This is an archived version of the Road Star Clinic. The Road Star Clinic can now be found at www.roadstarclinic.com. Please join us there!

Road Star Forum
Welcome, Guest
Please Login or Register.    Lost Password?
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG?
Go to bottom Post Reply Favoured: 0
TOPIC: Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG?
#1019603
ctkog (User)
Expert Boarder
Posts: 523
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
RangerDan wrote:
I ride an 08. I punched my neck near the top (steel punch, full fuel tank), and found that (at least in the heat) if I fill it right up, it will overflow once the bike is off the kickstand. I typically fill to the top of the "collar" at the base of the fill tube. Best mileage ever was 341 or 342 km to a tank, typical is 200-250km but I also usually fill at about 1/4 tank.

Dan


That sounds like good advice RangerDan.

I keep seeing some guy riding around in a tight left hand circle for about twenty times before leaving the gas station.
 
Logged Logged  
 

---------- NOTHING STRAIGHTENS MY HEAD OUT BETTER THAN AN ENTIRELY CROOKED ROAD-----------
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019620
Questcap (User)
Platinum Boarder
Posts: 7727
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Gender: Male Location: North Attleboro, MA Birthdate: 1954-03-22
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
Like a lot of others, I punched holes around the top of that inside filler neck... and I can fill it to where I think the bottom of the cap will be. But, I never do that unless I'm going to ride and use that 'extra' gas in the tank.

My typical mileage, as I do a lot of lower speed toodling in the 35 to 45 mph range, is almost always right in the mid-40s. On the hiway, and since I'm in the congested Northeast, I can top 50 mpg, but I'm not rippin' down the slab at 70+ mph, or it would drop precipitously into the 30's. Air sure can pose a lot of resistance, and I'm close to sea level, so it's 'thickest' here, too.
 
Logged Logged  
 
Sig Pic deleted - larger than 450 pixels and 50 kb
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019659
RangerDan (User)
racin the wind, chasin the sun
Expert Boarder
Posts: 562
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Gender: Male Location: Calgary, AB
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
Ctkog wrote:
RangerDan wrote:
I ride an 08. I punched my neck near the top (steel punch, full fuel tank), and found that (at least in the heat) if I fill it right up, it will overflow once the bike is off the kickstand. I typically fill to the top of the "collar" at the base of the fill tube. Best mileage ever was 341 or 342 km to a tank, typical is 200-250km but I also usually fill at about 1/4 tank.

Dan


That sounds like good advice RangerDan.

I keep seeing some guy riding around in a tight left hand circle for about twenty times before leaving the gas station.


Hahaha, I should have tried that. Wouldn't hurt so much if regular didn't cost about $4/gallon up here. Lesson learned!

Dan
 
Logged Logged  
 
Racin the wind, chasin the sun.
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019667
ctkog (User)
Expert Boarder
Posts: 523
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
RangerDan wrote:
Wouldn't hurt so much if regular didn't cost about $4/gallon up here. Lesson learned!

Ouch Dan, and I thought we were getting reamed!!
 
Logged Logged  
 
Last Edit: 2017/08/12 16:56 By ctkog.
 

---------- NOTHING STRAIGHTENS MY HEAD OUT BETTER THAN AN ENTIRELY CROOKED ROAD-----------
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019706
StarCruiser06 (User)
If you can't be with the one you love... Wait!
Platinum Boarder
Posts: 1374
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Gender: Male Location: Norwich, CT Birthdate: 1951-08-13
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
MidnightRide wrote:
StarCruiser06 wrote:
I've spiked both of my Roadies... My original would only fill to the bottom of the neck and bubble up if I tried to fill it further, after I spiked it I would put in another half gallon. That Road* was 100% original and depending on the roads I traveled in Florida I was pulling down 42 MPG highway, 40 around town and if I made the run up A1A @ 50MPH only, I could get 50 MPG...
Now the new Star came with Cobra Dragsters and was jetted for them. After picking up the bike in Florida and driving it back to Connecticut I was only getting 32-34 MPG (But everyone knew I was coming with those pipes...! ) After I had it a couple of weeks I put stock mufflers back on it, but drilled them out to stage two... My MPG jumped up to 40 but she is running so rich, I nearly gassed myself when I pull up to a light! I need to re-jet the carb...
Because I spiked the neck on the new Star I can fill it up, but the gauge still won't go all the way up. I only let the gauge go down a little past 1/4 and at that, I'm only able to put in, at the most 3.75 Gal... One day, I'm going to take a gallon container with me and see where I run out. On my run from Florida to Connecticut, I did run out of gas, (in Atlanta when the carb puked in stop and go 100 degree traffic!) But the low fuel light never came on and the gauge was still reading just under an eighth.


