Hello, Paul here again with another update to the Ninja 250. As you can see in the picture below, the throttle cable has frayed and broken. Even with regular maintenance, these items can wear out and break. This happened while I was out riding, but it didn’t cause too big of a problem.

Luckily, the carburetor was easily accessed from the side and I was able to manipulate the throttle valve with my hand while riding. I did not have a spare cable with me, so I carefully went home. Soon a new cable will be installed, and the resurrected Ninja will be out on the streets again.

Stay tuned for more updates, and be sure to order your copy of our new Winter/ Spring 2012 print edition of Inline Performance Magazine HERE. Don’t worry, shipping is free!

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Hello everyone, here is a quick update for the Ninja 250. You can thank the local five-O for this little modification. I was stopped the other day for missing a side mirror.

This stick on mirror is going to complement the standard stock mirror while it is being repaired. Mounted on the front turn signal stem, it is a little low but the convex surface gives a wide view behind the motorcycle as well as to the side. It’s not a replacement for scanning, or a quick look over the shoulder, but it does aid in maintaining awareness of the traffic on the road.

Stay tuned for more updates, and be sure to order your copy of our new Winter/ Spring 2012 print edition of Inline Performance Magazine HERE. Don’t worry, shipping is free!

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Here is an interesting photo showing an emergency patch for the Ninja 250 staff bike. After surviving the accident necessitating the Ninja Restore segment, the right rear set suffered a catastrophic crack through normal wear and use of the foot peg and rear brake.

This patch was made using a discarded section of sheet metal. It took a bit of work to bend it to fit around the foot peg and still contact the bolts holes on both side of the crack. Longer bolts were then threaded into the stock mounting holes to attach the plate, rear brake lever and the rearset to the motorcycle. No fancy or artistic designs, just functionality until a newer rearset can be ordered.

Stay tuned for more updates, and be sure to order your copy of our new Winter/ Spring 2012 print edition of Inline Performance Magazine HERE. Don’t worry, shipping is free!

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Hello everyone! Welcome to a super exciting edition of Inline Performance Magazine. In this update, we will be making a modification to the Kawasaki Ninja 250. We will be adding additional rear running and brake lights because they are not installed by Kawasaki when the motorcycle is sold in North America. Please join us as we provide a walkthrough for this installation.

Our first task was to purchase the necessary hardware. We bought a set of 1157 light bulbs and two light bulb sockets (#85803) and some push together type electrical connectors. We already had some wire and the tools at the IPM garage.

Removing the rear light assembly is accomplished by unlatching the seat and removing two nuts from the mounting bracket. After unplugging the connector, the rear light assembly can slide out.

We next had to prep our light bulb sockets with an additional ground wire because the light assembly base does not utilize a ground in the housing. After using a wire brush attachment on our Dremel to remove the protective coating from the light bulb base, we cut some wire and soldered one end to the outer base of the light bulb socket. It would be easier to have first
placed a flat connector on the end of the wire and then soldered the connector to the light bulb base.

Since all of the wires coming out of our light bulb base are the same color, we went to the motorcycle’s battery and tested the leads to find out which wire supplied power to the running light, and which was going to power the brake light. After marking the wires, we were ready to install the sockets into the light assembly using the cement glue. We then installed the light bulbs by removing the red lens cover.

Wiring all of the leads together is the penultimate step. We cut the wires leading to the connector of the main rear light, and attached new connectors to the leads. We then grouped all of the similar function wires together and attached connectors after first twisting the leads together. We now had three groups of wires in the connectors and simply matched them to their mate on the OEM connector. A few zip ties help hold all the wire in a tidy arrangement for reinstallation in the motorcycle.

The rear light assembly slides into the motorcycle in reverse of removal, but the groove on the top edge needs to be fitted first. Take care when aligning the bolts into the mounting bracket to not misplace the fitted washers. Afterward, simply tighten the nuts, reconnect the wire clip, and
reinstall the seat. A simple turn of the key shows success, and the satisfying squeeze on the brake lever illuminated the rear assembly like magic.

That is all for this update of Inline Performance Magazine. Check back often for more update. Visit Ninja Boards for other exciting Kawasaki motorcycle discussions.

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Stay tuned for more updates, and be sure to order your copy of the 2011 print edition of Inline Performance Magazine HERE at the pre-order price until supplies last.

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Hi guys, Paul here. This is Inline Performance Magazine’s Ninja Restore episode 3. You may remember we left off the previous episode after fixing the right side of the engine and refilling the fluids. In this episode, we be tackling the broken handle bar, instrument cluster, and replacing the gas tank.

The original gas tank had several large and serious dents, so it is being replaced. The first task is removing the rubber fitting for the fairings from the sides of the tank, and the tank’s bolt fittings from rear of the gas tank. The next step is removing the gas cap, and the petcock from the old gas tank, and then installing all of the hardware on the new gas tank.

The right side handle bar riser and handle bar were broken, so they need to be replaced. This task is achieved by removing the bolts holding the broken risers from the top of the triple camp. After installing the new handle bar riser, a new handle was installed and the brake reservoir and handle was attached. The throttle grip was the next part to be fitted, and the throttle cables were adjusted.

The instrument cluster had a broken bolt stand, after reattaching it with epoxy; it was reinstalled on the motorcycle. A quick test start ensured the motorcycle was in working order and closes out this episode of Ninja Restore.

Join us again in the future episodes of Ninja Restore when the cosmetics of the Ninja are refinished and the first test ride takes place.

Be sure to check out Ninja Boards for more Ninja fun!

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