responsive which led me to ask,
"How could this motor possibly
be more usable and amusing for
the street?"
With peaky, aggressive 600
supersport bikes you've got to
rev them hard to get anywhere
fast. With big liter bikes, al-
though there's no greater heav-
en to having a rare opportunity
to stretch their legs, for everyday
street riding they're just so damn
fast. It's more fun for me to hear
and feel a motor rev through its
designed range without the need
for 145mph just to get into fourth
gear with commitment. It's a
time-and-place kind of thing.
But for daily street carving, it's
the hooligan-like acceleration
that proves most wicked, and
it's something you want to do
every eight seconds for no good
reason when riding this perfectly
tweaked mid-sized twin.
The ergonomics of the 2017
Ninja 650 offer a great compro-
mise between a traveler's riding
position and full tilt elbow-down
Malibu twisty-road mode. Ter-
rific brakes for the money and I
thought the Dunlops they come
with worked excellent.
So, yeah, as an all-around
daily sport bike for the street,
that's me happy. I want one. CN
VOL. 54 ISSUE 10 MARCH 14, 2017 P107
2017 KAWASAKI NINJA 650
($6999 / $7399 FOR ABS)
ENGINE: .. 4-stroke, liquid-cooled, DOHC,
16-valve, inline-4
DISPLACEMENT: ............................. 649cc
BORE X STROKE: .................. 83 x 60mm
COMPRESSION RATIO: .................... 10.8:1
FUEL SYSTEM: .......... EFI. 36mm throttle
bodies
EXHAUST: ........................................... 2-2-1
TRANSMISSION: ..........6-speed gearbox.
CHASSIS: ...............Aluminum composite
twin-spar frame
FRONT SUSPENSION: .... Telescopic fork;
4.7 in. wheel travel
REAR SUSPENSION: ................ Horizontal
back-link, adjustable spring preload; 5.1
in. wheel travel
FRONT BRAKE: ..Dual 300mm petal-type
rotors with 4-piston calipers; ABS
REAR BRAKE: . Single 220mm petal-type
rotor with single-piston caliper; ABS
FRONT TIRE: ........................ 120/70 ZR17
REAR TIRE: .......................... 160/60 ZR17
RAKE: .................................................... 24°
TRAIL: .............................................. 3.9 in.
WHEELBASE: .................................55.5 in.
SEAT HEIGHT: ...............................30.9 in.
FUEL CAPACITY: ........................... 4.0 gal.
WEIGHT: ... 410 lb. (ABS, curb, claimed);
405 lb. (curb, claimed)
COLOR: ..................... Metallic Flat Spark
Black/Metallic Spark Black; Pearl Flat
Stardust White/Metallic Spark Black
S P E C I F I C A T I O N S
