Gas mileage

[CaptonZap]

Just to bring a new data point, I started at Pismo Beach, found a truck on HWY ! that was doing 55 to 60, drafted him to just South of LA, and got 45+ MPG.
Haw, love it. CZ

[motoman]

Just to bring a new data point, I started at Pismo Beach, found a truck on HWY ! that was doing 55 to 60, drafted him to just South of LA, and got 45+ MPG.
Haw, love it. CZ

Glad to hear the G is behaving for ya on your 'adventure ride' CZ! Back 'in the day' with double nickel speeds, my Venturer would do that all day long with two-up.........as they were supossed to.......back then......

[Bellerophon]

The '79 SF get the worst mileage of my bikes at 35 mpg. It's factory stock, and 35 is not bad, as I like to whack the throttle WFO whenever I get the chance.

The FJR gets mid 40s and is quite a bit quicker than the XS as well. Fuel Injection makes a difference. I guess 30 years of technological refinement plays a part too.

The KLR is the mileage champ at low to mid 50s consistently. It also has a 6 gallon tank, so has excellent range.

[Bonz]

My 80 SG gets 36-37 mpg, bone stock other than FD swap which might be adding 1-1.5 mpg overall.

2001 Kawasaki ZRX 1200 averages 46 mpg, incredibly quicker than the XS.

1983 Nighthawk 550 averages in the mid 40's as well with similar riding to the other bikes. I only have 400 miles on the Nighthawk since getting it a couple months ago, and it had a total of 67 miles on it in the previous 8 years to be me becoming the owner, so I really believe the motor is coming back in and I will see better mpg.

[ViperRon]

Fairing saddlebags all original Yamaha, with a standard final drive I have slightly modified my exaust as the MAC was loud it's a little quieter and I am sure the restriction helps. The lowers on the fairing have an extra mount to make them stable at all speeds as before at high speed they rode against the cylinder fins and melted. I get around 37mpg even though I have increased the main jets one level up. Bumping the jets has made it run much cooler and it seems to have more power at high end.

[jetmechmarty]

I went on an all day ride with Brent and JeffH on Thursday for a rally scouting trip. The ride was mostly in the mountains. At a mid day fuel stop we compared fuel mileage. JeffH/XS1100E-39+mpg Brent/XS1100SG- 36mpg My own XS1100SG was getting 30mpg. Jeff's bike and my bike appear to be running perfectly. Mine has never been better. Brent claims he has pilot circuit issues. All 3 bikes have stock airbox. The E has stock exhaust, Brent has a 4/2 Mac, and I have a 4/1 exhaust.

After lengthy discussion between the three of us we had to conclude that it comes down to riding style. (the E runs at 500 rpm lower than the SG) Brent and Jeff are riding mostly in 5th gear. I ride mostly in 3rd. The roads are twisted, and for me the twisted pavement begins at the end of my driveway, so I expect that's why I'm consistently seeing 28-32 mpg.

[SgtBaker]

I've calculated my mileage under three driving conditions and pinpointed some consistent figures with my stock 1980 XS1100 SG.

• Cruising at 70 mph, the bike will get 37 mpg.
• Riding around town it will get 34-35 mpg.
• On state roads where I travel 40-55 mph, the bike gets 40+ mpg.

[KA1J]

I've calculated my mileage under three driving conditions and pinpointed some consistent figures with my stock 1980 XS1100 SG.

• Cruising at 70 mph, the bike will get 37 mpg.
• Riding around town it will get 34-35 mpg.
• On state roads where I travel 40-55 mph, the bike gets 40+ mpg.

This mirrors my XJ11 mileage except I've never seen better than 42 MPG.

[rover]

gas mileage

I recently put in new NKG plugs and side gapped them. At the same time, I removed the leaky stock exhaust, put on 80 Mid Spec downpipes, and stock Harley mufflers, the BIG ones from a road king. Now I get from 40 to 44 MPG in all around driving, mostly short trips. Now I wish I would have waited to try the Harley muffs, cause now I'm not sure which mod made things better. I also have a faster idle, and MUCH smoother on the road. I might put in new reagular gapped plugs and see if there is a difference.

[Bonz]

All day ride, use mostly 3rd gear? That is definitely a different riding style. 4/1 exhaust vs 4/2 could contribute one way or the other, but 3rd gear?

[natemoen]

All day ride, use mostly 3rd gear? That is definitely a different riding style. 4/1 exhaust vs 4/2 could contribute one way or the other, but 3rd gear?

If I am cruising through twisties I like to keep the rpms around 4500-5000, so depending on the severity of the twisties 3rd is usually about right.

[jetmechmarty]

[QUOE=hbonser;386288]All day ride, use mostly 3rd gear? That is definitely a different riding style. 4/1 exhaust vs 4/2 could contribute one way or the other, but 3rd gear?[/QUOTE]

What Nate said. I'm constantly turning, so I like lots of rpm for that.

[jetmechmarty]

I ran a tank through the curves in 5th gear today. 35 mpg. It's more difficult to negotiate the turns that way, but it's good to know I don't have to take the carbs off again.

[Bonz]

Good comparison in riding styles, Jetmech!

Seems like these bikes turn 35-37 mpg on the average in this day and age when running in the 70 mph range, even in the best of tune. I don't get much better mileage on average running the back roads at 50-60 mph on the front range of Colorado, but...

I get better mileage in the mountains where I run 45-60 mph, well into the 40 mpg range, but don't run the rpm like you do jetmechmarty. I'll roll through the turns/hold steady throttle, roll on the gas steady and use the torque in the 3.5k-4k range to pull out. Higher elevation has always equated to better mileage regardless in all my vehicles. I think the lower air resistance is a key that gets overlooked, compared to the thinner air and the effect on carburetion.

Over the weekend, I ran the old girl hard up through the gears, taking it to 8.5k in 2nd, and it felt like it would've kept on pulling without a doubt. Does anyone suspect or know if Yamaha left some on the table given there weren't rev limiters back in the day?

[motoman]

Good comparison in riding styles, Jetmech!

Seems like these bikes turn 35-37 mpg on the average in this day and age when running in the 70 mph range, even in the best of tune. I don't get much better mileage on average running the back roads at 50-60 mph on the front range of Colorado, but...

I get better mileage in the mountains where I run 45-60 mph, well into the 40 mpg range, but don't run the rpm like you do jetmechmarty. I'll roll through the turns/hold steady throttle, roll on the gas steady and use the torque in the 3.5k-4k range to pull out. Higher elevation has always equated to better mileage regardless in all my vehicles. I think the lower air resistance is a key that gets overlooked, compared to the thinner air and the effect on carburetion.

Over the weekend, I ran the old girl hard up through the gears, taking it to 8.5k in 2nd, and it felt like it would've kept on pulling without a doubt. Does anyone suspect or know if Yamaha left some on the table given there weren't rev limiters back in the day?

Well, I've bounced mine off of 10K several times over the years, not intentionably, just a slight overlook on my part. Since max. torque and ponies are at 7500, definitely not necessary, but a quick glance up at 7K and back has seen 9K+ on several occassions runnin thru the first 3 gears.