[syntheticton]

Hey... i know its not an SV but... been looking for another bike for good price that i might be able to take the girlfriend rides on and have a chance to get a 2001 Kawasaki Ninja 500R with 10,500 miles for $1500.

Here is the info...
I am the third owner.  I purchased this bike in December of 2003 with 6700 miles on it in Massachusetts.  At that time it had new tires, brakes, and keys.  The bike is cold blooded, meaning it always needs full choke to start when cold. 

When I bought the bike it had some cosmetic damage. 

1) The gas tank has very thin parallel scratches 3/8" high x 3" long on the right side of tank. Barely noticeable until close to bike.
2) The bottom fairing has a white scratch running its length, and a series of cracks above that, that were repaired, all on the right side.
3) The bottom right corner of the radiator has a dent.  The dent is in the outer portion and didn't crush any of the fins. 
The other cosmetic damage was caused when the bike fell over in the truck bed.  Everything has been repaired.
4) Cracked front fairing on the left side below the mirror about an inch, also had to replace the left side mirror.
5) Left rear side fairing had a crack on the decal.

The motorcycle runs great.  All lights and instruments work.  I just had the rear brake rotor and pads replaced, along with the clutch and chain adjusted.  It has been garage kept.  My reason for selling is because I've accepted a new job and will be moving to an apartment and won't have any space for it. 
_________________________________


There are pictures but can't post right now. I have today to decide if I want to buy it or not. The cosmetic damages really aren't bad from the pics... looks like I could do a little fiberglass work and repaint over winter and would look good as new. You can't see any damage now really on the bike unless you are close and looking. My concerns are... I don't want to lose any $$$ on this bike because I may be forced to sell next year to finance YSR racing or new drain for the house. Does anyone besides myself think this sounds like a good buy? Just looking for thoughts from others before I make the deal. Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[stranger]

seems like a good price. i sold my 1991 ex500 for the same price. had half the miles, but still...

if you can get it for 1200, grab it.

 

[tonyjuliano]

All the Ninja 500's are cold blooded, so this is nothing to be concerned about. Great commuter, bulletproof engine. Just know these things up front...

1) Great gas mileage - We average around 47mpg
2) Absolutely no power until 7500rpm
3) Stock suspension is even worse than the SV's (they think our shock is an improvement)
4) Good rubber is hard to find for this bike, you are limited to Bridgestone BT-045 in stock tire size.
5) Much more comfortable than any SV, but not if you have long legs.

All in all a great bike, the price you are looking at is awesome.

 

[orangegilly]

Dean, if you get it I'll sell you my stock SV shock for cheap!!

 

[syntheticton]

thanks for the advice everyone... hadn't thought about the tires. I am not too worried about that I guess though because I don't think I will ride this like my SV so... those Bridgestone tires mentioned will probably ok. This will probably be a daily commuter or for relaxing rides with the girlfriend on weekends.

didn't realize the suspension would be worse than the SV. But, since I am not getting this so much for twisties... that may be ok too.... but I may have to do something for 2up riding.... luckily my gf only weighs about 110lbs so though. The power issue may come into play with 2up I am thinking though.... lots of revs probably needed with 2up when pulling away in first I bet.

Thanks again for the additional infos and advice... much appreciated. I may just go ahead and pick this one this weekend then. Orange... will will keep you in mind on the shock thing if i get it and need something better.

 

[tonyjuliano]

2 up will not be a problem, bike pulls hard once the revs are up. That bridgestone rubber should suit you fine, be aware that the stock tires blow. As for the SV shock, it's not a straight bolt-on. You have to pull out the races and bushings from the stock kawi shock and install them in the SV shock. Not a big deal, but you need to rig a bearing puller to do it.

 

[Nimbus]

FWIW we sold my wife's 2000 250 Ninja for $1800 (purchased with 6,000 fewer miles for $1500).  It had scratches in the fairing (rt side and chin fairing) and exhaust when we bought it.  There are people who don't care (us) and would prefer a used bike for 1/3 price of new.

Also, we put the BT45's on the EX after I decided that it wasn't cool for my wife to ride on cracked sidewalls (dry rot perhaps).  I hated the stock tires and they slid way too easily.  The BT45s though were way, way better.  They stuck well for me (aggressive 145lbs) at cornering speeds above the SV's comfort zone.  No worries as far as I'm concerned on those tires.  

 

[ValValline]

4) Good rubber is hard to find for this bike, you are limited to Bridgestone BT-045 in stock tire size.

I just sold my 2003 EX500 a couple weeks ago. Fantastic bike, but everything you note about it is true except for the tires...

Tires are not a problem on the 94-2005 EX500s. They all come with 17inch wheels.

Right now the best rubber you can get are Pirelli Sport Demons.

Check out this site for info from Ninja 500 owners...
http://speeding.to/ex500

 

[tonyjuliano]

I just sold my 2003 EX500 a couple weeks ago. Fantastic bike, but everything you note about it is true except for the tires...

Tires are not a problem on the 94-2005 EX500s. They all come with 17inch wheels.

Right now the best rubber you can get are Pirelli Sport Demons.

