Woo hoo, finally found others thinking the same things I am...
I have a 99 ninja 500. I have been trying to coax the most miles posible out of it. So far I haven't done a lot but work on driving skills (and tucking). I have been able to average about 63mpg out of it over the last few tanks.
I tried pulling the lower fairing off due to recommendations that the scoop on the front did more harm than the sides did good. I saw no noticable difference from that and put it back on last night.
I have switched to synthetic oil and have no front turn signals (due to damage before I bought it). I also have a broken front fairing, which makes me want to improve it with something better. I am very seriously looking into a "dustbin" style fairing. I am not a huge fan of how they looked on older bikes, but my photoshop of what mine could look like isn't as bad as I thought.
It isn't all that expensive ($575 + shipping new) and if it would fit it should make a big difference. If I could break the 100mpg mark with something like this I would be happy, and I think the potential is definately there.
I also want to regear as I have plenty of power and wouldn't mind bringing the RPMs down a little at highways speeds (where most of my commute is).
Does anyone know someone who has tried this (other than vetter)?
-Mr_C