Guys… The Rumormill is Swirling… Searches for “2009 Ninja 250R” landing here are up 300% in the last 2 days…

I called my dealer and they said they heard July 2008. Called another Dealer and they said Aug 2008. None of which could comment on if they know of any changes. Neither of which have received a 2008 in over a month…

Anyone got any inside information? I’m sure some dealer out there has some information on when they will start to arrive. I’m just not getting my hopes up (yet) — Because if it was too be arriving soon, I’m sure that Kawasaki would update their website.. But I’ll keep watching — and if anyone hears anything — make sure you drop us a line over here!

So, I noticed this month that lots of “Letters to the Editor” of the major bike magazines had lots of chatter about the Ninja 250R (mainly because it’s been about 3 months since all the reviews… ) — And quite a few people were picking on the 250R for the published “low” fuel economy numbers, considering MPG’s are one of the main selling points for a 250. Most magazines saw between 45-50MPG.. (still pretty impressive…)

First a few things about the Magazine Reviews: Their bikes were non broken in brand new bikes. And I can say from experience, the first ~500 miles on the 250R you see in the 40-50 Range. Also, most of the riding from the reviews was very spirited “Lets ring this suckah out!” review riding.. Which of course will be lower than the avg riders daily sprint around town. So, I’m pretty sure these published numbers a waaaay off (and thats from my personal experience…)

In addition, Kawasaki added a new MPG Page to their site listing the Ninjette @ 61MPG. I haven’t seen 61MPG.. with ~1000 miles on the ODO — I got 57MPG last take. And that was with mostly 55MPH around town stop and go riding. (This is also on a Jetted Bike…)

So please - My fellow 2Fiddyr’s — Post up in the comments what your real world MPG’s are, what your mods are, mileage, and what your riding environment/style is… And for our International readers — Chime in! Tell us what the FI models are doing!

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As much as I hate ebay, It doesn’t hurt to head over there every once in a while to see if any new parts have managed to slip past me, and the forums, and my readers, etc. etc.

Today I ended up finding a neat piece. eBayer Scotts870 is making carbon fiber rear huggers for the 250R. It’s actually a pretty nice little piece for custom made.. (And I can speak from experience — working with raw carbon fiber sucks…) Currently, the auction is running at $70.. Might be worth a bid..

Since we’re on the topic: Other Parts I’d like to see made in Carbon Fiber:
1. Chain Guard
2. The plastic thigh covers
3. Front Fender

Can y’all think of any more?

I was really excited when Beast over at KF gave me permission to repost this info about his stainless brake line upgrade. I have been waiting to do this for a while now — just waiting for atleast one guinea pig to make sure the kit has no issues…

Originally posted about here I’m really surprised it took almost a month for someone to finally install and put some pictures up. But never the less, Beast gave the kit an as expected awesome review.

First off, if you’re not familiar with the benefits of this upgrade, please read the link below:
Link

My personal review of the upgrade is that these are must-have. Next to the Dynojet carb kit (install + tune), this is probably the best thing I’ve done to the bike. The brake levers (both front and rear) are incredibly firm and responsive now. It feels like I’m gripping the rotors with my own hands.

If you can’t already tell, I’m having a tough time trying to put to words exactly how much better the brakes “feel” haha.

This is really exciting news considering that spongy Brakes on the 250 are one of the biggest complaints you hear from the peanut gallery. In fact I’m so excited — I’m trying to get my hands on 2 sets now… You know.. perhaps for a 2Fiddy 4th o’ July giveaway…

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Saw this street sign this week. Who knew this was such a major problem…

I give you… 2008 Ninja 250R… With cherry bomb exhuast…

Umm… I’m speechless… But, if you wanted to know if it could be done… then now you know the answer is yes…

Hairu over at Kawiforums started the ball rolling on contacting WERA about a possible 2009 class:

I contacted WERA about a 2009 Ninja cup. They said that they would do it if Kawasaki supported the contingency. I then contacted the contingency department at Kawasaki and they expressed interest in supporting a 2009 WERA 250 Ninja Class. If you are interested in racing your 250r in WERA next year, let Kawasaki know. You can reach their contingency department at teamgreen.contingency@kmc-usa.com

If you’re interested in racing, or atleast supporting the idea of a 250 class, make sure you show your support.

Kawiforum Post: Here
WERA details: Here

Kawasaki updated their website this week to include the 2009 Ninja 500R. There was quite a bit of anticipation that the 500R would receive a similar face lift to the 250R. I guess now we know it is clearly not happening in the 2009 year.

I’m guessing that Kawasaki feels that it would be competing with it’s ZZR and ZX lines if it did a face lift on the 500R, or, they will upset the more conservative economical audience the 500R attracts? (Ie. Some people don’t like the ‘crotch-rocket’ look..)

I would personally put an Updated 500R as a nice upgrade path for 250R owners looking for a lil more freeway ooomph, without having to jump directly into a Supersport bike. I guess thats why the ZZR is still around, but at 2K less, a sexy 500 would be a nice option…

Thoughts?

Sharskinz has released a complete race body work for the Ninja 250R… Available in 4 different pieces (1 Piece Upper, 1 Piece Lower, Race Tail, and Front fender) — The styling is not to far of a jump from stock, with the main exception of no headlight, and a really nicely sculpted rear tail. ( Plus the rail tail still lets you use the stock seat )

This is awesome that we’re starting to see more aftermarket support, but even more so, more race part support. Now we just need someone to make the same tail, with integrated brake and turn lights… And I’ll be one happy man.

PN: 2105 / 1 Piece Race Upper: ~$310
PN: 2106 / 1 Piece Race Lower: ~$200
PN: 2107 / Race Tail: ~$210
PN: 2108 / Front Fender: ~$103

More Pictures: Here
[ Note: It looks like they are selling their Dev bike for $3000 with the body work on it!! If you live in Florida this is a steal if your looking for a track bike! Link ]

Yay! Finally! There are officially official flush mount turn signals for the Ninja 250R! These popped up this weekend over at BikeLitez. Few specifics about the kit are available (ie. Do you need to cut into your plugs… Do you need a blink fix.. etc. etc.) But for $55 — it might be worth a set to see how they work out.

Price: ~$55.00
URL: BikeLitez.com