How does the Ninja handlebar position compare to the C14?
Congrats Roland! Now starts the slight guilt feelings when one bike gets used more than the other!
Are you gonna tune it now that you have fuel injection mapping figured out?
And Jim..... that 'vette lurking over in the corner of the garage looks like it might be some serious "kit".
Is it a Z06 or ZR-1?
Fretka
So, I got the first 50 miles out of the way. I really like the bike. BUT, its no c 14. I believe my c14 with files removed and the pcv added is faster. Its certainly smoother. Low end torque is very good. Its nto very smooth, although that coudl change as break-in happens. Smooth enough, but those who say the c14 is rough woudl hate it.
The little windshield is good, though. It smooths the air more so than blocking it. Heres the first picture.
How does the Ninja handlebar position compare to the C14?
My c14 has the wedges only, but a low sargent seat. This meant the bars ended up feeling higher, by a little anyway. But, as Jeremy said, the ninja bars are way closer.
I'll take a side by side pic of both bikes so you can see the size difference between them. The ninja is tiny. I wish the ninja windshield guys woudl take over the c14 fairing. 103 degrees tonight and no heat issues on the ninja, and the goofy little windshield is amazing.
I took the ninja up on the freeway tonight and really enjoyed it. Great midrange power and it felt fairly smooth at normal cruising speeds...70-80. Very stable, surprisingly so. I dont think the stock tires are good and cannot wait until they wear out.
It was funny, though. The c14 has that tall 6th gear that makes things feel calm and relaxed at felony speeding levels. The ninja does not have a gear indicator, which is fine, but i kept looking for 7th or 8th gear.
JJS6, Your ninja sounds fun and I totally get hopping one up and adding 20hp on top.
..Now, as of today, heres is where I'm at with mine..The ninja would be fun to hop up, I suppose, but I'm not trying to race it. I could have spent the same money and ended up with 180hp to be honest as the shop had a killer deal on a used BMW s1000rr.
Its always been easy to get high peak hp, btu I dont want that on the street since its not usable. If you look at a dyno chart, a c14 (with files removed) has almost twice as much torque as the ninja 1000. For street riding, thats much more fun, and useful. I'll probably add an exhaust, though, since the stock exhaust on the ninja is goofy.
Plus, if you look at dyno charts, a full on supersport only pullls ahead of a ninja 1000 after 10,000 rpm's, so its not slow.
I have not ridden a Concours set up like yours, but I cannot even fathom that the Concours could have more response than the Ninja. No need talking about how much torque there is because that is only a part of it. Lighter weight and gearing make up a huge amount of why the Ninja is more responsive. I have not tried it, but I would bet money that in a 60mph roll on, my Ninja (even stock) would pull away from the Concours in sixth gear even if I downshifted the Concours to fourth. The guy I ride with agrees. I would not think that any mods to the Concours short of a turbo would make up the difference.
It's a nice conversation to have between the two bikes though, isn't it
I have not ridden a Concours set up like yours, but I cannot even fathom that the Concours could have more response than the Ninja. No need talking about how much torque there is because that is only a part of it. Lighter weight and gearing make up a huge amount of why the Ninja is more responsive. I have not tried it, but I would bet money that in a 60mph roll on, my Ninja (even stock) would pull away from the Concours in sixth gear even if I downshifted the Concours to fourth. The guy I ride with agrees. I would not think that any mods to the Concours short of a turbo would make up the difference.Jim, why not just run the test? You have simultaneous access to both bikes and a (willing?) tester. If the nearest "closed course" isn't too far away, we'd love to hear the actual test results. My willing tester for such activities has move to OR for a couple of years, and the rest of the guys I ride with are less "scientifically inclined".
It's a nice conversation to have between the two bikes though, isn't it
Fretka, if I'm not mistaken, I can use the adjusters as a ride height adjust, right? Shifting them 180 degrees should be higher, but the same tension?
The engine is not smooth, but not v twin rough either. Its nto bad, actually. I love the low end torque, though.
I saw the"official" Kawasaki dealer rebate book. ALL bikes, except 2 , have nice rebates this month. Yep..thats right. The Ninja 1000 and the Concours 14 have no rebate. They do offer 60 month, zero percent finiancing, though.