Perfect conditions, nice cold weather in So Cal. I hit 101 mph indicated on a slight downgrade. It was the same downgrade where I hit 111 mph indicated on the Ninja 300 I once had. For comparison, the Ninja 300 got about 62 mpg and the CBR300r has been getting about 71 mpg over 1,500 miles.
There's roughly a 10 mph top speed advantage to the Ninja 300 and roughly 10 mpg advantage to the CBR300r. There's a better fuel range on the Ninja 300 (easily 60 miles) due to 4.5 gal tank. I've only got 3 gal useable on the CBR300. The mirrors on the CBR300 are much better (not even close) and the CBR300 suspension is more balanced for me. The Ninja would go faster and the suspension was never an issue, whereas the CBR won't hit that extra 10 mph on top but feels more comfy in general. The CBR does squirm but it is a slow squirm and very manageable, and more plush.
I paid OTD $4,299 for the CBR300r ABS and $4,300 OTD for the Ninja 300. For commuting the CBR300r is better for me since the handle bars and front fairing and mirrors are just about perfect for where I want to sit and look. The stock Ninja 300 perched me up too much and had me feeling like I was steering from the waist and I couldn't tuck behind the wind screen the way a sportbike should.
If Honda made a CBR450r single cylinder with just a bit bigger forks and frame to handle the extra weight, that'd be Goldie Locks's way hotter big sister for me. From my experience, a slow single is way more satisfying to abuse than a relatively slow twin. I think the control over the raw sound and torque of the single is more noticeable than controlling same for a comparable twin.
There's roughly a 10 mph top speed advantage to the Ninja 300 and roughly 10 mpg advantage to the CBR300r. There's a better fuel range on the Ninja 300 (easily 60 miles) due to 4.5 gal tank. I've only got 3 gal useable on the CBR300. The mirrors on the CBR300 are much better (not even close) and the CBR300 suspension is more balanced for me. The Ninja would go faster and the suspension was never an issue, whereas the CBR won't hit that extra 10 mph on top but feels more comfy in general. The CBR does squirm but it is a slow squirm and very manageable, and more plush.
I paid OTD $4,299 for the CBR300r ABS and $4,300 OTD for the Ninja 300. For commuting the CBR300r is better for me since the handle bars and front fairing and mirrors are just about perfect for where I want to sit and look. The stock Ninja 300 perched me up too much and had me feeling like I was steering from the waist and I couldn't tuck behind the wind screen the way a sportbike should.
If Honda made a CBR450r single cylinder with just a bit bigger forks and frame to handle the extra weight, that'd be Goldie Locks's way hotter big sister for me. From my experience, a slow single is way more satisfying to abuse than a relatively slow twin. I think the control over the raw sound and torque of the single is more noticeable than controlling same for a comparable twin.
