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@scox91
Im also in uk im wondering which bike you bought?
I have the 400 and do find its needs to be revved hard to keep its speed up ,its got plenty of speed for our motorways.
I would want a bigger bike on our motorways as you know no one sits on the limit ,
.the ninja 400 will not do 120mph I dont care what you read on here it won't
if you think it will come and sit next to my triumph ,
the advantages of the 400 are its light it handles really well

One big disadvantage , is that mine was very jerky on throttle so much that I didn't like going round islands so had a fuel module fitted .

lots of accessories for them, on mine I have tail tidy Akropovic exhaust, larger screen, a fuel module, seat cowl and no the exhaust won't make it faster its not a two stroke just sounds a lot better ,
 
...the ninja 400 will not do 120mph I dont care what you read on here it won't
Need to bear in mind chap that a lot of the top speed reports on here are from riders in North America with the 36kW engine.

FWIW when my bike was stock I got 120.4MPH out of it and I have the same 33.4kW ECU as yourself.
Post fitting pipe and ECU flash I have now seen 124.8MPH on the optimistic clock.

Must be that thick murky English weather slowing your bike down! :biggrin:
 
@ KIWI. to even try to get that speed with our bikes you would screaming its balls off ,

what I can say is 2 stock 400 only posted speeds of of 101mph through timing lights
My Akropovic did not give any more speed in fact Exhaust on 4 stroke bikes rarely give any more power ,

but maybe ECU flash alters ignition timing so that would give you more power ,

I Would like to know just how the Power is retarded on our bikes ,we could possibly alter it
to same as yours.

My hand book says Power out put is 43.4@9.900 revs

36KW would be 48 hp
 
Quote: @ KIWI. to even try to get that speed with our bikes you would screaming its balls off ,

what I can say is 2 stock 400 only posted speeds of of 101mph through timing lights.


I think that shows how different each particular bike is?? When my bike was stock, I was cruising on a central California coast highway at 85mph. I decided to pass a truck and easily blasted up to 108mph gps/110mph bike, it didn't take much to get her there. She definitely had more in her. I decided a night with my wife in a hotel was a bit better than a night in jail so I backed off. About 5 miles past that, there was a cop checking speeds.... :surprise: I wish I had put the bike on a dyno before I made any changes so that I could compare what I have now. Anthony (ME-Motorsports) is doing that right now with his 400. I am very excited to see his results. By the way, my Honda CRF250 will do 80mph at 8,000' elevation, it is hard for me to understand how a 400cc street bike can just barely make 100mph at a lower elevation.
 
My Akropovic did not give any more speed in fact Exhaust on 4 stroke bikes rarely give any more power ,

but maybe ECU flash alters ignition timing so that would give you more power ,

I Would like to know just how the Power is retarded on our bikes ,we could possibly alter it
to same as yours.

My hand book says Power out put is 43.4@9.900 revs

36KW would be 48 hp
The retarding is in the fuel and ignition maps and you need to flash your ECU to get more power. You would get good gains with the Akrapovic if you tuned your fueling to suit that pipe.

From my Dyno runs I can tell you my gains.
Fit Scorpion slip on - 1.8HP
Alter fuel Maps to suit - 1.7HP
Advance ignition by 3 degrees - .5HP
Total gain - 4HP

Quote: @ KIWI. to even try to get that speed with our bikes you would screaming its balls off...
Yep, you just have to give it it's head! After a couple of track days where I thrashed it without mercy I'm not too concerned about the odd top speed run. There's guys racing these things, they will handle it.
 
The 2019 Ninja 650 is growing on me. Especially the black with a hint of green color scheme.
A significant increase in hp and nearly double the torque the 400 has, wider front 120 and rear 160 tires for sportier appearance, and I personally love the location of the exhaust where it is almost level with the ground just so sexy.

I do like the looks of the Ninja 400 from the front a lot better as it has a much more sportier and aggressive stance and is 3k dollars cheaper.

That's where the problem starts in my opinion. The Ninja 400 for 5k is a awesome deal, while the Ninja 650 for 8k is a great deal and if that is the bike you truly want I have nothing against that, but..........
at that point your in the same ball park of two other bikes which I truly love the z900 which is just a few hundred more ($750.00) and zx6r (another 2k but now your getting a premier super sport).

I probably wouldn't buy one for this reason, but I would really love riding a 650 just to feel the difference from the 400.
 
The Ninja 400 for 5k is a awesome deal, while the Ninja 650 for 8k is a great deal and if that is the bike you truly want I have nothing against that, but..........
at that point your in the same ball park of two other bikes which I truly love the z900 which is just a few hundred more ($750.00) and zx6r (another 2k but now your getting a premier super sport).
Agreed. But what if the price on the Ninja 400 was $6600 and the 650 was $7700 - would you even consider the 400 at that point?

