Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

Even I maintain my bikes myself.
Its the parts price and availability which is a concern with Kawasaki. Most of the time they wont sell you parts off counter and will make you bring your bike to the SVC and thery will fix the parts. This way they will charge you both for the part and labour (which is around Rs.2000 per hour in Bangalore).

Even I have the urge of a Inline 4 as have been using parallel twins for quite sometime, however I am not adverse to a triple as well. At the end, its the ride quality that will bring a smile.
Going for a 2008-2013 bike does not make sense as you would be entirely dependant on imports for spares.
My suggestion is to avoid Kawasaki since you want cheap maintainance. Just for e.g. N1000 chain and sprocket costs 40k as compared to 14-18k for CBR 650F.
Kawasaki bikes are good, but spares cost a bomb.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

I was thinking about going aftermarket Chain sprocket setup once my OEM wear off. Ditto for brake pads and other stuff. Seems like CBR650F is the way to go right now. I am concerned if i will regret not jumping to liter class once i get the taste of 650.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

One can never be satisfied with the power. Your body will get used to the acceleration of the 650 within few months (provided you do enough highway runs and open up the trottle liberally). I grew used to the N650 within 2-3 months and the craving started for a litre class.
You can always upgrade few years down the line.
As of now your best bet is CBR 650F.
To be honest the bike that fits the bill would be a N1000 (2017 and above) but its going to cost around 8lacs. Also maintaince will be quite high.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

I won't be doing high speed highway runs. No long/group highway rides. I am buying it to make my once a week commute to office more fun. Or sunday ride to nearby coffee shop. Short burst of thrilling 30-100kph acceleration is what i seek. I surely wouldn't be crossing 120kph with the kind of usage i have.
Coming to the point of upgrading, I don't know if i will be able to convince (or justify) my family for the jump to a liter class after 650. With new responsibilities coming soon. This could be my only superbike i'll ever own. (or atleast for next 6-8 years, option of upgrade seems unlikely). This is where confusion starts, jump directly to a liter class or will 650 keep me happy with my above mentioned usage. I would've waited 1 more year to save some more moolah for a fireblade/ninja 1000. But in current situation, I am sure my upcoming responsibilities and pressure from family would kill off my dream eventually if i wait any longer.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

Since you never plan to go above 120kmph, then a CBR650F would be more than enough.
However I would recommend you to test ride these bikes and get a feel of how they perform.
I do have the feeling that you would cross the 120kmph barrier in no time once you get used to the bike.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

This is exactly what i am feeling comfort zone increases with more power at hand. But then again, I ride in either city (30-60kph) or a busy highway (50-100kph). I get very short strech where i can exceed 120kph. Strong acceleration is what i am looking for right now. I will visit local honda showroom to see if they allow TD of new CBR650R. Considering it has similar power figure, it'd give me good idea how it performs on the street.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

Honda dealers might even have pre owned cbr650f with them (dealer in Pune had a few for sale) , see if you can get a ride on that if you are inclining towards that bike.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

Cbr 650f chain sprocket is 5-7k

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L


2010 Fireblade

100 kmph 2nd gear at 7000 RPM
120 kmph 2nd gear at 8200 RPM

100 kmph 3rd gear at 5700 RPM
120 kmph 3rd gear at 7000 RPM

Do you want a bike that you will never take beyond the third gear? (Litre bikes are pretty dead at lower RPMs anyway)

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

UPDATE to this thread:

Budget is now 6.5L tops.

Requesting mods to change thread title to "Preowned superbike for 6.5L"


I went to Honda and Kawasaki showrooms, no test rides, but i mounted on display bikes to get the feel.

1. CBR 650R : loved the looks, weight is not intimidating. Felt just like my CBR 250R. Wish i could buy a brand new, hopefully CBR650F also feels similar.

2. Z900 : hated the looks, weight is not intimidating

3. Ninja 1000: loved the looks, felt heavy to get off the side stand itself.


So considering i have increased my budget: What options do i have in preowned market?

1. Fireblade accessible?

2. Will ninja 1000 suit my previously mentioned usage?

3. Daytona 675? (pillion comfort is no longer my priority)

4. or should i stick to CBR 650F?


Bike must be bullet proof reliable, should handle RON 91 fuel well and shouldn't have any heating issues during occasional office commutes. I am not a tourier, Usage will mostly be limited to office commutes (city + highway in 50:50 ratio) and short rides of 50-100 KMs


Thanks, while I console myself for the pain of selling my CBR 250R, My budget has increased to 6-6.5L. What options do i have? Ninja 1000? Fireblade?

Need something with atleast 4 years of trouble free ownership.

About the speeds i have mentioned, I guess I would touch 150-160 in short bursts of empty roads, but no sustained high speed runs for sure. I am a pussy when it comes to high speeds.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

Buddy, have you tried renting these MCs out for a day ? Test ride at showroom is way different than actually using them over a few hours. I brought home my Iron 883 in 2013 after i rented out for a day and riding 200kms+.

In my opinion, Hassle free ownership ones are as below:

Ninja 1000 under 7L as in 2015-16 models ? The new model doesn't resale under 8-9L unless there is some problem.

