Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

2017 CBR650F test ride not available so far. Rode the versys and I loved it.

2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

[MENTION=92853]Urbane.surfer[/MENTION]
Buddy you need think in that way what will be your purpose if mostly off-roading and bit of touring the versys will be great choice for you and if you are in love of i4 and need something for touring long distance touring mainly good roads only pinch of off-roading the go for cbr 650f. Also cbr has one plus point its i4 and also on paper its specs are not that aggressive but it runs like anything.

According to your case i would suggest you should go for cbr650f.It's beautiful crafted bike with smooth and linear power delivery with the sound of inline 4.I personally love cbr 650f.

Still you are confused the go to show room take the test ride of both and then Ask from your hands and bumbs [emoji1]which you like most and you'll get the answer.
By hearing this it might sound bit weird but trust me it really works [emoji56].

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

With Mumbai potholes and speed breakers I seriously think that 133mm ground clearance on cbr650f will be major pain point once the initial excitement of owning one dies

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Test Rode the CBR650F 2016 model today for about half an hour, the first 15-20 minutes in Bumper to bumper traffic and the next 15 minutes on eastern express highway in Mumbai. The experience was exhilarating to say the least. The acceleration once we hit the highway was absolutely killer and the engine worked like a hot knife slicing butter. That said what I felt though and that's my humble opinion coming as a novice is that inline 4's are super good on highway but not so much in traffic. It works no doubt but that's not what it is designed for. Also the slightly aggressive seating position was a "bit" stressful for me, once in Highway though the stress vanished and turned into a wide grin. The handling is superb in high speeds and the engine comes to life after 5k rpm.
The ground clearance will be an issue I suppose, surprisingly the wheelbase for Versys and cbr is same so is the weight. The power difference though is huge on CBR650F but the torque on versys is a bit on a higher side (that's why the wheelie we see on YouTube videos) I have this lingering thought that fairing and catalytic converter at the bottom of the cbr650f bike will inadvertently scrape or worst will damage the bike on big breakers. I think versys is what's coming out to be a more sensible option for me. Again I'm a novice.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.


I have had the CBR for 2 years now. If you are riding single, only the tallest of the speed breakers might have a problem. I have only scraped it once and that too was my mistake because of incorrect speed through the bump. CBR is stiffer hence is able to deal with breakers well. If you are 2 up, then yes, you will either have to increase the Pre load or be very cautious of the breakers. Versys is a different story altogether because of its high ground clearence. In my experience the stock Ninja because of being softer can scrape more but if ridden cautiously both the Ninja and the CBR have similar breaker avoiding abilities.


Rachit

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Hi Guys, thanks for helping me out in zeroing on the bike. I picked up another ride altogether after taking test rides of the same at least 4 times for varied lengths of time and in peak Andheri traffic and at times with no traffic at all. I found the bike to be very comfortable and torque is good you can ride at 30kph in 5th gear with little or no heat in heavy traffic.
Getting home a street triple s 765. Black color. Boy m I happy. Bought all the gear as well.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.



Great buddy Congratulations.
Wishing you many many safe miles on your ride.
Do post your ownership review.


Finally After few months of ownership I came up with mine

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Street triple S? Interesting option, had a test ride once, loved the torque on the bike usability in the city and engine didn't heat up too much in traffic, my only concern was the ground clearance that it's even lower than the cbr at just 130mm, rs you can adjust the suspension to battle those hard speed bumps, but still a fantastic bike, do post your initial impressions and full ownership after you've ridden enough to talk and understand the character of the bike, if I ever upgrade, considered the street triple very highly but now Suzuki are launching the gsx s 750 next year at the auto expo it comes with 3 riding modes, 3 level traction control, abs, and that inline 4 from the amazing the gsxr 750, will wait n see how it's priced, I've only heard good things about the bike.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

[MENTION=79821]Deathwing[/MENTION] incidentally I spoke to the Suzuki guys and they said GSX-S750 should be available by Feb 2018. It's an inline 4 with couple of riding modes thrown around to make it safer bike to ride. Power is similar to Striple 765s that's 112HP. I'm also being told that they are going to keep pricing very attractive. Think in the lines of z900. What I don't know if it will be available on CKD platform or CBU, as the latter attracts 22%Tax in Maharashtra compared to 12% tax in CKD. However talking about me, I loved Striple and wouldn't have waited for Suzuki. Just FYI there's a Comparo on youtube of MT-09, Striple 765s, Suzuki GSX-S750, Brutale800 and Z900 from Motorad. Fantastic video must see. Will post pics once I get the hand on Striple.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Triumph Street Triple S. Apologies for not wearing proper gears in these photographs as it were taken just to show the bike and to take photos of the same, before riding I did wear the entire thing. Have bought proper gear except the knee guards so far.

