++++++UPDATED: 05/04/2021 - pics added++++++
I thought I would do, what may be helpful for some, a rating of the mods I have done to my Ninja 400. This can help people who are looking at the perspective mods and deciding whether or not they are worth it or beneficial.
I will put my former mods on the first post, then my oldest mods on the second post, and finally my newest mods on the third post, then rate them all. Former mods were mods I deemed not good enough, or decided to go another route with.
I will put a little insight, what it is, the price, and the rating. While your mileage may vary and your opinion differ, I thought this would be helpful to some.
Rating guide:
0 = Dangerous, use at your own risk!
1-4 = I found it a waste of money, non-functional, or a bad value.
5 = Decent, but not exceptional
6-7 = Good mod
8-9 = Highly recommended mod
10 = No brainer mod, best of the best
By all means, feel free to comment, ask questions, or share your own mods and rating. Just please keep the 0-10 scale with 10 being best/essential and 0 being a waste of money and time, or dangerous modification.
Without further ado, let me get into it.
Former Mods:
Brand: Two Brothers
Model: Hurricane exhaust
What it is: Slip-on exhaust for the Ninja 400
Cost: $350-380
Rating: 6 out of 10
Value: 4 out of 10
Ease of Install: 9 out of 10
Requires: Remove factory silencer, replace with this unit. Done.
The Two Brothers Hurricane slip on looks decent, but I found the exhaust profile way too small for even the Ninja 400. It sounds good, with a nice throaty exhaust note, and it was easy to install. While I did not feel much of a performance improvement and never dynoed it, I did like the sound but the look was a bit puny.
I just feel it is too expensive for what it is, another bummer was it did not come with the "retro skull logo" badge it is advertised as coming with, rather a generic Two Brothers badge that I did not even bother using. The included hardware is high quality, but you can get a better exhaust for not much more money (like the Akrapovic).
Brand: Homemade, likely (eBay)
Model: Oxygen sensor eliminator kit (o2 eliminator)
What it is: Puts the Ninja 400 in closed loop mode, tricks it into thinking the o2 sensor is still installed so no engine codes, prevents the ECU from modifying the air/fuel ratio
Cost: $15-30
Rating: 1 out of 10 (but read the description)
Value: 10 out of 10 for the intended use and it is cheap!
Ease of install: 7 out of 10
Requires: remove left (exhaust side) fairings, upper, lower, and large mid. Remove factory o2 sensor, use the included cap in its place. Plug the circuit plug where the o2 sensor plugged in. Reinstall everything.
This mod is tricky to rate, because while it does do exactly what it says it does, it is not a performance mod! This made my Ninja 400 run extremely rich, no matter which Power Commander V map I used. I also noticed a lot more pops coming from the exhaust and you can smell how rich the N400 was running.
Yet, this does have a good use, if you are doing a dyno test of your motorcycle, this is the intended use for it. It gives a better, more consistent reading for the dyno tuning/tuner, because then the o2 sensor is not adjusting the fuel table. It does not work for performance increases because the closed loop mode does not allow the ECU to adjust the fuel tables and it will usually run rich with it installed.
They used to include these with the Power Commanders, but likely stopped including them when people were using them to bypass the o2 sensor on a more permanent basis. Then, the same people were wondering why they were not running right or too rich, complaining about it. This would be useful if using the Autotune module. But I removed it and my Ninja 400 is running better with the o2 sensor installed, because the claim you gain performance with it are completely unfounded.
Brand: TechSpec
Model: Snakeskin Tank Grips
What it is: Allows you to better grip the fuel tank with your knees
Cost: $60.00
Rating: 4 out of 10 (down from 6 out of 10 now)
Value: 5 out of 10 (down from 6 out of 10 now)
Ease Of Install: 10 out of 10
Requires: Clean the tank, peel the backing, line up, stick to the gas tank. Done.
While an easy mod to install, it is very expensive for what it is and I actually removed it now. (04/30/2021)
Here is the major bummer: for some reason, the back and right side tank grip left a nasty, smelly residue on my tank in big patches (reminds me of the resin on the back of credit cards that attach them to the paper)! It took me rubbing alcohol and about 30 minutes of scrubbing to get it all off of my gas tank, which made me very unhappy, plus dropped the rating and value I originally gave this mod. Goes on easy as can be (but not as easy to line up), but a half hour or scraping residue off was not what I expected!
While it does what it says and could be very useful for track days and such, this is no longer a mod I will use or recommend for the majority of Ninja 400 or Z400 owners. $60.00 down the drain for me and before I removed it, it was bubbling up on the one side for some reason (but the only side that did not leave residue).
A simple Progrip tank pad is now in its place and I like the look much better and prefer the Progrip much more compared to the generic looks of the TechSpec "triangular" generic pad.