That's the situation they have in India right now due to the tariffs on foreign-built motorcycles (Ninja 400 isn't manufactured locally while the 650 is.)

As for the Z-bikes, I'm a fan of naked bikes but for some reason, the Z's look like a half-baked Ninja to me. The Z900RS, on the other hand, now that's a beautiful bike that looks complete on its own.
 
The 2019 Ninja 650 is growing on me. Especially the black with a hint of green color scheme.
A significant increase in hp and nearly double the torque the 400 has, wider front 120 and rear 160 tires for sportier appearance, and I personally love the location of the exhaust where it is almost level with the ground just so sexy.

I do like the looks of the Ninja 400 from the front a lot better as it has a much more sportier and aggressive stance and is 3k dollars cheaper.

That's where the problem starts in my opinion. The Ninja 400 for 5k is a awesome deal, while the Ninja 650 for 8k is a great deal and if that is the bike you truly want I have nothing against that, but..........
at that point your in the same ball park of two other bikes which I truly love the z900 which is just a few hundred more ($750.00) and zx6r (another 2k but now your getting a premier super sport).

I probably wouldn't buy one for this reason, but I would really love riding a 650 just to feel the difference from the 400.
rats, i am back to the whole Ninja 650 or ZX-6R or 400 thing again now :grin:. i LOVED ZX-6R but then it is way way way beyond me so buried the thought eventually (although the 2017 ZX-6R is on sale for 8,798 usd in MD,just saying).

i had zeroed in on the 650 and it was almost home but for the following:
1. 400 has a sportier feel to it. nimble, fast and begs to be ripped. 650 is fast too (the 30 added horses of course and 80% more torque almost) but more contained i feel. 400 is a lot easier to throw in corners as against 650 (but i am a noob at cornering so thats just me maybe).
2. price difference oh yeah. both being kawi do ensure reliability and i can rip my 400 without the fear associated with breakdowns (ducati/triumph if i may) and be content with it.
3. riding style -- city, touring (twisties specifically, mountains) and hence 400 was more suited for me.
4. the whole "It's more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow" thing. i can comfortably hold 75mph on a 400 with still some gas left in its tank. i wont go beyond it (race track someday perhaps) and hence it checks all the boxes.

the only thing about 650 was the highway stability. 400 does get me on the edge with those crosswinds but a corsa upgrade should do well and maybe i ll learnt o handle winds better.

justification for my purchase , yeah :devil: but some sound logic too i say.
 
Hi guyz.. i use to ride ktmRc200 n now i wnt to upgrade to a bigger cc bike but confused between ninja 400 & ninja 650. There is not much difference between the price also so plz hlp me to decide... my preferences go with sports bike n nt mch intrstd in touring.i love doin cornering
I would go with the Ninja 650 or MT-07. I adore my 400, but had I had better credit I would have got a bigger bike. That being said, the 400 is stupid fun and stupid cheap to own, if you get a ninja 650 though make sure to get a 2018+, they shaved 42 pounds from it and redesigned it a bit
 
Man those high tariffs in India are horrendous, I wish people in India could get the Ninja 400 for the same prices we pay, but unfortunately in their situation with the prices of the Ninja 400 and Ninja 650 being so similar it would be foolish not to get the 650.

Wow $8798 for a 2017 zx-6r, if its a left over brand new model...I would be thinking really hard about a possible upgrade, it has always been my dream to have a 600cc class super sport. I'm no pro having purchased my 400 last November straight out of msf course, but with 3000 miles on my bike their is one mistake I make often that might kick my in the rear with a zx-6r. I catch myself missing an up-shift for example from 3rd to 4th and I rip the throttle thinking i'm in 4th and all the sudden rpm is near redlline still in 3rd, I wonder if something like that might make you lift the frond end on the zx-6r and freak you out for a split second.

At the end of the day, I'm really happy with my Ninja 400. Going to rain in northern California for the next 10 days, so kind of bummed out.
 
There are deals to be had on the Ninja 650, but not so much on the 400 it seems. I've bought three bikes from these folks now and been really happy with them: https://www.souheganvalleymotorspor...i-Motorcycle-Scooter-Ninja-650-ABS-Souhegan-Valley-Motorsports-5833980?ref=list
I think they're just charging $100 doc fee and $130 setup fee on top of the $7074, but no destination fee.