Sounds like your fuel light is either burnt out or the plug isn't making a good connection. The green plug rests under the rear of the tank near the front of the seat. It may be corroded if it's lived in those wet moist climates.

Did you switch to RESERVE when it ran out of gas that time? If so, and it didn't help, your reserve petcock inlet may be plugged or it's in-tank filter is plugged (both the main and reserve tubes in the tank have their own filters). When I pulled my petcock out to replace the gaskets I found that the filters on both tubes were half missing. They'd probably been sucked into the petcock and possibly ended up in the fuel filter itself (I never found them). If that happened on yours then the filter may be clogging your reserve petcock tube. It's really easy to pull off and check and I'd suggest replacing the internal gasket while you're at it.

Your gauge may be reading correctly with the problem being in your petcock. We have always put in at least 4+ gallons when running the tank after the fuel light comes on.


The Light works on diagnostic so I'm thinking it's a connection issue... The bike had 6200 miles when I got it and ran out of fuel at 6800 miles... I did turn to reserve and made it to a gas station... But I think I'm gonna try the carrying a gallon of extra fuel and running it dry...
 
Logged Logged  
 

Over 50...?
Never miss the oppertunity to pee, never waste an erection... And never, ever, trust a fart!
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019804
MidnightRide (User)
Junior Boarder
Posts: 127
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
MidnightRide wrote:

Your gauge may be reading correctly with the problem being in your petcock. We have always put in at least 4+ gallons when running the tank after the fuel light comes on.

StarCruiser06 wrote:

The Light works on diagnostic so I'm thinking it's a connection issue... The bike had 6200 miles when I got it and ran out of fuel at 6800 miles... I did turn to reserve and made it to a gas station... But I think I'm gonna try the carrying a gallon of extra fuel and running it dry...


I have a fuel mileage and capacity update and photos to post later, but right now I wanted to post something that shocked me a bit.

We ran an extended trip on Saturday so I could run the tank dry (it was full). I need to pull the tank to replace the throttle cables as well as take some pics of the vents etc. for members who haven't had their tanks off before.

I also wanted to see how much fuel I could squeeze back into the tank now that I've drilled the holes in the filler neck.

Despite my best laid (but ineptly executed) plans to arrive home from a 440 mile trip on fumes, I actually had well over a gallon remaining so had to plan a side trip yesterday morning (Sunday) to burn that last gallon or so. MapQuest showed my little lunch run being around 44 miles round trip (a run down the freeway and back).

To my surprise, despite the fuel gauge showing just below 1/4 tank when we got home from our Saturday trip, I was only a few miles from home on the way to our lunch destination and was surprised to look down and see the low fuel light on.

I kept an eye on it, thinking maybe I'd been on an incline or something to set it off, but it continued to stay lit, with the fuel gauge wandering between below 1/8th tank and E. I hadn't yet reset the odometer from our trip so noted it was at 450 when the light came on. I was confused about how much gas was really still in the tank.

So I took a remote desert highway down to lunch instead of the freeway, into a strong dry desert headwind. I was waiting for it to run out of fuel so I could switch to the reserve tank and note the mileage.

So I waited. And waited. And waited, beginning to wonder if I'd had it backward all along and my petcock was already set on reserve rather than the main tank. 20 miles later we arrived for lunch.

I pulled the fuel cap and looked inside and sure enough it looked like it probably still had at least a gallon inside. Went in for lunch before heading back home to catch the end of the NASCAR race, which I nearly missed because we made an unplanned stop at Speed Vegas where you pay to drive luxury sports cars on their race track (Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, etc.).

3 miles up the same remote highway, this time with the wind at our backs, the fuel ran out and I switched over to reserve without issue, the motor firing right back up at highway speeds. I used to do that all the time with my last bike.

I looked down at my odometer and it read 475. The bike ran A FULL 25 MILES after the fuel light came on, BEFORE having to switch to reserve. I couldn't believe it. We ran another 15 miles home. We were probably running around 60 MPH 2-up on that lunch run, mostly into a strong headwind on fairly level pavement.

