I did a bit of reading about this when I was planning for the Ninja:
Regular fuel is 87-89 octane (branded ones are 89 octane).
Ninja takes minimum 87 octane, which means that regular fuel will do.
However, for engines with compression ratio>10.0:1, 91 octane is the recommended one, for optimum engine performance.
So you can go ahead&use any of the fuels according to your preference&budget!

@n-aditya - avoid using any form of petrol boosters or injector cleaners or anything. I just came across a 929 which had become a victim of injector cleaners and what not. The fuel pump had seized, and the throttle body was coated in dirty much which was basically deposited injector cleaner that someone had put in it over the last service.

Fill 91octane where possible, else the bike will run clean in 87 octane as well. If you really wanna have fun, then what i suggest to all riders in delhi, is to head to the airport ( international ), get 97 octane, and enjoy the smooth roads there as well.

Hey Aditya

Even i used to think which Fuel should i be using. the very first time i filled in my bike was xtra premium, which i didnt really liked it then i started using shell premium and felt it really expensive and at the same my engine was backfiring so i stopped using it. then i switched over to speed 97 which is same price as shell premium but with better octane number. i felt huge or less difference than 91 octane in engine sound as well pick up, but i really felt good and there was also increase in mileage 3 to 5 kms per liter but since two months or so i am not able to get speed 97 at my place which is saddening. and had switch to speed 91 which i feel so so but better than xtra premium and i never tried power petrol. so, i cant comment on it.

ultimately if your thinking of using shell premium try using speed 97 instead. i feel its a better choice compared to other.

my experience with above fuels is true to my extent. cant disagree with others

as for fuel additive i have been using iftex system G since long in my opel corsa (company recommends to use it regularly). but when i asked about using it in bike.the servicing people were reluctant use it and not recommending using it for even once.

but i had used it my previous bikes like pulsar, Bullet and suzuki access. there were ok with it.

There are three octane rated fuel available by BP
Speed(which has 91 RON)
Speed 93
Speed 97

AFAIK 87 RON has been stopped long back.

Completed 1600KM run on last weekend, so thought of taking my Ninja for a long ride this weekend. Saturday morning myself and my friend started the journey from Delhi to Jaipur. All was going well, was cruising around 120 Km/h when road was empty, otherwise going at normal speeds of below 50Km/h on NH8.

On one of the straight stretches around 80Km away from Delhi was going around 100Km/h. One of the trucks in front of me slowed down, so I also applied the brakes to slow down. But, suddenly the front nose of my bike dived down and I was thrown out of the bike and onto the road. Went sliding on road for around 20m with me in front and the bike following me. After some seconds both of us stopped, with distance of around 5m between me and bike. Forutnately no one was behind us else someone might have overrun us.

I used both the brakes of the bike to slow down, may be I applied the front brake harder, can't remember. It just made the bike slip.

Is the brakes of Ninja too good or too bad? As I was unable to understand what made it slip? The tires and brakes would have been warm as I had already rode for around 80 Km. Also, road and bike was straight, when the brake was applied. Checked the road once I was able to get up, no oil or any slippery material could be seen on the road atleast with my eye.

The only thing I missed on my riding gear was the knee guard. So, my right knee got badly bruised. All other parts of my body was scratchless due to armour jacket, gloves, shoes, etc.

May be it was not that good day for me. I wouldn't say bad day as I escaped without any major injuries or fracture. Was able to walk and ride the bike home to Delhi. Got cleaning/dressing of knee bruise and pain killer/tetanus injection done on one of the hospitals on NH8 highway. Got x-ray as well done of leg to rule out any fractures.

In terms of damage to bike, right side of front fairing, right fairing, exhaust pipe scratched badly. Right idicator and right foot rest broken. Also, the green right tailcover, which I bought from Tokyo broken.

Lessons learnt from this incident for riding Ninja,
- make sure one is wearing the COMPLETE gear, never know when you might need it. I would have escaped scratchless, if I had the knee protector. Riding gear is damaged of course, but that's why riding gear is for.
- need practising of braking and get used it, before ride it fast beyond 100KM limit.
- should have got the frame slider installed, would have saved lot of bruising on the bike.

so sorry to hear about this

Did the lever pulsated? become harder?

Sorry to hear that Venki - and glad to know that you are safe. I am though puzzled why the bike did that to you - did you jam on the front brakes? I've had vehicles stopping in front of me at high speeds and I do the tap-release-tap-release-tap thing on my front brake while keeping the rear brake mildly pressed.

And riding gear - that is what makes all the difference.

sorry for the fall but... ninja is having the best brake's for a 250 CC. at high speeds one should have a combo of front , rear and if possible gear (shift down quick) for stable stoppage. how much pressure on the brakes you have to experiment and finalize for your ninja. this has to be done after each service also. if you have to squeeze suddenly on the brake i will do it on the rear brake first because the consequences are less if the road is good, the bike will skid in a straight line compared to the front brake where the full rear weight( because of the laws of motion) tends to get carried forward as in your case causing the skid.

practice braking by speed riding on a good road.


may be blue volt in this forum can give some hand on lessons on ninja riding and handling which will help every one who has a ninja.

i very much appreciate you for coming out openly about the incident , so lot of ninja and other superbike riders will benefit and ride safe.

i request all ninja owners to contribute your difficult riding experiences which will benefit all of us.

@ n_venki_2001 - sorry to hear about the fall...good that you were wearing the complete gear... again as bluevolt said, it is weird why the bike behaved that way...the front shouldn't have dived unless the front brakes were pressed completely and held that way...

Im guessing you applied the rear too hard, because whats normal rear brake application in any bike, is slightly on the higher side on the 250R. Hope you have a speedy recovery, and your steed also gets in shape soon.

Check the engine cover on the right side for any cracks or damage, also the exhaust manifold.

When you give the bike to the service centre, before hand check any and all parts that require replacement, do not miss out anything. Also go for as much replacement as possible, not repair.

Thanks for the concerns guys.

Can't remember exactly which brake I pressed harder. It all happened in matter of seconds. Somehow I made the bike slip in braking. I will try bluevolt's suggested method in future.

As harikeshpk pointed out, I wanted to mention this in the forum, so that fellow Ninja riders who want to ride fast make sure that they have proper riding gear and check out their braking before they attempt to ride fast. Else you might not have a good day.

Spoken to probiking service center and informed them that I won't be ale to bring the bike in this week for inspection, due to knee injury. Will try to get it in next sunday. jd666, will keep your point in mind, when I take my bike there.

Hey one more thing...if there are parts you are sure you'd want to be replaced, try to order them soon...otherwise it will take the ProBiking guys some time to order the parts from Pune once you give them the bike ... they usually don't stock the expensive parts...just a heads up...get well soon...

This is my version of stage braking, and it works well for me. Not all taps/pumps are equal in force; the first one being very mild while lever tap# 4-5 the is what makes the bike come to a complete stop.

Second that!

seems you steered while braking(a natural course done to avoid obstacle) which lead to the slip.

hope you realized the importance of riding gear even for casual rides,

Wishing you the best for a fast recovery for you and your Motorcycle.

dropped the bike twice at low speeds (10-20km/hr)...not a single scratch on the bike..thanks to my crash kit.