New 2013 Kawasaki Ninja 650R review: Slick and Savvy

Engine, transmission and performance

The 649 cc twin on the Ninja 650 produces max power rated at 72.1 PS @ 8500 rpm and 64Nm of peak torque @ 7000 pm. It’s mated to a 6-speed transmission which doesn’t leave you with anything to complain about.

The liquid-cooled, DOHC, eight-valve fuel-injected twin cylinder engine on the Ninja 650 has always been known to offer great low and mid range performance. Now it has been further tweaked to become even smoother, and offer even better performance between low to medium-rpm range. The focus has been to improve the roll-on response for better overtakes and deliver an enjoyable experience even in city traffic.

Thorough measures have been taken to reduce the vibrations, including a 180-degree crankshaft-driven balancer shaft. Furthermore, the connecting rod ends have oil jets to keep the underside of the pistons cool for this engine which is the most compact in its category. A high capacity radiator works towards improving cooling capacity.

Advanced fuel injection, along with a 300 cell catalyzer works towards facilitating lower emissions. The fuel injection settings are tuned to boost the engine’s bottom-end power while letting it rev more quickly. The under-engine exhaust apparently helps mass centralization but hinders ground clearance. More on that later though.

As mentioned earlier, the focus here has been on the low to mid range performance and smoothness. And Kawasaki have absolutely nailed it! The Ninja 650 offers a rider friendly character unmatched by any other such bike offered in India. There is absolutely no problem whatsoever in pottering about the city in high gears at ludicrously low rpm with this one. There is truckloads of torque at the bottom of the rev range and it keeps getting better as you rev it up.

Apart from offering fantastic tractability in slow moving traffic, that trait also means that the Ninja 650 wouldn’t ever take you by surprise. The power builds up progressively, incrementally, with no spikes or flat spots, so even newbies can climb up the rev range with confidence. Progressive power build-up, however, by any measure doesn’t mean a lack of rev-happiness. Crack open the throttle and the Ninja 650’s analogue tacho needle would sway all the way up to its redline of 11,000 rpm hastily without any protest. Just that it wouldn’t shock you with a sudden burst of power anywhere, all the way through. That said, with its 72 ponies, this Kwacker has enough firepower to take you all the way upto a ton and a half without wasting any time. The Ninja is lightening quick for road use, but with its friendly power delivery, not frighteningly so. 0-100km/h comes in a less than 5 seconds.

For all practical purposes, the Ninja 650 has more power than you would ever use on an Indian road. It’s capable of taking you past the 200km/h mark which is almost a suicidal speed for Indian roads. Point being, you can travel all day long with the speedo needle above 130km/h in sixth gear with the engine totally unstressed. To give you a perspective, the Ninja is capable of going past 140km/h in third gear, with three more cogs to spare. As long as you don’t compare it to a liter class superport machine, the Ninja 650 is a hard-charging beast, with ample flexibility for the tourers.

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