Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

Hideous... What on Earth were Kawasaki thinking when they drew up the plans!!... Well, what they were thinking is.. We'll build a disgusting pig but make it fantastic! They got it right... It ticks those boxes 10 out of 10 A+ and many, many house points.

It's possibly the most under rated bike on the market... It's hideous, an abomination unto The Lord but is it any good? Hell, yes!!

Is it fast?... Quick enough you my lad! It really sits up and goes... Mid power range parallel twin with tons of grunt.

Does it handle well?... In the right hands, this bubber will scratch beautifully!

It's reliable as the dawn, well screwed together, unsophisticated and I rate it.

The down side... Comfort... Forget that my friends. It's horrible.. Genuinely ghastly... And if you're pillion... Get the bus, train or a taxi or a skateboard... You'll thank me, I promise you.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

The good bits:-

Fantastic!

A wonderful budget multi-role machine. The ER6N vibrates quite a bit, but being a twin, that's pretty normal and, bizarrely, adds character to the bike. Being a twin it also means bucketfuls of torque, which means when you twist the throttle it gets up and goes and goes... It really goes!... The top speed isn't remotely close to that of a sports bike, but in the real world, acceleration is what counts, not top speed, and I promise you, it accelerates very well indeed.

The ER6N is very slim and relatively low, which helps with handling no end and makes for confident filtering and slinging it through the twisties.

In short, there are very few things to grizzle about the ER6N, so what are they?

The bad bits:-

Subjective, I know, but I haven't met anyone who's said 'Wow! What a gorgeous looking bike.' It's not pretty and it's not macho and it's not sporty and it's not funky or retro or very nice to look at all, and if I'm honest, it's a bit of an ugly duckling really.

The pillion seat... There's only one word to describe it... Woeful... Come to think of it, the pilot's seat isn't one you'd be happy sitting on from London to Edinburgh, either.

To sum up... Wonderful spirited machine that will delight any commuter... It's an ugly little pig, but one which will put a smile on your face every time time you leap on board... Cheap to buy, cheap to run, an ideal first 'big' bike with 70 horses under the tank, plenty!!

Cracking bike, highly recommended. Well done Kawasaki.

Faults:

Fuel injector throttle body intermittently creates an error message. One morning the RPMs would not go below 5000 until I turned off the key. Dealer has not replaced anything, and the problem seems to occur less as time passes.

General Comments:

This is a fantastic motorcycle and an incredible value.

The bike looks (and is) a sportbike, but the riding position is far more upright than other sportbikes, which leads to less fatigue on long rides. It reminds me of a dirtbike riding position.. If you grew up riding dirt bikes, the Ninja 650 will feel right at home.

Handling is fantastic and the stock suspension is surprisingly good. Nothing rattles this bike, and you can ride all kinds of roads comfortably and confidently.

Power is good, especially above 5000rpm. Decent low-end torque and a forgiving powerband make this bike easy for beginners and entertaining for experienced riders. Its also a good commuter bike for this reason.

I also like the digital speedometer and instrument panel added in 2009.

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong since buying it.

General Comments:

We bought the ER6n for my wife to replace her 2005 CBF250, and give her a little bit more power to keep up with us boys.

The ER6 is great fun to ride, and makes a perfect bike to learn on, as it is light to handle and does not feel top heavy during slow speed maneuvering.

The ER6 has more than enough power to keep you smiling, and being a parallel twin, it's very easy to ride, and won't catch you out and throw you off.

An after market exhaust makes the ER6 sound the business, and I can highly recommend this bike for a first big bike.

A budget bike that don't look cheap.