View Full Version : High MPG motorcycles
Anyone know of some high MPG motorcycles as with the current prices and a the rather lack of Diesel and LPG bikes I need a high MPG.
Does anyone have experience of a high MPG bike.. I was thinking of a bandit 6, but it occurred to me that a bandit 400 could possibly be more economical.
Anyone have experience of this?
Italianjob
06-09-05, 09:12 AM
The BMW F650GS has a new Rotax single cylinder 650cc engine with dual sparkies which is supposed to give you 60-70mpg.
But then, if you own an SV, the rise in the cost of petrol is just a small price to pay to look cool 8)
Check here http://www.bmw-motorrad.co.uk/gb/en/index.html
The BMW F650GS has a new Rotax single cylinder 650cc engine with dual sparkies which is supposed to give you 60-70mpg.
But then, if you own an SV, the rise in the cost of petrol is just a small price to pay to look cool 8)
Well I get about about 55mpg out of the SV.. maybe 60 if I'm more carefull, I need more...
I'm on a Gt at the moment and I only get 45...
A scooter? :P
I thinks not.. I have to use the M3.. and I do 130 miles a day.
wyrdness
06-09-05, 10:05 AM
How about finding a job where you don't have to commute so far?
There's only a finite supply of petrol and it's running out fast. Prices are going to continue to rise until it's prohibitively expensive.
How about finding a job where you don't have to commute so far?
There's only a finite supply of petrol and it's running out fast. Prices are going to continue to rise until it's prohibitively expensive.
I will do.. but at the moment I need the education they offer to get my CV fatter... thus I can get all those other jobs I saw down south but did have the experience for...
SVeeedy Gonzales
06-09-05, 10:22 AM
Generally the smaller the engine cc, the better the mpg, so if a 125 is no good, a 250 or 400 would give better mpg (unless they're sports-oriented - lot of the 400 sports seem to offer little better mpg than the 600's)
Bat motorcycles do plenty of imports of smaller cc machines http://www.batmotorcycles.co.uk/ but you'll need to do a bit of checking up on the mpg's.
Generally the smaller the engine cc, the better the mpg, so if a 125 is no good, a 250 or 400 would give better mpg (unless they're sports-oriented - lot of the 400 sports seem to offer little better mpg than the 600's)
Bat motorcycles do plenty of imports of smaller cc machines http://www.batmotorcycles.co.uk/ but you'll need to do a bit of checking up on the mpg's.
I was thinking that.. so I could hunt down my old CB400SF and have it back.. :roll: though it was a bit gutless....
Though I've heard that CB-1's can get 68mpg...
misssurferrosa
06-09-05, 10:44 AM
Singles are generally quite good, the Yam TTR250 does 75mpg and up to 90mph or XT350 70mpg/90mph.
My old gpz500 was pretty fuel efficient... 200+ miles to a tank
Maybe a diversion would be a god choice though they seem to rot...
Have my ninja and start living in petrol stations
Going off my last ride I was getting the massive figure of 30mpg :shock: though I do go fast everynow and then!
Honda Dullsville maybe?
ivantate
06-09-05, 11:15 AM
Is the fuel injected SV more economical??
I have seen 55mpg out of mine and cant seem to get it below 42mpg even with serious abuse.
SVeeedy Gonzales
06-09-05, 12:01 PM
Is the fuel injected SV more economical??
I have seen 55mpg out of mine and cant seem to get it below 42mpg even with serious abuse.
the official figures often show the fuel injected SV (and most fuel injected bikes) as being slightly lower on the mpg, though I always get higher figures than they list. Used to consistently get 52mpg on my last SV (k4) on my weekly commute.
Never quite understood the environmental thing of the bike being "more efficient" with fuel injection yet using more fuel to travel the same distance as a carbed bike...
Right, if you want good fuel economy you want a good modern engine, running at not very much of it's full potential.
I get better mpg out of my ZX6R than I ever did out of my bandit 600, because I am usually loading the engine less for a given speed. (round town I usually hit reserve at about 140-150 miles from 14Litres, out of town have seen 175 miles to reserve easily)
If you get a sports 400, remember that they are all almost 10 years old, and if you're reving the tits off them you'll get worse fuel economy than a 600 pootling.
