Faults:

Ignition and battery failures.

Power loss at high RPM.

If the motorcycle does not start well when cold or loses compression, it may require a valve inspection and adjustment.

Wear on the upper gaskets or seals, causing minor oil leaks.

General Comments:

The Ninja is lightweight, agile, and easy to handle. Its light weight and narrow tires make it incredibly maneuverable, while the high handlebars are easy to reach and prevent wrist pain after a day of riding. It handles city streets perfectly thanks to its excellent stability and performs with ease on winding roads.

Although 33 hp might not seem like much (and, frankly, it isn't), it is enough to make the bike feel agile when pushed to the limit. It accelerates from 0 to 96 km/h in about 6 seconds—a time comparable to some sports cars—allowing you to overtake most traffic, though it requires wringing the throttle for all it's worth to achieve this.

Its full potential is only realized when pushed to the limit (high revs and frequent, rapid gear changes) which can make the driving experience quite frenetic and difficult to control.

If you drop the revs a bit, the ride is smooth and pleasant, but you’ll need patience when getting moving, as it lacks sufficient torque at low and mid-range RPMs to accelerate fluidly.

Overall, it lags behind the performance of modern small-displacement sports bikes, but viewed in isolation, it remains a genuine, lightweight sports bike for daily use, offering low maintenance costs thanks to good fuel economy and easily serviceable components. If you look past the instrument cluster and headlights, it doesn't look overly dated and would still be an attractive bike in a showroom today.

It is the most fun motorcycle (and the one I’ve covered the most kilometers on) in the last 30 years. In reality, it’s the only bike you need. It isn’t the fastest or the best-handling, but it is great fun, economical, and you can use 95% of its power 100% of the time.

Faults:

Sometimes the bike bogs down when accelerating, struggles to reach high speeds, or stalls when the throttle is released.

The bike starts and runs well when cold, but once it warms up (in heavy traffic), the idle speed drops, it loses power, and it may even stall.

Electrical system faults, rapid battery drain, flickering lights, or the engine stalling intermittently.

Initially, I noticed high fuel consumption. This is generally due to poorly adjusted carburetors, a stuck float needle allowing free flow of gasoline, or the need to replace the jets and adjust the mixture.

General Comments:

The Ninja 250 is a motorcycle I owned for just over 12 years, yet I enjoyed it to the absolute fullest.

It was a bike I truly made the most of—one that was fun, taught me so much, and which I ultimately had to sell in order to keep growing and evolving; though I did so with a heavy heart. These words are dedicated to it.

Let's start by describing its aesthetics, since I don't know much about the mechanics—though I must say the engine is brilliant; it has plenty of pull and gave me no trouble at all. But I want to talk about the design.

I absolutely love the way it looks! If the CBR125 is a "mini-sportbike," this one takes the step toward truly belonging to that class—though I say "almost" because, while the riding position leans toward the "R" (supersport) style, it still feels more like an "F" (sport-tourer) compared to the bike that would eventually succeed it. Even so, aesthetically, it leaves nothing to be desired; that signature Kawasaki green is undeniably captivating—it draws you in like a bee to honey, and I was instantly hooked.

The riding position is quite comfortable; your back isn't perfectly upright—you can feel that slight forward lean typical of sports bikes—and the clip-on handlebars give it that signature "R-bike" feel.

The seat isn't amazing, but it isn't uncomfortable either.

The windscreen is tiny considering the speeds the bike can reach—we're talking about 160–170 km/h, where the wind starts to become a nuisance. Of course, you shouldn't really be riding that fast, but the urge to open it up is always there.

The controls are well-positioned, and the mirrors—mounted on the fairing—offer much better visibility than the previously described 125cc models, which have them on the handlebars. The fuel gauge only shows the reserve level, which I find a bit inconvenient; I’d prefer a needle indicator or, for a digital display, a battery-style icon—just having a reserve light isn't great.

The suspension is super stiff—I’m not sure if that’s because it’s an "R" model or because it’s a Kawasaki—but the difference compared to a Honda is striking. It’s excellent for touring: very agile, fuel-efficient, and easy to maintain. It’s also a great choice for the city, allowing you to easily weave through traffic, while offering superior stability (thanks to its weight) on the open road. All in all, I consider it a highly versatile bike—great for both highway and city riding—though it certainly falls woefully short on the track.

Unlike Hondas, this one doesn't respond to the throttle with smoothness or gentleness... it lacks low-end power, but if you really wring its neck, it performs at its best—you'll be unbeatable :D. Its top speed is around 160–170 km/h, which is more than enough for what the bike is and its intended purpose—unless you're planning to hit the track.

Fuel consumption is very reasonable—we're talking about 4L/100km; in monetary terms, 15 euros gets you 300 km of riding.