The best option, especially for a new rider (which I assume you are), would be the Ninja 650R. It is by far the most newb-friendly bike of the bunch, and it's gonna be cheaper to run in the long run (cheaper insurance, cheaper on gas, etc). You want to steer clear of any super sports, as they are designed explicitly for experienced riders (so cross out the GSXR and the CBR). The Yamaha R6 I believe is a sport tourer like the Ninja, but its inline-4 engine is a lot less forgiving than the Ninja's parallel twin.

 

The R6 is a true rr. They make like the R6nonrr that is a sport tourer, but with the OP including the CBR 600 and Gixxer 6er I assumed he was putting the R6 in that same category. Inline 4's are a lot of fun for top end, but are a little dead in the low rpms. When I open up my old Bandit it will scream. I look forward to riding my bike everyday all day. I will even be looking forward to it when I upgrade to a gixxer 600 or 750.

 

Less forgiving meaning slipping the clutch out (Because I am still a little jumpy with it on my 250) or more forgiving over the long run life of the bike?

 

More forgiving in the sense of power delivery. A 600cc inline-4 is a high revving race engine, and can jump from 4k to 14k in less than a second. If you pop the clutch after something like that your ass is gonna be on the concrete, haha.

How long have you been riding? If you aren't comfortable operating a 250 you don't need be upgrading any time soon.

 

I am comfortable, I do occasionally get a little to excited for the power to come, remember that I am on a 250, and give it a **** ton of gas to get my going...

I think if I have more available power on tap, such as on a bigger bike, I will focus more on slipping the clutch and rev matching.
I've been riding for about 4 months? Give or take...

I just kinda wanna haul ass. Is that a problem? I am think I have narrowed it down to the GSX-R, r6, or ninja 650R. I don't really WANT a gsx, because everyone and their mother has one, so I am leaning towards a r6.

Anyone have the HP/TQ numbers on these 3 bikes?

 

Gixxer is something like 108 hp and 45-50 trq. The r6 I think have a few more ponies then the gixxer, but is about the same in trq. Ninja 650 is around 72-75 hp I do believe.

 

But... you just said "I don't go to fast" in the second sentence of the thread.

To be honest, the whole "I just want to haul ass" mentality is incredibly immature. Now, if you can skillfully haul ass in the twisties, then that's different, but any jackass can go fast in a straight line. I'd rather be a skilled rider than a squid going 130 MPH down the interstate.

If you can't work on feathering the clutch and rev matching on your current bike, then I still say you are a LONG way away from being able to responsibly handle a bigger sportbike.

 

Maybe there is some confusion, probably because of me, I apologize. I said that I don't go too fast, and that's probably because when I take the 250 up to 80+ MPH, it is so loud I can't hear myself think. That is normally fine, but this is ANOYING LOUD, not good loud.

I DON'T go fast, but I WANT to, is more of the statement I was making. I figured with the bikes I was posting, it would be implied that I was looking to change my "I don't go to fast" statement...I apologize.

I can feather the clutch, and revmatch on the 250 with no problems. The problem I AM HAVING is the lack of power. I rev match and shift with no problems, but I want there to be more power. If it isnt there, I give it more gas. So I PHYSICALLY CAN revmatch, I just don't because the bike is leaving me with very little power, and no choice.

 

The 600cc inline-fours are making a little over 100 horsepower and they are making it in the high rev range, the 650cc twin-cylinder bikes are making somewhere around 70hp (give or take a few) and they are making it in the lower and middle rev range.

The 650 is probably more reliable and cheaper to maintain and fix.

I think you should wait a little longer though, going about it the right way you move up when you've mastered what you have, not because you want more from the bike to make up for your own deficiency.

 

The 600cc inline-fours are making a little over 100 horsepower and they are making it in the high rev range, the 650cc twin-cylinder bikes are making somewhere around 70hp (give or take a few) and they are making it in the lower and middle rev range.

The 650 is probably more reliable and cheaper to maintain and fix.

I think you should wait a little longer though, going about it the right way you move up when you've mastered what you have, not because you want more from the bike to make up for your own deficiency.

Is the Ninja 650R a Twin-cylinder bike? I think I want more low end power, less high end, as I probably won't be trying to stretch my legs in the 120+MPH zone for quite some time.

 

06 horsepower chart courtesy of Sportrider magazine. Every dyno will read a little different but on average you're looking at around 107 hp give or take depending on what you get. the 08's and 09's have more peak hp than the 06's.

http://www.sportrider.com/bikes/046_0607_middleweights_dyno_testing/photo_01.html

Torque..... on a guestimation average 45 ft-lbs

http://www.sportrider.com/bikes/046_0607_middleweights_dyno_testing/photo_02.html

The middleweights are no joke that's for sure. those are at the rear wheel figures.

Other figures
http://www.sportrider.com/tech/146_weights_measurements/index.html

 

06 horsepower chart courtesy of Sportrider magazine. Every dyno will read a little different but on average you're looking at around 107 hp give or take depending on what you get. the 08's and 09's have more peak hp than the 06's.

Torque..... on a guestimation average 45 ft-lbs


The middleweights are no joke that's for sure. those are at the rear wheel figures.

Thank you for the chart!!
So looking at that chart, and maybe I am looking for something along the lines of what the 1st person said. Something like the Ninja 650R (Not the ZX) or the R6.

 

Yes, the Ninja 650R is a parallel twin.

 

Thanks for all your hell everyone. Any more info is welcomed!!!

