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@ mntle
2025-03-25 05:14:41Originally written and posted on the 21st of Sept, 2022
I'm about 6 months into the ownership of my first bike, since I was a teenager. It has most definitely been an interesting time. While I am truly enjoying riding, it's not been without it's hiccups.
The first real issue is that I don't have a great knowledge of motorcycle models, or their general history. My first ride was an 80cc Yamaha Jog, which could do 70 Km/h down hill with a tail wind. My second was a Yamaha DX100 (colloquially known as the "Flying Banana"), which I could start with the handle of a teaspoon, and was lost when the back tyre burst during a trip, resulting in a write-off (a story in of itself).
So a little background first. The reason I purchased a bike, is mostly for financial reasons. While there is an argument to be made that it's more expensive to ride than drive, I did a ton of math, and came to the conclusion that it actually works out cheaper, considering my circumstances. When factoring in the massive rise in fuel costs; the far lower insurance costs; and lower maintenance costs (due to being able to maintain it reasonably well on my own). It seemed that because I do long trips of around 400 Km every couple of weeks, it was a sound option. Also, being middle aged, I ended up having to go back and sit my motorcycle licence, as with my previous bikes, it was in a time where riding dirty on small displacement bikes wasn't really noticed by the cops (yes, that does indeed make me a middle aged learner rider).
When researching bikes, I made a few things a priority:
- Small displacement
- Aesthetically pleasing
- Easily repairable
- Cheap maintenance
- Reliability
- Fuel efficient
nb. I didn't include things like performance or top speed, because they were mostly irrelevant to my needs at the time.
In the end, it worked out that the Kawasaki Ninja 250 fit all of the criteria I had set. It was about then that I set out to find a good example of the model, at a reasonable price.
I delved into the subject with gusto, looking at the Trademe sales, and researching as best as I could. I ran across the Ninja250 Wiki and found a thriving community built around these interesting little bikes. While I didn't interact directly with the community, I did find the compiled resources invaluable for my purposes. They've pulled together schematics, technical manuals, replacement parts lists, tips & tricks and a ton of general information. Very handy.
Unfortunately, Kawasaki have been a little liberal with the "Ninja" moniker, and it seems like they enjoyed slapping the label on a ton of different models. It got extremely confusing in a very short period of time. In the end, I found a listing for a 2007 Ninja 250, that looked really clean for its age, with only 30,000Kms on the clock. Being the 2007 model, it was the last of the dual carb bikes, before they switched to Electronic Fuel Injection. This appealed to me, because it lowered the bar for maintenance.
It seemed like the perfect option for me, so I got in contact with the owner, and we negotiated a price. I looked over the bike, and in my inexperience, I missed some crucial details that a more experienced rider would have noticed (I'll get to those details shortly). After a quick ride on my newly minted Learners Licence, I found the power was decent and it rode well. I checked for things like frame fatigue, engine noise, drops in power, exhaust leaks, tyre tread, oil leaks and more.
The owner seemed trustworthy, so when he told me that "It runs like a dream, and it's never needed any work aside from a replacement faring", I believed him. In hind sight, I seriously should have realised the red flag about it needing new faring.
This is where we get to the details I missed.
Firstly, It looks like the Oil Filter had never been changed, but to cover this fact, they did an oil change just before the sale, so it looked clean.
Secondly, the fuel filter had never been changed, so was full of crud. Because it's hidden in the carb end of the fuel line, you cant see it on a cursory look.
Thirdly, someone had removed the air filter, and just never bothered to put it back or replace it. Unfortunately, it's under the fuel tank, so you cant see it without removing the tank.
Fourth and finally, the Faring. So it turns out that the bike had definitely been laid down at some point. My naivety and excitement blinded me to what was obvious. The clutch handle was scratched to sin, the tail bar has scrapes along one corner, and the foot pegs had been replaced.
Again, looking back, how could I not have seen these things? I'm kicking myself, but now that I have it, I just have to deal with the consequences.
I'm disappointed in the seller for not disclosing these issues, and to say that I was cursing his name when I found out about these things, is a definite understatement. I know that I should have been more diligent, but it calls into question my judgement. I feel a little ripped off by people like this, and am starting to question a lot of decisions I wouldn't normally hesitate to make.
Anyway, after a lot more research it turns out it's not even an EX250, which is what the previous owner told me. It is in fact a GPX250, which has a completely different set of parts. This was a true eye opener, and led me to order parts that are completely incompatible with the bike. When I finally found out the correct model, I was able to move forward.
Since having the bike, I've lubed the chain multiple times (it looks like it had never been done); I've replaced the oil filter and done an oil change; ripped out the silly fuel filter and added an in-line gravity fed one that is transparent and easy to view; and replaced the air filter.
It seems to be running better now, and there is more to be done, but I'm sad that it has come to this. I never should have listened to the previous owner, let alone trusted him. I have learned my lesson, and will be far more vigilant in the future.