carried away whenever they hear the name Ninja. This is possibly why Suzuki doesn't call the Bandit a GSXR1250S or whatever. Kawasaki for some reason seem hell bent on diluting the Ninja brand as it is the only thing that seems to sell for them at the moment!

The 650R was light and nimble around the Chakan track and I had it up to 210 Km/h down the main straight...no problem. My comments to the Bajaj representatives was:

1. Price of around 5L OTR - which they have delivered
2. Accessories like panniers, lights and other touring gear - which they are working on
3. Trained service personnel - which Probiking seems to have sorted out with the Ninja 250R unless some owner feels otherwise.

They took their time to launch but they have done it right. It is meaningless to KNOW what this bike is all about and yet keep harping about the "R" in it's name or the fact that it doesn't look great, doesn't handle like a ZX6R, doesn't accelerate like a Liter bike etc.

WHAT IS IT GOOD AT?

How about this - you ride this alongside a ZX6R or a Hyosung GT650R to Ladakh and back and then let us have a chat about what's what! It is simply preposterous to compare apples and oranges! I would have expected a bit more maturity from everyone.

This is the same reason why the Bandit is also struggling in sales...nobody appreciates a bike they can ACTUALLY use. They all want something stupidly expensive, runs on unobtanium octane fuel, does 400 Km/h through our gullies and potholes and looks like a naked Tamanna draped over your crotch.

Shocking!

Ya bro. . Damn sure

Bro, you spoke my mind out here man.... and thanks a tone for that.

I even find comparing the capabilities of the Ninja 250R and the Ninja 650R a little unjustified for both the bikes. I mean you cannot compare the ZX-6R with Ninja 1000 and say ZX-6R handles better!! Both the bikes are built for completely different purpose.

I found Sunny's style of review more interesting, but yes, does leave a negative impression, and as you said, opinions might differ. Internationally, this bike is a winner, more because it's always pitched against the right motorcycles in it's genre.

IMHO, instead of stressing that the bike doesn't live up to the 'R' tag, the bike's 'touring' potential should have been highlighted 'more'. The bike is no way a 'sports bike' (a look at the chassis, riding ergonomics and engine layout should give a clear hint) and therefore the expectations should have been appropriate. For someone who wants a pure 'sports bike' in 600 cc category, kawasaki has zx-6r, but sadly it wont be available in india, at least for the time being.

The bike looks to be a very potent tourer with relaxed seating and a fairly stress-free engine. This potential of the bike should have been 'talked about more' instead of 'what the bike isn't'..... It makes a fantastic proposition for a 'tourer' at ~ 5 lacs when compared to other bikes in the 'tourer' category (not restricting to the displacement)

The review leaves a kind of 'negative impression' about the bike towards the end....

P.S.: It is just my opinion. Someone else may have a different opinion. No offense meant to anyone.

nice - first impression and equally good pics.
you can actually donate some pics to kawasaki for official use.

personally i feel styling is also an important part of overall package and this bikes lacks in styling part to its other only competitor in indian market. rest of the things are good. one more thing that it also earlier discussed too, i think, is ...if the low slung silencer is submerged in water, it will create problems....

we are waiting for full ride report and comparison with the only other 650 CC in indian market.

@ Mods: in the first post their is a typing error, stating that maximum torque happens at 700 RPM, i think it should be 7000 RPM.

Yes. what Busaboy said is the same msg which I also got when I checked with them today morning... Very surprising difference in the price...
Have to wait till the launch in Kerala to know the correct price...

There is no comparison between the GT650R and the Ninja 650R...

These are two bikes built for completely different applications. The GT650R is more appropriate when compared with a Triumph Daytona 675 or a 600cc supersport.

The Ninja is an out and out mile-muncher with proper touring credentials. Traditional handlebar, upright ergonomics, huge windshield and a motor tweaked for low-end performance over screaming top-end.

How can you compare the two and to what logical end?

Why not throw the Royal Enfield Lightening 535 or a Classic 500 into the mix if all you are looking at is cubic capacity?

hope honda and yamaha will also line up there 6oocc models

when i got to know about Ninja 650[i dont think its 650R] i thought hyosung gone now but after the reviews and pics i think if i have two choose between two i would have gone for hyosung GT650R. because hyosung is a sports bike not ninja 650 its a tourer with no aggression and bajaj calling it green aggression and other things wrong image created by bajaj for ninja 650. good bike but could have been better for the R tag as said in review