MILEAGE

How many mile per gallons should I spect from an XJ 400 Special, right now it´s giving me 45. 3, is´t a good mileage??

 

What about the XJ 550 that is the one that you have in the States???

 

I would say that is decent mileage... If i had more right hand control I could probably get better mileage... lol

 

One thing I've learned from these forums is that everyone gets drastically different gas mileage. IMHO, you get what you get, and should only be concerned if it changes drastically or inexplicably.

As for me and my XJ650, I was getting 35mpg. But I commute, and in the early morning on the SoCal freeway I don't exactly cruise at the most fuel efficient speed. Still much better than my car, though.

However, on a trip up the mountains one day, I got 55 mpg. I was going a lot slower.

Moral: Motorcycles are not very aerodynamic, at least not these. Much above 45 mph, and drag builds up fast. Keep this in mind when pondering your own mileage. I have a theory that in motorcycles, displacement and wind resistance are the overwhelming factors determining gas mileage. How you drive seems to have very little to do with it. At least for me.

 

How you drive has everything to do with it.
I ride like I'm running third with only three laps to go.
When I go visit my sister, over in New York State, I try to shave some time off of what it took me to get to her house, last time.

I once ran the 900 from D'town Boston, out of town, on to the Mass Pike, all the way over to Albany, ... then, North to Saratoga Springs, NY ... and was sipping coffee sittin' in my Mom's kitchen, 200 miles distant, ... 2-Hours, 37-Minutes, 12-Seconds after Punching-Out in Beantown.

 

Rick...don't you get great gas mileage? Maybe that's fitz, but if you do, what do you do /did you do to your bike to get such good mileage?

As far as my experience, it doesn't seem to matter much if I accelerate quickly or not. It does make a difference if I go 75 on the highway or 55 with a 10 mph wind behind me.

 

I'll run a test and see what kind of "Good Mileage" I can get with the Maxim.

What's the figure everybody seems to be coming-in at?

 

I'm averaging between 44.3 to 47.2 with a 70-30 ratio of highway-city driving and max cruising speed of 85 MPH. My 750 has always gotten better than 40 miles per gallon and I don't drive conservative.

 

Thanks, a lots, but the thing is that I get the same mileage driving in a highway at 80 mph during an hour, than drivig in the city doing no more than 50

 

I respect that about you Rick, if you and I went 900 VS 900 - -

You'd clean my clock !!

But I have seen a solid 49 MPG driving FAST on my 900
And a best of 46 on my 750 Seca,
And 53 MPG on my V-Star 1100
And 46 on my Honda Silver Wing 500 - (go figure ! )
And a best of 57 MPG long time ago on my XS 500 - - 1978
And a Twinstar 200 got 70 MPG
Dad's XS-11 was always in the high 30's
Dad's XS-750 got 45 MPG

A 400 CC bike should get 60 MPG under ideal conditions

 

I believe the avg of the 400 and 550's are close 45-55 range

 

I commute to work (102 miles round trip) and get just over 50mpg. 22 miles of country and 28 miles of suburbs. it super sweet using less then 2 gal a day!

 

I get around 50mpg and my riding ain't searching the best mpg results

 

I use my '81 550 Seca for commuting, 116 miles round trip, into and out of Detroit. Everything from rural 2-lane blacktop to 80mph freeway to crowded city streets. I get between 52-56mpg. I would say 52mpg is a better "all around" number; the '83 regularly gets 56 and above, but it sees mostly all country roads.

 

So that mean that I shoul get more miles per gallon that what I get now, well now I gone do some valvs job and I will change the carbs diaphrag, hope that will help me get more power and mileage, right now my brothers Honda 750 has better mileage tat mi9ne 400

 

I just did a valve job and got new spark plug caps. I'll let you know how my mileage is this round compared to my usual, which was pretty steady.

 

My 700x averages 35-40 with a high of 45 on the highway at 60-65mph

 

47-53 in town.
56 on day rides.
over 75 mph and she drops pretty fast.

<edit> over 47,000 on the clock

 

That is the thing then, the ride was doing all the way 80 - 85 for 240 Km
maybe, if I do it a litle soft on the handle I´ll get more mileage, but it´s cice to feel the wind in the face. jejejejejeje

 

I am getting about 55 avg on my Maxim400. I cruise the 20 miles to work at a pretty steady 70mph. I did a group ride a couple weeks ago, never went over 55, and I got 61mpg... I don't know if it makes difference or not, but my bike only has 14k miles on it...

I hope this helps you out a little bit..

 

I don't know what the MPG works out to be, but I get roughly 90 on the trip meter before I have to switch to the reserve.

 

That's about what I get too. When I refill I put 2.5 gal in. 90 miles per 2.5 gal is 36 mpg.

I got that before and after my valve adjustment and new plug caps. Of course, the mix and sync isn't quite right. Haven't found the time.

Of course, i only ride 10 miles at a time. That can't help mileage as the bike is just warmed up when I stop. I should check the compression, I know. At so many miles I would be surprised if the rings were still keeping all the compression in.

