Ninja 400

After touching the important threshold of 1000 miles on the ninja, I would like to write a short review for those interested in this type of motorbike.

First things first: unless you are a speed-obsessed kamikaze, you will always have fun with this bike. It will be a different kind of fun than the one a more powerful machine can offer, but a permanent fun anyway. You will, most likely, never “grow out of” this machine.

The Mini Ninja (there is an even smaller one, but we will forget that for a moment) straddles the two sides of agility and speed in a way that is still manageable for a novice, but entertaining for an experienced motor biker. The selling point here is the enjoyment of actually making the engine work, coupled with the easiness with which the bike can be flipped, flopped and re-flipped again.

You discover that roads that were too narrow for your bigger bike are actually fun with this one; that small stretches of road that would have gone unnoticed before are now actually fun to accelerate in (say, those 50-100 metres before the road becomes narrower); and, in general, that all roads now become more enjoyable, because it takes much more time of joyously revving engine before you risk getting out of tarmac.

The sensory experience is also different. You think you are in Dovizioso mode and you are barely exceeding 70 mph. The need to have the engine constantly revved makes the experience more tactile and engaging (gears always changing means just more “movement” on the bike). The noise of the engine as it revs up and the wind coming to you, coupled with a lower riding height, enhance the feel of both speed and engine power. In reality, you discover that you (if you are like me, that is: not a bullet) can hold your own against a spirited driver with a modern car in a medium-flowing curvy road, but you certainly cannot make it disappear behind your mirrors, as your little bike will struggle to give you the acceleration many modern cars so effortlessly achieve nowadays. The game becomes more a momentum one: use your speed wisely in the curve, because there is no tsunami of torque waiting for you at the end of it.

The experience is, in a word, an excellent amount of fun for pound spent, with the added peace of mind of knowing that your perceived 90 mph are actually only 70; this, i nturn,  keeps your driving licence happy.

As to the build quality, one again notices that we are living in a golden age of motorcycling (before stupid politicians and the conformism of the sheepish masses try to ruin it for us with electronic limiters, mandatory GPS spying or compulsory electric bikes). The build quality of this little, India-produced machine is very high for the outlay. Plastics, paints, switches all exude robustness, everything works as it should, even the seat is reasonably comfortable whilst giving a lot of feedback.  Before you ask, I cannot imagine that this bike could be produced in England at the present price point with any money earned, or would have a market if it were to be produced here and priced to make a profit.

Overall, the balance is overwhelmingly positive. I am extremely happy both with the decision to spend my hard-earned on a small bike in the first place, and with what I got for my hard-earned in the second. Do yourself a favour and start considering the purchase of a small, inexpensive, fun-bike.

Still, it is not all roses.

The motorbike has, in my eyes, three cons, described below in order of gravity:

1) The rear shock. This is the only component that is not on par with my expectations, and brutally so. Whilst it always gives very good feedback and security on the road, remaining well-planted on a good surface and sending reassuring signals to my backside-o-meter, the thing is very, very  uncomfortable. Kawasaki might get away with such a poor quality item with the higher quality roads found in Germany, France, Switzerland, or even Italy; but this shock is exposed as fully inadequate on your typical English road. Plus, I weight, again, very typical 72kg on the scale, the shock being, very likely, set up at the factory exactly for people of my weight.

I have decided that  I cannot go on this way (the very painful landing of my “crown jewels” on the wall of the fuel tank after big bumps also contributed to motivate me) and had a new Nitron shock absorber installed. Currently in the run in phase. Will report.

2) The single disc in front. I hate that stuff already because of aesthetic reasons, as it seems to me that they make of every bike a toy bike, screaming “budget not enough for a second disc, my lad…” and utterly ruining the simmetry of the machine. This issue aside, the stopping power is just not what it could, and should, be for the experienced rider that wants to exploit the peppery, joyous potential this little machine has to offer. This bike is so good that it deserves a second disc, period.

3) The wind protection is, in my eyes, not very well sorted. The bike looks good with its aggressive, small windscreen; but in real life, and for all those who are not twenty anymore and do not instantly spread themselves over the fuel tank as a younger rider might do, the noise is unnecessary high and limits the enjoyment of the lively engine and (in my bike) Akrapovic exhaust. I might try a higher windscreen in future. This is not such a big issue, but I think it should be mentioned.

There are no other negatives to mention. The fuel consumption is very low (this is a brand-new engine, not a rehash of a 15 of 20 years old project), the engine is very rev friendly, the clutch and brake levers very light and easy to use, the entire thing is a well sorted ensemble.

If Kawasaki announces a slightly improved version of this one, without even touching the engine (no need for that at all) or the shock, but with merely the added benefit of a double disc, I will be at the dealership negotiating part exchange on the spot.

This is how much I like this machine.

And how much it deserves a second disc in front.