Honda CBR 250 R and Kawasaki Ninja 250 R super athletes in the test

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Comparison test: Honda CBR 250 R and Kawasaki Ninja 250 R

Small super athletes in the test

Is there a market for 250cc super sports cars in Germany? Is the new Honda CBR better than Kawasaki’s ninja? MOTORRAD drove off with questions and returned home with long-forgotten elations.

Duck! Offer the wind as little exposure as possible. That brings speed. The left foot is tripping restlessly on the rest. Upshift? Too early! Downshift? Brings nothing! The speedometer stays at almost 90 km / h. And somehow, for a few hundred meters, this diesel crate has been rolling around in front of the front wheels of the two 250s. Rushing past is difficult. Because the track is difficult to see, full of curves, and the performance of the two little racers is far from shaking overtaking maneuvers out of the often described sleeve. Power? Oh yes: We are talking about a measured 32 HP at 11 100 rpm for the Kawasaki and 26 HP at 8600 rpm for the Honda. At first glance everything seems to be clear with these values ​​determined on the MOTORRAD test bench: the ninja dozes the Honda mercilessly, because the difference of six hp corresponds to a 23 percent difference in performance. These are worlds!

AT.wait. The duo flies in the slipstream of the citizen’s cage. S-curve uphill, long straight downhill. Open fire! Out of the slipstream, the two 250s rush towards the next right-hand bend. The Kawasaki only takes half a motorcycle length from the Honda. Braking from 110 km / h! In moments like these, the Honda comes into the spotlight. Because with its well-functioning integral ABS, it not only satisfies experienced pilots, but also gives novice drivers additional safety. To put it in a nutshell: both bikes decelerate effectively. The ninja brake feels a bit more toxic than its Honda counterpart. In terms of braking effect, however, both 250s don’t give each other anything. With the mentioned difference that the Honda trumps here with an ABS.

Comparison test: Honda CBR 250 R and Kawasaki Ninja 250 R

Small super athletes in the test

Gargolov

Striking faces – based on the great Supersport sisters.

You can like that. But you can also hate hyperventilating. The Honda single-cylinder is overall robust. It sounds better, has somewhat rougher vibrations and is stronger, especially in everyday driving, but is tougher in the upper third of the engine speed. His emotionally required switching point when swimming along in rush hour traffic is around 5000 tours. The single cylinder looks more relaxed than the Kawa drive, which always wants to be cheered up to at least 8000 rpm before engaging the next higher gear. Speaking of gear changes: Seldom has a clutch been as smooth as that of the CBR 250 R. But it is also rare that a Honda transmission has been so difficult to shift.

The long straight is over. Both drivers have crouched behind the fairing, whereby the taller driver feels more comfortable on the Kawasaki than on the Honda, which is generally more delicate: the wheelbase is 31 millimeters shorter, the fairing is more compact, and the driver sits closer to the handlebars because the CBR has the shorter tank. Both of the machines are not really comfortable over the long term due to their tight seat cushions. Again it is time to brake hard, whereby the Honda chassis has to struggle most with the bumps and asphalt bumps that are now appearing, because the CBR fork has hardly any damping and quickly locks up when braking hard. The Kawa fork is a little better dampened, but unfortunately not very sensitive. Sucks! Who knows, can prepare for it. The suspension struts of both bikes work well in solo operation and only reach their limits with a pillion passenger and luggage. It goes on: brake fully, downshift, turn in – and rubber. A kick that has not been felt for a long time overwhelms the pilots: squeeze the machines without going over the limit.

We have come to the core question: Who should buy these bikes? They are box office hits on the Asian market, and that’s what they were designed for. But here in Europe, where you often just smile tiredly about anything below 100 hp, there is obviously only the niche for driver license holders, right? No. Because riding the quarter-liter bikes is highly sensual: because of that "Performance deficit" the correct gear must always be engaged and the correct braking point hit. And woe betide you miss the ideal line and lose your momentum – then you are the pug. Both 250cc bikes are not only Brotchenhol vehicles and good beginner bikes, but also give ambitious pilots the highest level of happiness on the country road. Completely StVO-compliant.

Conclusion / technical data

Gargolov

The built-in integral ABS makes decelerating safer on the Honda.

CONCLUSION:
Anyone who is into performance in this segment, who likes high-revving engines and does not like single-cylinder, cannot ignore the Ninja. The lower consumption (see above), the ABS and ultimately the slightly better workmanship speak for the CBR. In terms of the fun factor, they both don’t give each other anything.

Technical data:

Honda CBR 250 R.

engine:
Water-cooled single-cylinder four-stroke engine, OHC, six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain, bore x stroke 76.0 x 55.0 mm, displacement 250 cm³; Rated output 19.4 kW (26 hp) at 8500 rpm; Max. Torque 23 Nm at 7000 rpm.
landing gear:
Bridge frame made of steel, telescopic fork, Ø 37 mm, two-arm swing arm made of steel, central spring strut, disc brake front / rear, Ø 296/220 mm, three-piston floating caliper at the front, single-piston floating caliper at the rear, composite brake, ABS, tires 110 / 70-17; 140 / 70-17.
Dimensions:
Wheelbase 1369 mm, steering head angle 65.0 degrees, caster 95 mm, suspension travel f / r 130/104 mm, seat height * 785 mm, payload * 181 kg, tank capacity 13.0 liters.
price:
4490 euros.

Ninja 250 R

Engine:
Water-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke in-line engine, OHC, six-speed gearbox, O-ring chain. Bore x stroke 62.0 x 41.2 mm, displacement 249 cm³; Rated output 24.0 kW (33 PS) at 11,000 rpm; Max. Torque 22 Nm at 8200 rpm.
landing gear:
Bridge frame made of steel, telescopic fork, Ø 37 mm, two-arm swing arm made of steel, central spring strut, disc brake front / rear, Ø 290/220 mm, double-piston floating calipers, tires 110 / 70-17 ; 130 / 70-17.
Dimensions:
Wheelbase 1400 mm, steering head angle 64.0 degrees, caster 82 mm, spring travel f / r 120/130 mm, seat height * 765 mm, payload * 167 kg, tank capacity 17.0 liters.
price:
4995 euros.

* MOTORCYCLE measurements

Performance

Top speed* 140/158 km / h
acceleration
0-100 km / h 8.0 / 7.5 sec
0-140 km / h 21.9 / 17.1 sec
Draft
60-100 km / h 10.0 / 10.3 sec
100-140 km / h 16.4 / 12.5 sec
Speedometer deviation effectively
(Display 50/100)
Honda: 45/91 km / h
Kawasaki: 46/92 km / h
consumption
Country road 3.0 / 3.8 l (100 km / h)
Theor. Range 433/447 km
Fuel type super

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