Kawasaki Ninja Owners Manual: Shifting Gears

Kawasaki Ninja Owners Manual / How to ride the motorcycle / Shifting Gears

Close the throttle while pulling in the clutch lever.
Shift into the next higher or lower gear.
Open the throttle part way, while releasing the clutch lever.
For smooth riding, each gear position should cover the proper rate of speed shown in the table.

WARNING

Downshifting to a lower gear at high speed causes engine rpm to increase excessively, potentially damaging the engine and it may also cause the rear wheel to skid and cause an accident.

Vehicle speed when shifting

NOTE

The transmission is equipped with a positive neutral finder. When the motorcycle is standing still, the transmission cannot be shifted past neutral from 1st gear. To use the positive neutral finder, shift down to 1st gear, then lift up on the shift pedal while standing still. The transmission will shift only into neutral.

Moving Off

Check that the side stand is up. Pull in the clutch lever. Shift into 1st gear. Open the throttle a little, and start to let out the clutch lever very slowly. As the clutch starts to enga ...

Braking

Close the throttle completely, leaving the clutch engaged (except when shifting gears) so that the engine will help slow down the motorcycle. Shift down one gear at a time so that you are ...

Other materials:

Engine Oil Change
Situate the motorcycle so that it is vertical after warming up the engine. Remove the engine oil drain bolt [A] to drain the oil. The oil in the oil filter can be drained by removing the filter (see Oil Filter Replacement). Replace the drain bolt gasket [B] with a new one. Tighten t ...

Swingarm Bearing, Sleeve Inspection
NOTICE Do not remove the bearings for inspection. Removal may damage them. Inspect the needle bearings [A] and ball bearing installed in the swingarm. The rollers and ball in a bearing normally wear very little, and wear is difficult to measure. Instead of measuring, visually inspec ...

Swingarm Removal
Remove: Rear Wheel (see Rear Wheel Removal in the Wheels/Tires chapter) Mud Guard with Rear Brake Hose (see Mud Guard Removal in the Frame chapter) Rocker Arm (see Rocker Arm Removal) Remove: Brake Hose Clamp Bolt [A] Unscrew the swingarm pivot shaft nut [A]. Usi ...