(Next Post: My Older Mods)
I thought I would do, what may be helpful for some, a rating of the mods I have done to my Ninja 400. This can help people who are looking at the perspective mods and deciding whether or not they are worth it or beneficial.
I will put my former mods on the first post, then my oldest mods on the second post, and finally my newest mods on the third post, then rate them all. Former mods were mods I deemed not good enough, or decided to go another route with.
I will put a little insight, what it is, the price, and the rating. While your mileage may vary and your opinion differ, I thought this would be helpful to some.
Rating guide:
0 = Dangerous, use at your own risk!
1-4 = I found it a waste of money, non-functional, or a bad value.
5 = Decent, but not exceptional
6-7 = Good mod
8-9 = Highly recommended mod
10 = No brainer mod, best of the best
By all means, feel free to comment, ask questions, or share your own mods and rating. Just please keep the 0-10 scale with 10 being best/essential and 0 being a waste of money and time, or dangerous modification.
Without further ado, let me get into it.
Former Mods:
Brand: Two Brothers
Model: Hurricane exhaust
What it is: Slip-on exhaust for the Ninja 400
Cost: $350-380
Rating: 6 out of 10
Value: 4 out of 10
Ease of Install: 9 out of 10
Requires: Remove factory silencer, replace with this unit. Done.
The Two Brothers Hurricane slip on looks decent, but I found the exhaust profile way too small for even the Ninja 400. It sounds good, with a nice throaty exhaust note, and it was easy to install. While I did not feel much of a performance improvement and never dynoed it, I did like the sound but the look was a bit puny.
I just feel it is too expensive for what it is, another bummer was it did not come with the "retro skull logo" badge it is advertised as coming with, rather a generic Two Brothers badge that I did not even bother using. The included hardware is high quality, but you can get a better exhaust for not much more money (like the Akrapovic).
Brand: Homemade, likely (eBay)
Model: Oxygen sensor eliminator kit (o2 eliminator)
What it is: Puts the Ninja 400 in closed loop mode, tricks it into thinking the o2 sensor is still installed so no engine codes, prevents the ECU from modifying the air/fuel ratio
Cost: $15-30
Rating: 1 out of 10 (but read the description)
Value: 10 out of 10 for the intended use and it is cheap!
Ease of install: 7 out of 10
Requires: remove left (exhaust side) fairings, upper, lower, and large mid. Remove factory o2 sensor, use the included cap in its place. Plug the circuit plug where the o2 sensor plugged in. Reinstall everything.
This mod is tricky to rate, because while it does do exactly what it says it does, it is not a performance mod! This made my Ninja 400 run extremely rich, no matter which Power Commander V map I used. I also noticed a lot more pops coming from the exhaust and you can smell how rich the N400 was running.
Yet, this does have a good use, if you are doing a dyno test of your motorcycle, this is the intended use for it. It gives a better, more consistent reading for the dyno tuning/tuner, because then the o2 sensor is not adjusting the fuel table. It does not work for performance increases because the closed loop mode does not allow the ECU to adjust the fuel tables and it will usually run rich with it installed.
They used to include these with the Power Commanders, but likely stopped including them when people were using them to bypass the o2 sensor on a more permanent basis. Then, the same people were wondering why they were not running right or too rich, complaining about it. This would be useful if using the Autotune module. But I removed it and my Ninja 400 is running better with the o2 sensor installed, because the claim you gain performance with it are completely unfounded.
Brand: TechSpec
Model: Snakeskin Tank Grips
What it is: Allows you to better grip the fuel tank with your knees
Cost: $60.00
Rating: 4 out of 10 (down from 6 out of 10 now)
Value: 5 out of 10 (down from 6 out of 10 now)
Ease Of Install: 10 out of 10
Requires: Clean the tank, peel the backing, line up, stick to the gas tank. Done.
While an easy mod to install, it is very expensive for what it is and I actually removed it now. (04/30/2021)
Here is the major bummer: for some reason, the back and right side tank grip left a nasty, smelly residue on my tank in big patches (reminds me of the resin on the back of credit cards that attach them to the paper)! It took me rubbing alcohol and about 30 minutes of scrubbing to get it all off of my gas tank, which made me very unhappy, plus dropped the rating and value I originally gave this mod. Goes on easy as can be (but not as easy to line up), but a half hour or scraping residue off was not what I expected!
While it does what it says and could be very useful for track days and such, this is no longer a mod I will use or recommend for the majority of Ninja 400 or Z400 owners. $60.00 down the drain for me and before I removed it, it was bubbling up on the one side for some reason (but the only side that did not leave residue).
A simple Progrip tank pad is now in its place and I like the look much better and prefer the Progrip much more compared to the generic looks of the TechSpec "triangular" generic pad.
(Next Post: My Older Mods)