CBR or CBF should match most of your ride reqs. for the new CBR650R you might have to stretch budget a bit further to 8L.

D675 is a legend and people shouldn't be selling it !!! , but up-keep costs are high with Triumph spares now going low(at least here in Hyd and Blr). I'd stop here.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

No superbike rental services anywhere in my city, so its out of question.
Yes i was talking about older pre facelifted ninja 1000. New CBR 650R is 8.9L on road in my city, way above my budget. plus exhaust and accessories will take it further 1L.

If i go for Triumph and Kawasaki, I will get aftermarket parts only (Brake pads, filters etc) and maintain it myself. Question arises whether daytona will run fine on normal petrol.

Never thought this would be so confusing.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

My 2 cents on the topic of petrol - generally a sports bike or rather a bike with a fairing ( like the daytona) will require premium fuel because of the higher compression ratio of the engine. On the other hand naked bikes ( z900, gsxs750) have a relatively lower compression ratio.

This may not be entirely true for all sports and naked bikes, like the the CBR650 being a sports bike can still handle lower octane fuel while the daytona might struggle. Similarly the Gsxs 750 will be fine with regular petrol but the Tuono might struggle.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

So i have almost basically the same requirements apart from the "strict inline 4" of yours.

Now this has created too much of confusion for me right now.
I am someone from a middle class family and to be honest owning a RE 350 is a great thing for us. Of course we can stretch and own the 650s but you know how our family works.

So i was planning for Ninja 650 and with pre-owned and if lucky enough to get something under 3.75- 4.5L would have been great for me.
I was aware of the high costs to maintain a KAWA but these much high costs and the low maintenance of CBR 650 has created more confusion.

Lets see how things pan out in the next 2 months.
Accordingly will plan to buy.

But I must admit I am more inclined towards CBR now, having ridden the smaller sibling 250R ABS for about 23k kms.

What would have happened if not for these guys who actually help us out in every decision.

Thank you all for the inputs and suggestions.

Re: Preowned superbike for 5-5.5L

Let me add my journey that I've have taken on the same route while looking to own a super/sports bike for around 5L.

My requirements were pretty much the same, needs to have ABS, single owner, should be with 780-820 mm seat height max, should be mostly stock with engine with less than 15-25K kms(no things like aftermarket exhaust, Powertronics ECU, re-map etc etc), preferably Japanese and should be registered in same state Karnataka.

So bikes considered for around 4L-6L.
1. Z800/Versys 650 - I loved both bikes, even though I came across some good deals for 5.5L-6L but this bike was too tall at 835mm height and heavy for me, I'd like to plant both my feet any day than tip-toeing which gives me more confidence. Probably I might consider one if I'm installed a seat lowering kit which will bring it down to 815mm.

2. N650/Z650 - ABS model was launched just 2 years back and could not find many examples on used market, even the ones I found had very high asking price of 80-90% of new bike price, so skipped this bike for maybe 1 more year where asking price will come down below 5L.
2.5. - I love this bike, ticks all the box I'm just looking for the right bike

3. CB650F - Same with the N650 ABS model was barely on sale for 6 months in India (launched in Feb 2018 and discontinued in Oct 2018), so you can imagine finding one was like a finding a unicorn, they have exactly sold 143 bikes of ABS model. Even the ones I found had 80% asking price of new bike, eventually gave up and decided to give it another shot later sometime when they reduce in price.

4. Benelli 600i - Loved everything about this bike and found many bikes under 5L, only thing kept me away was the ongoing issue Benelli DSK breakup, once Benelli settles down properly with new dealer I will give it a second shot.

5. Harley Superlow, Street 750, Ducati Scrambler - I really liked the bikes and many bikes were available in the price range but these bikes are not for my type of riding style and usage, so did not consider.

6. Triumph Street 675/D675 - Really I wanted either one of them badly (especially after seeing the Powerdrift reviews) but out of my range. They have very good resale value and hold their price well and cheapest one starts from around 8L+, so out of the list.

7. N1000/Z1000/Z900 - Out of budget, probably will take another 2 years for price to come down below my budget.

8. CFM - Then came the twist, heard that new player CFMoto have launched 3 new bikes for less than 5L this July, waiting for them to reach the showroom. Imagine a brand new 650cc sportbike under 6L.

So finally, hunt is still on. I will continue my search for good N650, Versys 650, CBR650F and keep an eye on Benelli and CFM if they settle their issues with dealerships and things turn out. On the Z800 I will still have to take couple of more test rides to see how the bike feels on long usage interms of height/weight and take a call if a lower sit kit can solve the issue and make it a perfect bike for me.

For you looking for a inline-4 only, I'd say get the CBR650F or Z800 and you can never go wrong with it any day.
GSX750 if you can find one yes go ahead even these are unicorns just like the CBR650F, Suzuki has sold exactly 112 bike till now. This will the most reliable of all bikes.
N1000 felt it's too bulky and heavy even to use it very rarely in the city for office commute.
Benelli 600i not as of now until they sort out things.

Good luck