Check out this site for info from Ninja 500 owners...
http://speeding.to/ex500

I wasn't talking about the 17 inch rim as much as the 130 rear profile.

 

[syntheticton]

hmm... I think this 2001 model has 17 inch wheels too

thanks for the site... I have it bookmarked.

so is the EX500 and 500R basically the same bike?

 

[ValValline]

EX500 = Ninja 500R

Renamed for PR reasons I guess.

 

[syntheticton]

EX500 = Ninja 500R

Renamed for PR reasons I guess.

that is kinda what I thought... thanks

 

[tonyjuliano]

In 1994 the EX500 went through a minor redesign and became the 500R, although people (including dealers and a lot of parts places) still refer to them as both. Changes made were as follows...

1) 17 inch rims replaced the previous 16's (thank god!)
2) Larger diameter forks added
3) Changes to all the plastics except the chin fairing.
4) Rear disc brake replaced drum.
5) Upgraded headlight.

There have been no other changes (except color) made since 1994.

 

[syntheticton]

In 1994 the EX500 went through a minor redesign and became the 500R, although people (including dealers and a lot of parts places) still refer to them as both.  Changes made were as follows...

1) 17 inch rims replaced the previous 16's (thank god!)
2) Larger diameter forks added
3) Changes to all the plastics except the chin fairing.
4) Rear disc brake replaced drum.
5) Upgraded headlight.

There have been no other changes (except color) made since 1994.

gotcha... thanks

 

[Mrwoo]

+1 on the Ninja 500. I sold my 01' Ninja 500r several months back so I could purchase my Sv. I wish I would have kept that bike. 11,000miles and no problems. Only thing was it needed full choke in the morning to start, thats it. Suspension sucked but my Sv suspension doesn'r seem any better. I used the bike as a commuter. Well if you get the bike I still have parts for it laying around my garage. If you need anything hit me up and I'll see what I got left.

 

[syntheticton]

+1 on the Ninja 500.  I sold my 01' Ninja 500r several months back so I could purchase my Sv.  I wish I would have kept that bike.  11,000miles and no problems.  Only thing was it needed full choke in the morning to start, thats it.  Suspension sucked but my Sv suspension doesn'r seem any better.  I used the bike as a  commuter.  Well if you get the bike I still have parts for it laying around my garage.  If you need anything hit me up and I'll see what I got left.

hey cool... thanks. I am supposed to be picking it up Saturday.  Will keep you in mind if I need anything for it. Its the purple and gray model like this

funny thing... I was looking up info about it using Google and came acorss www.dragslips.com which a couple people posted their 1/4 miles times on this bike. One guy got 12.8 seconds and another got 12.5 seconds and both were listed as stock whcih puts this bike at same level as the SV for 1/4 mile times I think

 

[syntheticton]

well... got this bike in my garage Saturday. Just had to take for a spin around neighborhood. At first I was kinda disappointed... just seemed very sluggish and ran a little rougher than the SV... well after it wamed up... it was actually kinda fun. Nice smooth power curver really kinda like the SV but more on top end and less on bottom... the engine braking reminded me of the SV and its very light and easy to toss around like the SV.

the girlfriend sat on the back and even though its seems like a small bike... we seemed to have enough room for the both of us and will likely end up making this thing a little sport-tourer on weekends and daily commuter for me during the weekdays. The original owner claimed he could get 300 miles out of a tank and said he got about 70 mog which was surprising. After seeing other mpg figures from other owners... this seems to be an exaggeration though 50-55mpg seems reasonable which will be nice as our gas prices keep going up.

Anyway, it was kinda nice little bike. Even has some character like the SV. Its more than welcome to stay in my garage for as long os it likes ;-)

 

[Sauron]

The 130 size rear tire is a killer though. You can get a Metzler Sportec M-1 150/60 on their though, and won't have any clearance issues. Most of the EX track guys use this tire (I was), and it's a great street tire, although not a high mileage one.

Mark

 

[tonyjuliano]

You can also get a Michelin Pilot Power on this bike in 150/60 now that they make them. The key is not to try a 70 series profile (as with the stock tire) cause the rim will take a 150 but will raise the profile in doing so.

 

[syntheticton]

hmm... not sure if I want to go to a 150... I ran a 170 once on the SV and didn't like it... tryiing to imagine what a 150 on the 500r would be like... it actually doesn't feel nearly as planted as the SV in corners now. Maybe a 150 might make it seem more planted

i just noticed something today on it sadly... it has a slight wobble... its not always noticeable though... more on decceleration... the bars will start to slowly shake about 70$% of the time and they get worse if I don't take control back... I am worried it has a bent fork or something but hoping its just a wheel out of balance

funny thing, the tire that came on it at BT-45's and rear looked really good and front had about 50% tread left. I was going to take out for a nice ride after getting tags for it and thought... never checked tire pressure.... so I checked pressure. It had 60 PSI in ftont and 55 in rear. Wow was that out of whack. I think the guy was getting awesome mileage because he was rolling on round rocks lol. I checked them down to 34 front and 38 rear. Still not sure what is good for those tires yet.