V-twins generally are not the most efficient.
I was thinking about this the other day, after driving my 33mpg car on the daily commute. When I use my SV I get up to 60mpg, with a large section being motorway (60 miles per day trip). When taking the increased cost of tyres and the more regular servicing into account though, I'm not convinced it saves much in the way of money at current petrol prices. Is a lot more fun though :)
What about a DRZ400S? Quite like the look of those.
I wasn't thinking of a sports 400... maybe a BROS.. or something like that.
A Diesel/LPG car would be best but as I work in the London area and live in Portsmouth the amount of time I'd spend traveling would kill me. The bike helps cut this down, but my next big cost is fuel, I don't need sports tyres so I can get a harder compound.
Amanda M
06-09-05, 01:32 PM
Get a GPZ500S. I've never had a bike with better fuel economy.
I wasn't thinking of a sports 400... maybe a BROS.. or something like that.
A Diesel/LPG car would be best but as I work in the London area and live in Portsmouth the amount of time I'd spend traveling would kill me. The bike helps cut this down, but my next big cost is fuel, I don't need sports tyres so I can get a harder compound.
Does it come ready-modded with turn-ups and patches?...
8)
When will I will I be famous????
:lol: :lol: :lol:
*coughs* sorry, I've nothing useful to add to this thread but that HAD to be said... I'll get me coat... :oops:
Get a GPZ500S. I've never had a bike with better fuel economy.
I think its upto 60 mpg on them.. ugly bikes though.. what where they thinking when they made them.
I'm getting only 45 mpg on the GT.
Yam TTR250 does 75mpg and up to 90mph
XT350 70mpg/90mph
GPZ500 40-60 mpg
F650GS 60-70 mpg
my SV 54mpg.
xj600 50-55 mpg
bandit 600 50-60mpg
might be the bmw.. though there not cheap...
Sid Squid
06-09-05, 02:15 PM
Didn't we have this conversation when you were going to buy the GT?
I'm not the kind of person to say I told you so, (but I did), sell it, and get something like the alternatives mentioned.
If you get on with the GT get a 550, on longer trips - like the ones you're doing - I always got 60+ MPG from the ones I had, it's much lighter and easier on fuel and all round at least as good a bike, the only advantage the 750 has is in passenger carrying, 550s don't eat shafts and rear discs like 750s do either.
Didn't we have this conversation when you were going to buy the GT?
I'm not the kind of person to say I told you so, (but I did), sell it, and get something like the alternatives mentioned.
I know.. I'm a ****... I've learned my lesson.. and I'm humble now... :notworthy: I bow down to the Squid...
Sid Squid
06-09-05, 02:53 PM
:lol:
amarko5
06-09-05, 04:55 PM
Didn't we have this conversation when you were going to buy the GT?
I'm not the kind of person to say I told you so, (but I did), sell it, and get something like the alternatives mentioned.
I know.. I'm a ****... I've learned my lesson.. and I'm humble now... :notworthy: I bow down to the Squid...
how about a diesel motorcycle
the diesel motorcycle can do 110 miles per gallon
http://www.cranfield.ac.uk/university/press/2004/03112004.cfm
they are about to release a road bike as well :wink:
http://www.m1030.com/
Take it nice n easy and my GS does 65mpg.
A Bros/NT650 would probably be a viable option.
I get cosistently around 14 miles per litre (63mpg) from my Dullsville ridden at the legal limits. Gentle use gets it approaching 70mpg but you die of boredom.
That's a shade better than I get from the SVS even with longer gearing fitted (16/45) though it tends to be ridden somewhat more spiritedly! More like 58mpg :lol:
Can get 120mpg from my Rickman Tiger Cub, but don't even think about it on a motorway :shock:
Cloggsy
06-09-05, 06:41 PM
I get cosistently around 14 miles per litre (63mpg) from my Dullsville ridden at the legal limits. Gentle use gets it approaching 70mpg but you die of boredom.
I'd like to get the missus a Deuville... Think she'd enjoy it :!:
diesel bike is all well and good but I need something now..
I did find a site doing LPG conversions on goldwings.. but they stuck the LPG tank in a sidecar... urgh... can't they mod or create it in the normal tanks place.
