Kawasaki Ninja 650 ABS

Overview

One of the flag bearers of the fully faired touring supersport motorcycles in the country, the Kawasaki Ninja 650 has created quite a stupendous reputation for itself. The motorcycle went through a major revamp a couple of years ago, which not only changed the way it looked but revised its overall character altogether. Currently, in Malaysia, the Ninja 650 is being offered in red and green color options.

Design

Like the previous generation Ninja 650, this new version too is basically a fully faired version of its naked counterpart, the Z650. What this clearly means that it shares its overall design with the Z650, however, the minimalist front end here is replaced by a bulky looking full fairing with twin headlamp setup. The fairing now looks much more aggressive than ever before, bringing it closer to the ZX-6R in terms of visual appeal.

On the sides, the curvaceous fuel tank, sharp side cowls, and pointy lifted rear end have been retained from the Z650. And so is the dual seat setup, however, in the process, the pillion seta has become less comfortable than that of the previous generation Ninja 650. Like on the Ninja 300, the turn indicators are placed on the side portion of the full fairing, which partially covers the engine with an underbelly exhaust. The X-shaped full LED tail lamp is a nice and unique touch to the Ninja 650. The design for the alloy wheels could have been better, though.

The instrument console, thankfully, is not the same unit as that of the Z650, but a revised form of the previous generation model’s unit. The part digital console consists of an analogue tachometer and an LCD screen for digital readouts for speedometer, gear indicator, odometer, trip meters, fuel gauge, temperature indicator and clock.

Ride & Handling

Thanks to fantastically balanced suspension, the Ninja 650 has built up a strong goodwill in its favor, for being a wonderful sports tourer. The new Ninja 650 raises up its own set bars even higher with a new and even better chassis under the skin. The new Ninja 650 sits on an all-new trellis frame and is blessed with 41mm telescopic forks at the front and a horizontal back-link with preload adjustment at the rear. Like before, the overall suspension has been set in such a way that it is neither too stiff nor too soft. The Ninja 650 gets dual 300 mm petal disc brakes at front and a single 220 mm petal disc brake. 

Engine & Fuel Consumption

As expected, the engine on the Ninja 650 is the same four stroke, liquid cooled, fuel injected, inline twin, 649cc engine that has been doing its duty on the Z650. Mated to a 6-speed gearbox, this engine, on the Ninja 650, pumps out a maximum power of 68 PS and a maximum torque of 65.7 Nm. As compared to the previous generation Ninja 650, this engine sees a drop of 4.1PS in power, however, an increase of 1.7Nm in torque output is also there. Adding to it, the new Ninja 650 is almost 17 kgs lighter than its predecessor, thus giving the former a better power-to-weight ratio with a meatier mid-range.

Braking & Safety

Compared to the previous generation model, the new Ninja 650 comes with ABS as a standard safety equipment, which is quite a welcoming and appreciative step taken by Kawasaki.

Verdict

When it comes to value for money, the new Kawasaki Ninja 650 hits just the right spot and proves to be a worthy successor to the previous generation model. The overall design looks much more aggressive in flash as compared to the slightly drab looking previous model, which will certainly impress those who loved the sportier stance of the ZX-6R, but found it too aggressive.

On paper, the Ninja 650 seems to be less powerful than the model it replaced, however, in the real world, the story is altogether different, with the bike getting a better power-to-weight ratio, increase in mid-range, and better performance down the rev range. And with a completely revamped and precise chassis, the Ninja 650 has become a more mature motorcycle in terms of ride and handling balance.