Ninja 250 is this normal for a cold engine?

[DMT78]

I test rode a 08 ninja 250 and the throttle response was really slow. I'd twist the throttle and after a second or two, then the engine would kick in. It was a pretty cold morning and the bike didn't seem warmed up very much. I am guessing this is normal until the bike is fully warmed up? This is my first bike and just wanted to get some input from other, more experienced owners. Thanks everyone for the help.

[A-J]

The 250 is a very cold blooded beast, and the bottom end is really lean, which helps pass the emissions testing. There are a couple things you can do to fix the problem.

1. Use the search button
2. profit

[cjp91068]

I had one last year. Yes that is normal. I disappears after a mile or 2.
Oh yeah, fun to try and start on cold mornings, isn't it?
Thank God for fuel injection!(on my current bike) lol

[eidian]

Originally Posted by cjp91068

I had one last year. Yes that is normal. I disappears after a mile or 2.
Oh yeah, fun to try and start on cold mornings, isn't it?
Thank God for fuel injection!(on my current bike) lol

+1 to it being normal...not so sure about it disappearing after a mile or two though. My 500R was carburated and when the temps fell below 40* the bike was very sluggish my whole 25 mile commute in the morning (my hands would actually hurt from the cold). I bought the bike on a cold evening and the tech who did the walk through around the bike said, "...takes a little while to warm up on the cold nights, imagine two pistons the size of a half-dollar coin trying to warm up the engine block...". When the temp needle wouldn't go above being 25% warm, the engine just sucked.

+1 to FI...wow what a difference it makes. Well, that and the fact that my current bike has a 953cc engine helps warm the engine up quickly and keep it warm which keeps it running smoothly on cold mornings (as cold as SoCal gets that is).

[Migue]

I have an '09 250 and yes it is normal for it to feel slugish when hitting the throttle on take off. I have to be extra careful and watch my timing when i am about to get in a busy crossing street because of it.

[airjordan763]

I also have an 09 ninja that I just bought recently and I ran into the same problem. I'm glad to see that it is a normal thing, because I was unsure too whether it was normal. Speaking of 250s and cold engines, when I would go and start it up (in the cold), I would let it run for about 3-4 mins with the choke at half. But when i would try to take off (with the choke off), the bike would stall on me like 5 or 6 times until i could actually get it started moving. Is this normal too?? I only have 100 miles on it and have heard that it gets better after the break-in period is complete.

[eidian]

Originally Posted by airjordan763

I also have an 09 ninja that I just bought recently and I ran into the same problem. I'm glad to see that it is a normal thing, because I was unsure too whether it was normal. Speaking of 250s and cold engines, when I would go and start it up (in the cold), I would let it run for about 3-4 mins with the choke at half. But when i would try to take off (with the choke off), the bike would stall on me like 5 or 6 times until i could actually get it started moving. Is this normal too?? I only have 100 miles on it and have heard that it gets better after the break-in period is complete.

Yeah, it's pretty much par for the course. When the air is cold, it affects the fuel/air mixture enough that it can cause the engine to stall when the throttle is twisted. Soon enough you'll get used to the bike and know how to baby the throttle on those cold mornings.

One thing that you could do is rev the engine a little higher (500 to 1k more) than you usually do and let out the clutch a little more slowly also. The higher rev should prevent the engine from stalling when you start moving.

[Migue]

I've actually never had that problem with the stalling. When mine's warming up i twist the throttle a little bit to see if it revs up smoothly,if it does then it's ready to go,if it wants to stall when i do the quick small rev. then i let it warm up some more.

[kawichic]

Yeah, its normal. My 250 hated cold mornings and would whine, p*ss, and moan whenever I'd start her up. Once warm though, she ran fine.