Fuel Economy And Other Fun Stuff On My ST1300

faithsdaddy

Joined
Mar 13, 2011
Messages
53
Location
England
Just thought I'd share a little fuel economy experiment with you chaps. In one of our UK bike mags, the journos got their daily rides and tried to get as many MPG as they could. The improvement was quite startling- I think the Fireblade got something like 72MPG on their test route. This got me thinking... :eek:

As part of a cost cutting exercise, I wondered how much difference there would be between driving properly vs like a limp wristed Prius owner? My commute is 25 miles each way, small half on twisties, the rest on fast A roads. So, 250 miles per week- last bar starts flashing around 240. 25 litre fill up, costing around £32.

So, what does super eco riding look like to me? Well... shifting up at the lowest possible revs without bogging down- so just over 2,000. Takes twice as long to get to 40. No bursts of power, save a couple of times, when I had to go for a gap. I did 40 vs 50 on the lanes and went from 90 to 60 on the A road. Had my screen up and heated grips on, because if wind blast and cold hands are necessary for good economy, then it's not going to work out for me. I put about 5 - 8 minutes on my usually 20 minute commute. It saps the fun out of the ride, but it becomes very relaxing. More hassle mingling with lorries and slow coaches/ Harley riders :rolleyes:, compared to just walloping past them in the fast lane :biker:

I found I was able to do 350 miles between fill ups, with the reserve kicking in at about 330, so about 90 miles further for the same amount of fuel. Since I'm looking to fund a reduction from a 5 day week to a 4, this is a useful cost saving of about £13-15 per week ($20). Just in case you're wondering, most of the rest of the savings came from things like budget supermarket shopping, LED home lighting and looking at every spend and cutting out the waste. I believe I can actually get an extra day off, have a few quid to spend on it and still be a bit better off.

I have previously owned an ST1100 (couple actually- great bikes), commuting at my 'normal' pace. That used about 1 - 1.5 litres more fuel than the 1300 for the same 250 miles. Thought you might like to know :)

I am considering a fuel vapours experiment, which if it works, I would also use in my car. Welcome any thoughts, suggestions, comments, etc :chatter:
 
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Are bikes for fun or economy, horses for courses I suppose.
Interesting nevertheless.
Just checked the mpg on my 1100, really just to see how it's running.
52 mpg. Which I thought was pretty good.
Upt'North.
 
faithsdaddy said:
I wondered how much difference there would be between driving properly vs like a limp wristed Prius owner?
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Please define 'driving properly' and what 'limp-wristed' has to do with driving a car or anything for that matter.

I think taking too long to get to a 'proper' speed is false economy and about as wasteful as getting to that speed too quickly.
 
StGui, Chill dude.
Faiths dad was trying (?) to enter a little light hearted dialogue. I think we need more of that of late?
Going back to the original post.
I believe one of the biggest factors for economy is top speed, so agree with you about getting there. The power needed to overcome drag rises very quickly with increased top speed.
Upt'North.
 
STGui & Upt - it was indeed light hearted. Fuel economy is a bit of a dry read, especially since I had quite a bit to say. The limp wristed thing is a mock of the VERY well known stereotypical Prius driver, so any reasonably educated soul will understand the joke. Agreement is not necessary or required. You know what I mean by proper driving, so please stop being pompous :nanner1:

I hadn't considered the acceleration aspect. I'll be tweaking my riding, so I'll give this a go and see if I notice the difference. Getting up to speed quicker would be nice...
 
A 40% improvement is impressive. it also means that you can still substantially help your wallet (and the planet) by alternative 'fun' days and 'miserly' days.
 
I don't mind occasionally being pompous and don't worry if it offends others. Stereotyping not required. Get over it.
 
Glacial said:
A 40% improvement is impressive. it also means that you can still substantially help your wallet (and the planet) by alternative 'fun' days and 'miserly' days.
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It is, isn't it. I thought I might not notice the difference, since I've done a few super slo mo trips with the missus and didn't really see much MPG improvement. My 'other' riding will be as I see fit, including choosing a less frugal bike, so it's only commuting that I'm looking to economise on. 50% more weekend is a powerful motivator.
 