 

i've been waiting before chiming in to try to get some fill-ups unde my belt.
what i've found out after 1100 miles (plenty of fill ups) is that if i keep it 70mph and under i will get 42-43 mpg. what i also found out is that if i drive like and a$$hole i will get 33-35 mpg. anywhere from 75 miles before my fuel light comes on or 95 miles before my fuel light comes on
it's so easy to find myself driving 85(+) on the e-way (35 miles each way to/from work) that i am now taking the back roads to work to keep my speeds down

 

After changing the plug caps I got 100 miles before needing to switch to reserve. I calculated it to be 42 mpg.

Awesome.

 

On my V30 Magna (honda V4 500) I got 45 mpg, but I couldn't ride that one without enjoying the sound of a V4 at wide open throttle.

Best mileage I ever got was with a 1990 Honda NX250 (liquid cooled 250cc). That was an awesome little bike. I could hot rod all day and never get less than 75 mpg. Long distance, 55-60 mph would get almost 90 mpg!

A Kawi 1300 many years ago got 45 mpg, mostly highway miles. '82 Goldwing got closer to 50.

Bottom line for me is pretty much any bike gets better mileage than my truck. It's a 98 K3500 with 7.4L that gets 13-14 mpg highway, 10 mpg city or loaded/towing. Ouch!

 

Where's the fun in that? 8)

 

agreed...but i can't afford a ticket and dang-it! on a 4 lane this thing don't run the speed limit (unless 90mph is the new 70).

watch out for the cagers!!!

 

hey day7a1...what mileage were you getting before changing the plug caps?

 

ive been wondering about this myself. i consistently get around 30-35 mpg, i usually need to kick over to res after 70-75 miles. i only ride 5 miles to work, its all stop and go on 45mph surface streets, so i'm constantly starting and stopping and having to get on it to get up to speed. is there anything i can do?

 

Lopezfr2: You can be glad you don't commute in my truck. It's a '98 K3500 with a 454. I get 10mpg when I have to take it.

Still, 30-35 isn't where you should be with a 550, even commuting. Look at your plugs, make sure they're light tan. How's the engine synch? Tire's properly inflated, brakes dragging?

 

Couple of tanks thru since I've plated my 82 XJ 650 w/ YICS and seems I'm getting bout 42/mpg or 5.6L/100km which is about the same as my 2002 Honda Shadow ACE 750cc with a power plant producing _only_ 36hp compared to the Seca's 73hp. I'm good with that....for now

 

This is an old post, but I dug it up because I'm doing a bunch of HW riding lately, from Ferndale (near Detroit) to Ann Arbor and back. I seem to only be getting ~35mph when I stick in the left lane. I thought that was pretty bad, but I guess other people have had the same experience. I chalk it up to no overdrive and the fact that people here drive about 85 mph in the left lane. I like to be over there because I think it's safer (no mergers), but I can't keep getting 35mph. Then it's better to drive the camry, ya know?

So, if I can keep the rpms at 4000, I'm going to see if I can get over 40. Any other people with xj700s able to get 45 or something like that? How?

 

wind is your killer at higher speeds. i like finding trucks and draft them, and try to keep it around 75 otherwise. with my 750 i am still getting 50mpg even when i run the highway as long as i keep it "slow".

 

How close do you have to be to benefit from the draft on a truck?

 

TOO close.

NOT RECOMMENDED.

There is no good outcome if a truck and a motorcycle become "involved."

 

It also helps if you can lean down and reduce your profile. The great part is, you can feel the wind. If it feels windy, it's because the wind is hitting you...if the wind is hitting you, it is slowing you down. If you ride for transportation and not for style, consider different handlebars. That can help you lean down.

I never noticed too much benefit from drafting on a motorcycle. The profile of a car is not similar enough to catch a good draft. In my Beemer though, I once got 45 mpg going 90mph by drafting a Lexus SUV. Not Recommended, but it worked. It's nice going 90 miles on 1/8 tank of gas.

 

not all that close, unless you want ZERO wind resistance then you need to be about 30' or closer. at 75mph a 2 second spread still has significant draft, although the vortices (swirling, wagging, rippling air behind the truck) can be bothersome to some people.

 

Sorry man, at 75mph 2 seconds is just too close behind a semi for safety. You're probably just barely in his mirrors at that distance, plus you cannot see around him.

I had a good friend and equally experienced motorcyclist killed a few years back by a large truck that moved over on him. Yes I understand that in the situation we're discussing, you're behind the truck. Two seconds is the perfect interval to get SMOKED by an exploding retread.

STAY WELL AWAY FROM BIG TRUCKS, ESPECIALLY AT 75MPH.

NO "game" be it drafting or whatever, at 75mph is a good idea. Especially on the freeway. If you do go down, you're likely to be run over by oncoming traffic let alone the obvious penalty for a 75mph dismount.

Ride safe. Ride a long time.

 

They did a spearmint on mythbusters, where they exploded a truck tyre next to a biker, it didn't even spoil his hairdo.

 

2 seconds is the following distance the state teaches you in drivers ed. its more than enough space to see the trucks mirrors.