Improving mileage?

I get just over 40mpg on my 83 maxim 750. I'd like to improve this, i know easing on the throttle would help a bit. Most of my driving is rural highways (60-80km/h) and freeways (100km/h) not much traffic.

I've done a seafoam treatment to clean the carbs up a bit and i've changed my oil, i've got new plugs and i think my carbs are running a little rich (haven't looked since the seafoam treatment. I also check pressures often. what can i do to my bike to get better mileage? and what kind of mileage can i expect out of this thing... another 10mpg(US) would be nice.

 

You pretty much do the same things that you do in a car to save fuel. Keep tire pressures correct, keep the bike in tune, avoid "jackrabbit" starts, coast (in nuetral) when it's safe and possible and accelerate gently and slowly.

Surprisingly, in my car, holding the throttle position static and staying in the highest possible gear while going up hills is quite a gas saver. Sure you slow down some but you don't increase fuel consumption just to maintain speed. You pick your speed back up on the other side of the hill. It doesn't work on really long uphills though. Not recommended for when you are in any kind of traffic.

 

on the heavy diesel trucks i work on, most of the ECM's can be programmed to have what they call a "soft cruise". its basically a cruise control that allows the speed to drop without the cruise control mashing the throttle to try to keep it right at the set point. just about all large fleets will have us set the trucks up with the soft cruise, because it does save a lot fuel.

 

Lisa:

You are getting 40 which is better than most.
That figure states you are in a relatively good state of tuning.

You aren't going to get much better than that!
That's what most people strive for.
Be happy you don't have Valve or Ring problems that would lower that number considerably.

That's what that engine is supposed to get!
If you need a vehicle more economical ... you'll need a smaller bike!

 

I suppose I should ask, what is a decent mileage that the 83 750xj is capable of?

 

Somebody with that bike will have to answer that.

I have a '83 750 Max. I don't know what it gets for mileage; but it's really very good a delivering "Smileage"!

 

Lisa, If you want to improve on mileage you can do several things, but 1st forget 10 more mpg!

I'd start with colortuning my carb adjustments
followed up by syncing the carbs to a nats - - -
then I'd replace the air filter with a new K&N air filter.
If you dont already have an in-line filter I highly recomend you put one on (use the paper element filter not the stone type)

One last thing is to check to see if you petcock is leaking by, when parked it could be leaking gas into the air filter box or even into the oil or on the ground. If it is leaking I'd fix it 1st.

Again 10+mpg NO WAY! MAYBE 3-4 mpg

Good Luck!

 

why would a maxim not get 50? my 82 750 seca is hitting 49-50mpg just about everytime in fill it up. i know my bike is running rich even, i just havent had the time to perfect the tuning yet (and it runs fine so...), is there something different about the maxim versus seca?

 

find granny or gramps that never goes over the speed limit and follow them
or do it the hard way and diet away twenty pounds, this really works but it's labor intensive

 

Fuel efficiency is a product of Horsepower to Weight Ratio.

Don't carry so much loose change in your pockets! : )

 

Somebody on this site with a fuel injected Seca 750 claimed as high as 55 MPG. I hit 49 MPG with my 900 a couple times, then tweaked the carbs a bit richer, and only got 43 MPG.

The 550's should be getting much better, with lighter weight, efficient chain drive, 6 gears, and a smaller motor.

 

Besides these babys arent no spring chicken any more.
Compression has droped off and then we put windshields on and cruise pegs......ETC.

 

for racing MX or flattrack on a quad, the general rule is:
gain 1 HP = lose 7 lbs.

 

I drive an '82 650 Maxim to work and back every day and I average 50 MPG.

I've found that I get the best mileage at around 55 MPH. Remeber the 55 MPH speed limit when these bikes were made? That speed was picked because it was near the most efficient speed. As you increase speed, the wind drag goes up and mileage goes down. Slower than that and you're lugging the engine in top gear.

By the way, my bike has 32,000 miles on it, a windshield, a trunk, and I weigh 190 lbs.

For a 26 year old bike with good power to get 50 MPG on 87 octance gas is fantistic!

 

My 83 750 Midnight Maxim gets 40 to 43 mpg. I weigh in at a fluffy 290. hehe. I feel anything over 40 mpg to be great since my best cage gets 32mpg and my truck gets 17.

 

My '80 XJ650 Maxim w/windshield and my 250 gets right at 45mpg. Most of it is on the highway and the cagers are pushing 80+ until I get off the HOV lane. It would probably get close to 50 if I was able to hold the speed down.

 

ok, well for a 1000 dollar bike I guess I didn't do too bad...

for compression I get 160 on all the cylinders.

I don't have a windshield but I've been planning on getting a small one (i'm wearing 2 pairs of pants my leather jacket with the liner and a full face helmet and i'm STILL freezing on the bike. must be me cause i see plenty of squids out there.

 

lol i love florida

 

So What is the fule tank capacity for 82 550 Maxim ???

 

I get about 43 mpg on my 82 Maxim 750. That's straight from the PO with just an oil change. I ride mostly secondary roads at about 50-55mph.

mikeg