Will post a review once I've ridden it for a while. The last two days have been horrible in Mumbai. Didn't take my bike out.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Congrats for your new possession!

What is the service interval of your Striple?

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Thanks mate!

First service is 1000 kms or 1 month, whichever is earlier.
Second service is 10000 kms or 1 year, whichever is earlier.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Let me know about the ownership of the striple, lovely bike, very usable in the city, I just wished abs was switchable. Correct me if I'm wrong it's in a different state of tune than the rs, power kicks in much earlier, also let me know how it is over speed breakers and pot holes, the low ground clearance is a pain. I'm willing to wait n see how the Suzuki is priced, reason I'm heavily consider the Suzuki is its got decent amount of tech, if priced below or with the S model, it's definitely worth the money and I have a affiliation with Suzuki, soo I've requested a higher up for a test ride, soo yeah.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Yes it's in a different state of tune than RS but the power difference is not much about 15HP, the torque is also not very high but what makes RS a beast is that both of these kicks in earlier than that of S. Quite frankly I haven't been able to ride at more than 90kmph because of the rev limiter being set at 4000 rpm till 1000 kms and first service is done. The S, I feel is much more attuned to Indian road conditions as it absorbs the bumps much better than RS. The low ground clearance hasn't been much or a problem so far because of the shorter wheelbase, so unless a speed breaker is really nasty it shouldn't scrape the bottom. A disclaimer is that I ride solo. About Suzuki the Japs makes one of the best bikes no doubt, it's going to be an interesting comparison.

Re: 2017 Kawasaki Ninja 650 or Harley Davidson Street Rod - A beginner's dilemma.

Hi Guys it's been sometime since I've posted on this forum. Been busy with a lot of work and a bit of riding as well. Clocked about 2000 kms in 2 months. Been on Bumper to Bumper traffic for almost 45 minutes in Mumbai and rode for about 250kms non stop (One stop for a tea). These are my thoughts so far.
1. Heat is not an issue at all with this bike, not one that will make you uncomfortable, even in bumper to bumper traffic that too coming from a guy who use this bike for mostly his daily commute to office and I have to wear formal trousers for the same. (that was before I bought a riding jeans)
2. Very lightweight with a dry weight of 166 Kgs its very nimble and doesn't pose any problems in taking your bike anywhere without fear of it falling out of control.
3. Now not so good thing is that it still hurt my arms after riding in heavy traffic, I've been patient in thinking that this is problem that will go once I'm used to the bike, but even after 2000 kms respite is not to be seen. It's not a problem in high speed because wind blast actually takes some weight off your hands. I figure I've to do a lot of arm exercise.
4. Punctured the Rosso Corsa rear tyre in 300kms. Very strange but then I work on construction sites at times. Road side assistance guys towed the vehicle and got the puncture fixed without charging a penny.
5. Ground Clearance has not been a problem so far, scraped only once on a mountainous speed breaker. Not so much of an issue, but then again I ride solo all the time and I'm 70kgs myself, a heavyset rider or one with a pillion may find this to be a slight problem, one has to be careful these days.
6. First service costed about 7k. Now rev limiter is not limited anymore. Although I've been to speeds upwards of 150 kmph on a very well paved road in early morning hours with no traffic, I've hardly used 6th gear so far. Even at 150 kmph I was on 5th gear with healthy rpms still to loose.
7. Wind blast is a big issue, although I've bought a racing helmet AGV K5, still the wind blast is huge post 150 mark that actually deters me from pulling it any further, it starts from my chest up, I'm 5'10. Will buy a puig screen for this shortly.
8. The RAT, (Rider Association of Triumph) is a fantastic group and mostly every weekend there's one ride or the other that these guys organize, the group has both classic and adventure bikes and are great fun to spend time with, also the dealer regularly organizes basics of biking at their workshop in Goregaon.
9. I've a black color bike and normally doesn't attract a lot of attention from people unless it starts screaming once you pull the throttle. That IMHO is a good thing and bad thing as well for obvious reasons. Most people come asking me what company is Triumph and is this bike for 2 Lacs plus.
10. It's a fun bike and is great on twisties, tyres are great. No nonsense bike and can give some of the more expensive bikes a run of their money.

Gears bought
1. TGP-R Alpinestars mesh jacket, has been a boon in hot riding conditions. Bought from a dealer in Mumbai.
2. AGV K5 Helmet, fits very well and is quite light weight no strain on the neck, very good air circulation once on the move.
3. BIKERATTI jeans with c2 protection pads, looks smart and easy to wash.
4. AGV Sport Gloves, very basic protection around knuckles, fingers and palm, have to upgrade soon as I think I have bought a size smaller.

In essence it's a commuter bike when you want it and has a beastly side to it when you crave for it. If the bike could have a story spun around it, it would be Jekyll and Hyde.

Some pics