Places
| Apr 00 |
McComb, MS,
and New Orleans – 2-up (Crawfish Boil 2000) |
| Apr 00 |
Townsend,
TN, and Deal's Gap (250 'Nationals')
Pictures available. |
History
Purchased new off-the-lot from
America's Motorsports in Nashville, Tennessee. I'd been in Nashville for
nearly three whole weeks before the bug to ride got too strong again –
the old Concours was dead in the basement, waiting for me to fix the front
brakes. I figured in the meantime I needed to ride. Had a bit of trouble
accessing existing funds to buy it that day, so I called Citibank to widen
the credit limit a bit. Paid in full on Visa, earning me points to buy
another new car at some point. Ironic, no?
It's been a fine bike. The
first 6 months saw 5,000 miles, including a 1,200 mile, two-day, two-up
trip to the Crawfish Boil at Shane and Karen Smith's in McComb, Mississippi.
We ended up leaving a bit early to ride to New Orleans, where we could
stay at a friends' house for free. Then rode back the next day. Peg commented
that she's glad she made the trip, but she's not doing it on that bike
again. I'd also note that fuel mileage suffered 2-up on the interstate
(Normal is 50-60 mpg, we barely made 40 mpg on that trip.) Plus it burned
oil, but running at 10,000 rpm for 8 or 9 hours straight tends to do that,
from what I'm told.
Photos
(click
to enlarge)
 |
Nashville Tomato. Heh.
|
 |
Pictures from the Deal's
Gap trip, April 2000. (Aka the 250 National, since at least two
250's showed up. There were, in fact, four.)
|
Modifications
| WristRest throttle lock |
Simple, effective, attractive,
high-quality throttle lock machined from stainless steel. Comes
with a matching bar end for the left side. Purchased direct from
the fabricator, Rat Race
Cycle. They were recommended to me, and I will recommend them
to any who ask.
I enjoy having a throttle
lock on a 250 cc bike. It's silly. Strangely enough, it does get
used enough to justify it.
|
Specs
| Engine |
| Configuration |
Parallel 2 cylinder,
DOHC 2-valve, transversely mounted |
| Materials |
Iron block (?),
aluminum head |
| Displacement |
248 cc (~1/2 cup) |
| Power |
28 bhp @ 13,000
rpm (rear wheel) |
| Torque |
14 lb-ft @ ? rpm
(rear wheel) |
| Redline |
14,000 rpm |
|
| Transmission |
6 speed sequential manual |
| Wheels/Tires |
| Tires |
Front 100-80/16
Dunlop K630F
Rear 130-80/16 Dunlop K630 |
|
| Dimensions |
| Overall |
80.1 in L x 28.0
in W x 43.1 in H |
| Dry weight |
304 lb |
|
| Capacities |
|
| Performance |
| Zero to 60 mph |
5.5 sec |
| Top speed |
115 mph (I personally
think this is an indicated top speed, so really it's closer
to 104 mph) |
| Standing 1/4 mi |
15.5 sec |
|
Links
| Ninja250.N3.net
|
This really is Ninja
250 central on the web, at least in the States. Includes most of
what you'd need. Has a great discussion board with a somewhat lousy
interface. Also has gobs of pictures, with a few good ones.
|
| NinjaSport
Forums |
Upstart discussion board
with a much better interface than the old one.
|
| Ninja
250 FAQ |
Well-kept by a guy in
Louisville. (Aka Jeb on the discussion list.) |
| Motorcycle
Online Review |
An okay review of the
2000 model. They misreport the range as 190 mi, however. I typically
go 210-220 miles before hitting reserve. 230 mi is a realistic range
unless you ride two-up on the interstate — then the range is
about 160-170 mi. |
|