So just now I opened up the fuel lid and looked down with the bike on its side stand and the right side of the tank is DRY. I stood the bike up and jiggled it a bit to allow the fuel to level out on each side and stuck a tape measure in and it's about 1/2" of fuel. I'm guessing there's about 1/2-2/3's of a gallon left inside. The bike's been getting over 45 MPG riding 2-up.

I'll come back later today or tomorrow with an update after pulling the tank and filling back up to the drilled holes to see how much fuel the tank will actually hold with the filler neck mod.

Anyone else clocked the mileage between their light coming on and having to switch to reserve? Our gauges are likely all a bit different but having this knowledge is a plus for me. I'll know that I'll safely have 25+ miles of riding after switching to reserve, and 50 miles from the time my fuel light comes on.

_____________________________________________________

With the bike on the side stand. No visible fuel after 15 miles running on reserve.



Bike leveled out, about 1/2" of fuel showing inside.

 
Logged Logged  
 
Last Edit: 2017/08/14 18:38 By MidnightRide.
 
-- In memory of the victims of the Las Vegas shooting --


  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019807
Questcap (User)
Platinum Boarder
Posts: 7727
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Gender: Male Location: North Attleboro, MA Birthdate: 1954-03-22
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
Yeh, fuel light will come on, and I'll go and fill up, and it's very typically in the 4.2 gallon range at the pump... so, I figure there's 8/10ths of a gal left, enough for another 35 miles or so, before I should start to sweat. That 4.2 gals is typically good for at least 180 miles.
 
Logged Logged  
 
Sig Pic deleted - larger than 450 pixels and 50 kb
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019820
MidnightRide (User)
Junior Boarder
Posts: 127
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
Questcap wrote:
Yeh, fuel light will come on, and I'll go and fill up, and it's very typically in the 4.2 gallon range at the pump... so, I figure there's 8/10ths of a gal left, enough for another 35 miles or so, before I should start to sweat. That 4.2 gals is typically good for at least 180 miles.

Actually the tank's rated at 5.3 gallons so by your figuring you should have 11/10's of fuel left when you fill up. But another member said he got 5.3 gallons in to the bottom of the filler neck, so obviously the tank will hold more.

I'll know what that TOTAL amount is by tomorrow!
 
Logged Logged  
 
-- In memory of the victims of the Las Vegas shooting --


  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019827
KitsapRider (User)
Fresh Boarder
Posts: 62
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
Geez I wish I got mileage and range like you guys. I typically get about 35-37mpg, and I don't consider myself hot rodding around town. Best I ever got was 41mpg riding two up with my wife on the highway. 2012 roadie with cobra 2-1.
 
Logged Logged  
  The administrator has disabled public write access.
#1019873
MidnightRide (User)
Junior Boarder
Posts: 127
graphgraph
User Offline Click here to see the profile of this user
Re:How FULL do you fill your tank & what kind of MPG? 6 Months, 2 Weeks ago  
KitsapRider wrote:
Geez I wish I got mileage and range like you guys. I typically get about 35-37mpg, and I don't consider myself hot rodding around town. Best I ever got was 41mpg riding two up with my wife on the highway. 2012 roadie with cobra 2-1.

Well I've got three things going on that may explain things a bit more.

First, we're at altitude and generally ride at even higher altitudes (thin air with less resistance). We're at 2250' and on this last ride continued to climb until we were cruising around between 4-5000' and higher before heading back DOWN the hill home. Thin air running the bike lean. This bike has plenty of mods including the HC and pipes. But we run up the road 2-up and are generally running at 80-90 on remote open desert highways (according to our speedo which may or may not be accurate).

Next, I'm beginning to wonder about the accuracy of my odometer and speedo. We measured 442 miles on this last trip by odometer. MapQuest itself shows the trip should have been around 420 miles which would be about a 5% difference. We didn't track it on GPS but will on our next ride, so we really don't know the ACTUAL mileage.

So between the altitude, bike mods, and possible odometer discrepancy, our actual mileage may be a bit different. The rear tire is a bit worn and that may explain part of the discrepancy in the odometer/speedo reading. But even at 5% less we'd be in the 45 MPG range...
 
Logged Logged  
 
-- In memory of the victims of the Las Vegas shooting --


  The administrator has disabled public write access.
Go to top Post Reply
Powered by FireBoardget the latest posts directly to your desktop
...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................................................... -->
New Forum Posts


The Road Star Clinic is a collaborative community of riders who archive and publish user contributed technical data about Yamaha Road Star motorcycles.

Copyright 2003-2007 Road Star Clinic and its respective authors.
<-- -->