SVeeedy Gonzales
07-09-05, 12:16 PM
You can get around 70mpg with careful throttle control and not caning it on 500 twins like the ER5, but thrash it and it'll go down below 40mpg... if you want more than 125cc for the power then careful, smooth riding will see the mpg rise on most bikes... no such thing as a bike that has plenty of power, that you can thrash and still get good mpg. Are there many places where you can stick the bike into a high gear and use low revs? Not easy to do that around town but on dual carriageways and motorways it's usually easy to potter along like that.
Ultimately a lot of the mpg benefits come from riding style rather than the bike itself. The same bike could return a much better mpg depeding on how smotthly it was ridden, chain tension, bearings running smoothly, etc.
Nick762
07-09-05, 01:28 PM
how about a diesel motorcycle
the diesel motorcycle can do 110 miles per gallon
http://www.cranfield.ac.uk/university/press/2004/03112004.cfm
they are about to release a road bike as well :wink:
http://www.m1030.com/
Interesting, bit sad though, looks like another British innovation being succesfully marketed by another country.
My best recorded mileage on my SV was 175 mile to reserve and 201 on filling which worked out at just over 64 mpg (I put in 3.12 gals/14.15l).
ujoni08
07-09-05, 02:44 PM
If you're mostly on motorways and A roads, and ride smoothly, you should get up to 16 miles per litre with an SV. I get 14 to 16 mpl on a mix of B and A roads getting to work (17 miles). I'm just going to fill up now, and my trip counter shows 208 miles. The light has just switched to ' fully on' from blinking. I do give it some welly for overtaking and stuff, but mostly ride smoothly between 50 and 95 MPH. I use Castrol GP4 fully synthetic oil, Shell Optimax petrol, a 16-tooth front sprocket double bubble screen and fairing lowers on my K5 SV S model.
Jon.
Jelster
07-09-05, 02:55 PM
The light has just switched to ' fully on' from blinking..........
...............I use Castrol GP4 fully synthetic oil, Shell Optimax petrol, a 16-tooth front sprocket double bubble screen and fairing lowers on my K5 SV S model.
So does the K5 have a 2 stage warning light like the old Mk1 models then ?? I thought they dropped that on the pointy ones....
.
ujoni08
07-09-05, 06:50 PM
Yes, I believe they brought back the two-stage fuel warning somewhere between the K3 and K5.
Jon.
You deffinately don't want a VTR 1000 or a VMax probaably two of the worst.
The kwak based diesel bikes going to becoming availiable to the public.
Amanda M
08-09-05, 08:40 AM
Get a GPZ500S. I've never had a bike with better fuel economy.
I think its upto 60 mpg on them.. ugly bikes though.. what where they thinking when they made them.
...
Who cares what it looks like if you're buying it for fuel economy? You can't see it when you're riding it anyway.
Cloggsy
08-09-05, 08:43 AM
Yes, I believe they brought back the two-stage fuel warning somewhere between the K3 and K5.
Jon.
K3 didn't have it :roll:
Get a GPZ500S. I've never had a bike with better fuel economy.
I think its upto 60 mpg on them.. ugly bikes though.. what where they thinking when they made them.
...
Who cares what it looks like if you're buying it for fuel economy? You can't see it when you're riding it anyway.
I know.. after all I am on a GT at the moment...
SVeeedy Gonzales
08-09-05, 08:53 AM
Yes, I believe they brought back the two-stage fuel warning somewhere between the K3 and K5.
Jon.
K3 didn't have it :roll:
Neither did the K4 - must just be on the K5's... sounds handy...
MPG calculator for all you people to figure out how much its really costing you.
http://www.torquecars.co.uk/Tuning/uk-mpg-calculator.php
MrMessy
09-09-05, 07:59 PM
Hi,
I have had high 60's out of my SVS. Went to Caldwell Park earlier this year and roads have cameras that measure speeds over distance so had to stick to 50MPH for miles on end! I have an old Honda 200 that is averaging around 100 MPG but no good for motorways.
Jelster
09-09-05, 10:13 PM
As a matter of interest on the is subject, my 03 'Blade has a a digital fuel economy meter which is generally reading about 11-13 miles per litre. As there's 4.5 litres to a gallon, that's about 50mpg... I'm impressed.....
.
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