How to improve MPG. Best mpg on st1300. Commuting

TerryS said:
I doubt that this would have any significant effect on fuel consumption.
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If someone is pursuing (npi) better gas mileage I think it's a mistake not do anything and everything that does give some measure of improved mileage no matter how small. It's a given that synced throttle bodies won't improve mileage as much as jodog's considerable suggestions but most won't want to roll that way. Well maybe except ditching the pillion. Doing all the little things to improve engine and rolling efficiency adds up.

And WOT can make any or all of them irrelevant.

Whether or not Tyson's comment is appropriate however accurate I'm still a fan of his. I was just discussing another of his quotes with someone:

That’s the good thing about science: It’s true whether or not you believe in it.
 
diferg said:
Although I do not know Neil Degrasse Tyson
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If you ever have the time and the inclination this would give you some idea about the guy:

en.wikipedia.org

Neil deGrasse Tyson - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

There's also a fun YT video were he discusses an interaction with Terrance Howard who chose to throw some shade on NDT for a perceived slight. Very amusing especially if your not a fan of Terrance Howard.

He's got a lot of quotable material. Another one I like:

The Universe is under no obligation to make sense to you.

Anyway NDT is a very interesting guy with a decent manner about him.
 
diferg said:
Although I do not know Neil Degrasse Tyson, his statement is similar to the one I have always tried to live by. "Be smart enough to know what you dont know"!
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Don't forget the "unknown unknowns"! This is assured to give our beloved Nihil Degass Tucson the most severe headaches trying to figure that out.

 
I kept a log of every single fillup I did on my 2007 ST1300. I averaged 40 mpg in the winter and 44 mpg in the summer. I had a daily commute of 40 miles, plus longer trips during the summer months which helped increase mpgs.
 
I'm trying to avoid suffering from the Dunning-Kruger effect and (I think) keep an open mind to learn new things, so I am happy to be corrected when presented with information in a reasonable manner. However, a sweeping generalisation about the miraculous effect of perfectly balanced starter valves on both the engine heat and the fuel consumption puzzles me.

The starter valves are very small ports, and compared to the size of the throttle bore, they are tiny indeed. I get that they smooth out the idle so that the crank is rotating as smoothly as possible and not inducing shudders into the clutch, and I can see that under very small throttle openings, the SVs will play a part in the airflow, but once beyond that point (e.g. on the highway) my sense is that any effect would be negligible. What other effects will out-of-balance SVs have and why?
 
TerryS said:
I'm trying to avoid suffering from the Dunning-Kruger effect and (I think) keep an open mind to learn new things, so I am happy to be corrected when presented with information in a reasonable manner. However, a sweeping generalisation about the miraculous effect of perfectly balanced starter valves on both the engine heat and the fuel consumption puzzles me.

The starter valves are very small ports, and compared to the size of the throttle bore, they are tiny indeed. I get that they smooth out the idle so that the crank is rotating as smoothly as possible and not inducing shudders into the clutch, and I can see that under very small throttle openings, the SVs will play a part in the airflow, but once beyond that point (e.g. on the highway) my sense is that any effect would be negligible. What other effects will out-of-balance SVs have and why?
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Your logic is reinforced by the fact that if you balance the starter valves and achieve a perfect balance/sync and then open the throttle and raise the engine speed, the balance usually goes out the window and the gauges are all over the board, just to return to balance when you close the throttle. Carburetors are much better for maintaining a closer balance because the adjustment synchronizes the slides to try to attain balanced flow through the range of throttle opening. On our bikes, the butterflies are fixed and any discrepancy in flow is compensated only at idle by the starter valves acting as a "bypass" or a "bleed" . Once the butterflies open, there should be little vacuum at the ports applying the starter valve bleed.
 
Bmacleod said:
Your logic is reinforced by the fact that if you balance the starter valves and achieve a perfect balance/sync and then open the throttle and raise the engine speed, the balance usually goes out the window and the gauges are all over the board, just to return to balance when you close the throttle. Carburetors are much better for maintaining a closer balance because the adjustment synchronizes the slides to try to attain balanced flow through the range of throttle opening. On our bikes, the butterflies are fixed and any discrepancy in flow is compensated only at idle by the starter valves acting as a "bypass" or a "bleed" . Once the butterflies open, there should be little vacuum at the ports applying the starter valve bleed.
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At the risk of confirmation bias, that is my take as well. The starter valves in my 1300 are as near perfect as I can get them, and I know that the fuel consumption is primarily dependent on riding conditions. Frequent accelerations from slow speed and climbing hills make it worse, coasting downhill or steady-state on the freeway make it better. My take is that the 1300 is a pretty lardy old bus and it simply takes more juice to accelerate all that mass. YMMV.
 
Bmacleod said:
....... open the throttle and raise the engine speed......
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Isn't there also the fact that when the manifold is closed, there is vacuum to suck air through the starter ports but on the way to WOT, there is less vacuum drawn and less incentive for any air to take the starter porting detour at all?
 
MidLife said:
Isn't there also the fact that when the manifold is closed, there is vacuum to suck air through the starter ports but on the way to WOT, there is less vacuum drawn and less incentive for any air to take the starter porting detour at all?
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yes
 
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