The Kawasaki Ninja 650R, Affordable is Back
<img width="220" height="174" class="floatleft" src="motorcycle.in.th/images/articles/The-Kawasaki-Ninja-650R_Affordable-Bike_1.jpg" alt="" />The Kawasaki Ninja 650R, or ER-6F. High-minded, bevel-booted sportbike purists and disciples of the committed riding position will dismiss the Kawasaki Ninja 650R. It's not big or bad enough to inspire awe in all who cross its path. It doesn't costs as much as a new pickup truck. The Kawasaki Ninja 650R is just 50 percent of the cost of its closest competitor. And the Kawasaki Ninja 650R bears little resemblance to the sort of thing usually flung around race-tracks by brave men in expensive leathers on Sunday afternoons.And you know what? Such upmarket elitists will miss the boat. You know why? Because the Kawasaki Ninja 650R is fun.
Contrary to popular mythology, fun is not all about the amount of times you needed to use the ATM to pay for the bike. It's not about impersonating Valentino Rossi on Saturday or Sunday mornings, either. Our meticulously subjective research has discovered no reliable correlation between expenditure and enjoyment. Still, most motorcycle manufacturers have done little to refute the horsepower equals happiness equation, relying instead on racier, more expensive efforts to keep the cash registers ringing.
Affordable has been another word for overripe ideas wrapped in bold new graphics – at least until we looked at the Kawasaki's Ninja 650R.
The Kawasaki Ninja 650R looks a bit different from its predecessors, it is. The Kawasaki Ninja 650R idea started with questions about what riders want, aiming at a comfortable target that would inspire confidence and toothy grins in riders at either end of the sportbike learning curve. Contrary to what you might think, hitting a target that big is a lot harder than focusing on a small niche one.
Beneath the Ninja 650R's fairing you'll find a well known, reliable parallel two-cylinder which Kawasaki also uses for the Kawasaki ER-6N. The engine creates a layout that's narrower than a in-line four and shorter than an equivalent V-twin. A pair of 38mm dual fuel-injection throttle bodies feed the fire with perfection.
The Ninja 650R's ideal handlebar, seat and footpeg relationship results in a comfortable and natural riding position suiting a wide range of riders.
Whether your riding experience is measured in months or decades, the Kawasaki Ninja 650R presents a solid first impression, with minimal evidence of its 257,000 Baht price tag.