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40% IS impressive.

Since I drive my wife into work , I am always looking for ways to cut the petrol bill- it is only 3 miles or so , one way, so it is hard on the vehicles, and the gas mileage sucks because the truck ( or car) never really gets warmed up.

I finally decided to be proactive, and get the right tool for the right job. I am not saying it's for everyone, but I got a Honda Helix, a 250cc scooter, and I often take her in on that. It averages 70 MPG, and requires little in the way of maintenance. I change the oil once or twice a year ( .65 quarts), and change the air filter every two years or so. Yes, it is not as comfy as the ST, but for just over a 1000$ on eBay, ( 1994 model, with 6200 miles on it), it has been a huge success. I figured it paid for itself in 3 years or so.

The shortcomings: it goes through a rear tire in about 3500 miles. ( but they are about 40$, and I mount my own)...it is not really quite fast enough to go on the major highways ( top speed about 66MPH one-up), but it is faster 0-40 than 90% of production cars.

When I am riding local, it's usually my choice of weapons...fun, leans WAYYY over in turns, and is a blast to ride. Add to that, I fill up its ( 2.8 gallon) tank about once a month.
 
I'm impressed with the mileage improvement. I may try a similar experiment.

That said, I agree with STGui, stereotyping is not necessary.
As ST1100/1300 riders I'm fairly confident that we would not want to be called stodgy Goldwing wannabes.

No offence meant to any Goldwing owners here.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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DavidR8 said:
I agree with STGui, stereotyping is not necessary.
As ST1100/1300 riders I'm fairly confident that we would not want to be called stodgy Goldwing wannabes.
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Hey, I resent that. I almost spilled cocoa on my dressing gown, whilst smoking a pipe, stroking my beard and putting on my slippers. Ah forget it, dinner is called- it is almost 3:30 after all.

Oh, and I would luuuurve a Goldwing.
 
I actually got passed by a Prius yesterday while casually accelerating. First time ever. Gave her a :yes:
 
Grizzly said:
The fuel econ is amazing though! I am riding through my first tank of fuel, so far only have about 55 miles on it and I reset the fuel mileage currently avg. 39.5mpg.....I'm sure as i get deeper into the tank it will go up, it was on 41.5 mpg from the previous owner. Plus i've been babying it. This thing feels like a rocket compared to my old Evo Harley.
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39 is upper city or back roads territory. Even with [-]saltpeter[/-] ethanol in the fuel, all-highway at legal-ish speeds should land on either side of 50.

Also, don't ride it like your Harley and for Pete's sake, don't baby it. This bike's torque curve looks a lot different that most V-twins; you want to target 3,500-4,000 RPM for average cruising. The fun really starts climbing out of 4,000 and into the peak at 6,250.

--Mark
 
What ticks me off in my weekly 625 mile commute is the fact I waste more gas lane splitting than if I was going the normal 80mph! I lose about .2 of a gallon (over 125 miles) each day! :mad:
 
klaproth said:
but I got a Honda Helix
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A former girlfriend had a 125cc Honda Elite. It was a neat little scooter and it had a hide-away headlight. Sooooo cool. During that I had my VF1000F Interceptor and my V65 Sabre. And I logged a lot of miles on the Elite too. A scooter is a blast. I don't need a commute bike but if I had the room I think I'd really like having a Burgman. Or a Honda Metropolitan. Or any scooter with a hide-away headlight.
 
Just got a 2 year old Highlander. This car comes with a digital display somewhat like the ST instantaneous mileage meter (car's is a moving bar like a horizontal thermometer). I've found I want to try to save gas and often glance at the meter to see what ole leadfoot is doing at that moment. It is instructive to say the least - and the difference in time compared to hurrying is really not that significant.
 
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