Since I already have a 2016 Versys 650 LT that I bought from them, I'm not interested in a Ninja 650, I'm mainly lurking here because I want a lighter, more nimble street bike. I think the Versys 650 is all the road touring bike I will ever need. I've been looking at CL for used 2018 Ninja 400's.
 
rats, i am back to the whole Ninja 650 or ZX-6R or 400 thing again now :grin:. i LOVED ZX-6R but then it is way way way beyond me so buried the thought eventually (although the 2017 ZX-6R is on sale for 8,798 usd in MD,just saying).

i had zeroed in on the 650 and it was almost home but for the following:
1. 400 has a sportier feel to it. nimble, fast and begs to be ripped. 650 is fast too (the 30 added horses of course and 80% more torque almost) but more contained i feel. 400 is a lot easier to throw in corners as against 650 (but i am a noob at cornering so thats just me maybe).
2. price difference oh yeah. both being kawi do ensure reliability and i can rip my 400 without the fear associated with breakdowns (ducati/triumph if i may) and be content with it.
3. riding style -- city, touring (twisties specifically, mountains) and hence 400 was more suited for me.
4. the whole "It's more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow" thing. i can comfortably hold 75mph on a 400 with still some gas left in its tank. i wont go beyond it (race track someday perhaps) and hence it checks all the boxes.

the only thing about 650 was the highway stability. 400 does get me on the edge with those crosswinds but a corsa upgrade should do well and maybe i ll learnt o handle winds better.

justification for my purchase , yeah :devil: but some sound logic too i say.
If most of your riding is going to be commuting that consists of some highways, get the 650. While the 400 has enough power from standstill, it only has adequate passing power. I would gladly trade some top-end speed for more 60-80 passing power.

Also, you'll outgrow it fast. I've only been riding for 3 months and while Im still learning, I can tell I'll outgrow the 400 by the end of this riding season. Im already peeking at reviews of various middleweight naked and sport touring bikes.

Having said all that, I love my Ninja--its nimbleness, sports bike position, and its looks. After all, since its launch, its been regarded as the best sub-500cc street bike and by that definition, the best lightweight bike. So I'll probably end up having two different but complementary bikes in the garage.

So there's your solution :)
 
If most of your riding is going to be commuting that consists of some highways, get the 650. While the 400 has enough power from standstill, it only has adequate passing power. I would gladly trade some top-end speed for more 60-80 passing power.

Also, you'll outgrow it fast. I've only been riding for 3 months and while Im still learning, I can tell I'll outgrow the 400 by the end of this riding season. Im already peeking at reviews of various middleweight naked and sport touring bikes.

Having said all that, I love my Ninja--its nimbleness, sports bike position, and its looks. After all, since its launch, its been regarded as the best sub-500cc street bike and by that definition, the best lightweight bike. So I'll probably end up having two different but complementary bikes in the garage.

So there's your solution :)
to some extent i agree about getting a 650 if one is a commuter and tourer. it makes more sense yes. but 400 is not bad for the same intent too.

However, i dont understand the outgrowing it fast piece. 400 is a track focused bike and as such finds itself home when thrown into corners and accelerating out of it. for a beginner this skill takes time and i seriously doubt for such folks the outgrowing it fast would come that easy. the other aspect is braking. I have seen so many riders cornering with almost both cheeks out of the seat (inside) but then keeping the shoulder and head pointed outside to automatically compensate for the shift in CoG (which renders the whole butt out moot). And they still do not seem to realize this.

Heck, i have been riding (commuting) for 15 yrs on bikes that were good at acceleration and for city riding but never gave me confidence in corners or even with panic braking. So much so that i had 2 crashes (one while cornering, gravel to be blamed) and the other was a straight line target fixation and i couldnt brake (jittery nerves).

with the 400 the whole cornering on twisties is a different world altogether and i dont believe it is easy to outgrow it soon. the OEM stock tire is decent and i love cornering on it but then a better tire (think michelin road 4 or Pirelli Angel GT) would up the game even more and there would be more to learn on the very same bike.

But then i have barely ridden anything bigger then a ninja 650 (hayabusa once but was s**t scared). Maybe the seasoned riders can throw some light on this.

ride safe, have fun.
 
to some extent i agree about getting a 650 if one is a commuter and tourer. it makes more sense yes. but 400 is not bad for the same intent too.

However, i dont understand the outgrowing it fast piece. 400 is a track focused bike and as such finds itself home when thrown into corners and accelerating out of it. for a beginner this skill takes time and i seriously doubt for such folks the outgrowing it fast would come that easy. the other aspect is braking. I have seen so many riders cornering with almost both cheeks out of the seat (inside) but then keeping the shoulder and head pointed outside to automatically compensate for the shift in CoG (which renders the whole butt out moot). And they still do not seem to realize this.