Thanks!

 

This section of the forum is dead. I have been the top thread for the past 2 days...

 

We don't have too many sport bike riders here I don't think.

Another bike to look at in the 650 twin range is the SV650 Suzuki.

I can cruise my 500 at 80 no problem so I'd imagine one of the 650's would cruise that fairly easily. The supersports will cruise that very easily.

 

I have an 07 Ninja 650r and it will cruise 70 mph in 6th right about 5k RPM's. 80 is just under 6k RPMs. Red line is 11k.

Hey TurboLag, if you have any questions about the bike, let me know. I got it as my first bike ever and only took the MSF prior. So, Im a noob...It is cheaper than the inline 4 supersports of course, still looks good, has a more upright seating position and is fuel injected. I have no problems hugging the tank on the highway though and I'm 6'3", 195 pounds. I get about 55 mpg when keeping it below 6k on the tach. Its a forgiving bike, but also highly rewarding. And its fast...waaay faster than the 250's in the MSF course, lol. You'd be in heaven with it after having ridden a Ninja 250, but it wouldn't overwhelm you either. It will still do 140 according to what I read on the web, but I've only had it up to 110 - 115 (at about 2am on a long straight stretch of highway with no one around). It gets there plenty fast, believe that. I'd say the only downside is if you buy it new...the break in "rules" are: "Dont exceed 4k RPMs for the first 500 miles and from 500 - 1000 miles dont exceed 6k RPMs". I had no problems with the amount of power on tap below 6k, but MAN does it come alive after 7k RPMs...if you want low end torque, the Ninja 650 is a winner. It makes its max TQ of 48 at 7k RPMS. I would recommend this bike over the Suzuki, but honestly, its up to you. Either bike would be a winner for what you're looking for... Unless youre just dying for a 4 banger supersport.

 

As a 675 owner i will say that they are a little more fragile than the big 4 600's, but they're not terrible. There are annoying things that tend to happen on the 675, but they're not insurmountable.

That being said, the most reliable of the bikes you mentioned is going to be the CBR. This is not to imply that the R6, gsxr, and kawi aren't going to be reliable, it's just that honda tends to make a rock solid bike that is well engineered and well built, sometimes at the sacrifice of extreme performance--though i think the 600rr is the best 600cc inline4 superport on the market.

while i think the 650r is a good bike (along with the sv650), i don't really classify them as being in the same performance range as the other bikes you've mentioned. I'm not saying the R6 is a better bike for you, but there's a remarkable difference between an R6 and a 650R, one of which is power delivery, but also other performance and comfort aspects. You very well may be happier with a SV or a 650r, especially if you're doing more freeway and city riding.

I rank the big4 600's as such taking into account reliability, performance, comfort, build quality, price, and looks.
1. 600rr (pros: build quality, comfort, performance, looks, reliability. cons: high price)
2. R6 (pros: performance, looks, build quality. cons: price)
3. gsxr (pros: reliability, comfort, price cons: looks, build quality, performance)
4. zx6r (pros: price, performance cons: build quality, looks, reliability)

keep in mind that the differences between all 4 are very minimal. the biggest difference is looks and price. they all perform, they're all pretty reliable, and they're all built well on an absolute scale.

oh, and GET SOME GEAR. the world doesn't need any more road hamburger and totalled 600's.

 

About the R6, there is also the R6S. It's the older I think 04 or so R6 repackaged as a "Sport Tourer" and a good bit cheaper price than the R6. Kawasaki has the ZZR600 which is the 03 or so ZX-6 I believe repackaged as a "Sport Tourer". Either bike is more than capable.

 

Oh yeah, get some gear man...for real. Helmet and jacket at the LEAST...

I got some sweet leather pants from Leatherup.com for 71 bucks, so really no reason not to get pants too, but thats your call. Skin grafting is always more expensive though, lol...

EDIT: Ear plugs! For that highway noise, with or without a helmet, some cheap foam ear plugs make a world of difference. You can actually hear better with them in since they cancel all the wind noise that blocks out other sounds. Plus you wont risk getting long term hearing damage. Its quite serene cruising at 75 mph hugging the tank tucked behind the little windshield and all you can hear is the sound of your engine and a little road noise...

 

I actually like riding with my ipod bud in 1 ear...

 

Thanks for the info fellas!!

 

I don't know why people think the R6 is not on par with the Gixxers and Kawi ZX-Rs. It is a good leap above a 650 and definitely NOT a sport tourer. An R6 is a true to life SS.

 

well, there's the R6, and the R6s. the R6s doesn't perform quite like a bona fide R6.

the R6s (like the ZZR) is a previous gen R6 (03-05) that's been detuned and had some of the more expensive suspension components replaced with cheaper parts. it's been made to be a little more comfortable and more forgiving compared to the R6, probably tuned to have more midrange and less high end hp.

it still goes like stink, and is a good bike though. the 03-05 R6 is one of the great 600cc sportbikes.

 

I have an '07 Ninja as well. Bought it as my first bike after my BRC. I don't find it intimidating at all. One trick, too, is that there's a little idle controller down on the left side just above the brake pedal. You can make the engine rev around 1,500 RPM at idle rather than 1,000. It makes start offs a bit easier when you're just learning. I've considered the SV650SF as well, and would've bought one if I could've got the deal on one of those akin to the one I got on my Ninja ($5k for a 2007 with under 2,000 miles with a 4 year extended warranty and a bunch of small extras that would've cost me about $300 or so total).