Heck, i have been riding (commuting) for 15 yrs on bikes that were good at acceleration and for city riding but never gave me confidence in corners or even with panic braking. So much so that i had 2 crashes (one while cornering, gravel to be blamed) and the other was a straight line target fixation and i couldnt brake (jittery nerves).

with the 400 the whole cornering on twisties is a different world altogether and i dont believe it is easy to outgrow it soon. the OEM stock tire is decent and i love cornering on it but then a better tire (think michelin road 4 or Pirelli Angel GT) would up the game even more and there would be more to learn on the very same bike.

But then i have barely ridden anything bigger then a ninja 650 (hayabusa once but was s**t scared). Maybe the seasoned riders can throw some light on this.

ride safe, have fun.
Yea, I meant outgrowing the N400 from a power perspective, not anything else. First two months, as I was getting used to freeway speeds, I thought the power would be enough. The last month of riding, I realized it wasn't. :( My butt dyno says 60-80 takes about 3 seconds. Much too long to pass cars with authority,

And it isn't the N400's fault....it is a sub 500cc bike after all. Otherwise, I think Ninja 400 is a gem and keeper. I understand now, why people have more than one bike. :)

But for commuting/touring purposes, a bigger bike than a 400cc bike, I learned, is preferable.
 
@scox91
Im also in uk im wondering which bike you bought?
I have the 400 and do find its needs to be revved hard to keep its speed up ,its got plenty of speed for our motorways.
I would want a bigger bike on our motorways as you know no one sits on the limit ,
.the ninja 400 will not do 120mph I dont care what you read on here it won't
if you think it will come and sit next to my triumph ,
the advantages of the 400 are its light it handles really well

One big disadvantage , is that mine was very jerky on throttle so much that I didn't like going round islands so had a fuel module fitted .

lots of accessories for them, on mine I have tail tidy Akropovic exhaust, larger screen, a fuel module, seat cowl and no the exhaust won't make it faster its not a two stroke just sounds a lot better ,
I went for the Ninja 400, i just found everytime i got off it i thought wow that was fun. Not that i didnt enjoy the 650 because i loved the extra power but it just didnt have that same wow factor for me in anything other than outright speed.
I am loving the bike so far and have gained a lot more confidence on it. I do need to do more motorway miles though as i tend to wimp out on it. Need to find some people local to me to ride with as none of my friends have bikes and i think that would help improve my skills on the bike.
I have a tail tidy, arrow exhaust and puig screen, defo want the tail tidy next!
 
Out growing a bike

This is comment is not directed at anyone in particular. I have been hearing this statement for years, “I have outgrown my bike”. “ I think I need a 1000.” Pretty much everyone who said that has never done a track day. Do a track day on that bike you think you have outgrown. I bet you will feel different after. That being said we all have reasons for buying the bike that we have. AND they make different sizes of bikes so we have many choices. From 49cc to 2000cc. Not everyone wants to do track days or ride twisties or commute or stunt. Ideally I wish I could afford a garage full of bikes. At the moment I have the N400 and a gixxer 600.
That combo works for me...............for now lol.:grin:
 
“I have outgrown my bike”. “ I think I need a 1000.”
Exactly! If you "outgrow" the N400...probably not going to be happy until everyone sees you on your new BMW HP4.

I see most of the outgrowing for novice riders done at traffic lights when the liter bikes pull up, huffing and puffing for air and bleeding heat all over the place. They will drag their right toe 1/4mi on the straights almost out of sight, could make the novice feel insecure about their size, but patience will always win because if you really know how to ride your bike, you will be stuffing those guys up the rear in the corners. It happens every weekend....of course they will always be amazed at what your "little" bike can do...not the skill the driver just had...:grin:
 
This is comment is not directed at anyone in particular. I have been hearing this statement for years, “I have outgrown my bike”. “ I think I need a 1000.” Pretty much everyone who said that has never done a track day. Do a track day on that bike you think you have outgrown. I bet you will feel different after. That being said we all have reasons for buying the bike that we have. AND they make different sizes of bikes so we have many choices. From 49cc to 2000cc. Not everyone wants to do track days or ride twisties or commute or stunt. Ideally I wish I could afford a garage full of bikes. At the moment I have the N400 and a gixxer 600.
That combo works for me...............for now lol.:grin:
Since I might be the only person that made that sort of comment, I'll assume it's me :)

I think it was fair of me to say that once a new rider gets some experience, that the N400 as a highway commuter, is adequate in passing power, but a 650-class would be preferable. I think many, if not most, people would agree to that.

If you thought that I was saying Im an accomplished rider, or will be in a year, then you severely misinterpreted my post.

I think merely uttering the words "outgrow" in a sub 500cc bike forum leads to well...misinterpretation.
 
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