81delorean Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 Haven't had my '05 RT to long, still haven't done a ton of miles on it but decided to get it out today for a nice brisk 5 degree F ride around town. Fuel gauge said I had about 1/4 tank when it started hesitating and finally died. Checked the tank and sure enough it was out. Wife brought me some gas, it fired up and I finished the ride home. So my question is, are the fuel gauges on these things a little optimistic and like to give you false hopes? Luckily I was closer to home and not out on the interstate or something. I will look into carrying a small reserve bottle of fuel now if anyone has any real world experience with any of them and would recommend one. Link to comment
Hosstage Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 I can't answer your query about that specific model and gauge, but for me, I don't rely 100% on the gauge, especially when new to me. I always set my trip odometer when I get gas, keep track of what kind of mileage I normally get, and compare it to the gauge and it's operation. Now that your tank is empty, pay attention to how much fuel it takes to fill it, and track your mileage. Since this bike is new to you, learning about its particular idiosyncrasies will be a bit of a curve. Cold weather riding often gets less mpg, a little richer mix of fuel. Safety wise, once my tank hits a 1/4 full, I automatically fill it. Also, proud of you for getting out in 5° weather! Sometimes we just gotta ride! Link to comment
duckbubbles Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 My experience with my own and several others' hexheads is that they are more likely pessimistic- showing you are nearly out of fuel when you aren't. It can be adjusted by the dealer and maybe a GS911. I remember it involves emptying the tank and adding a known quantity, usually a gallon to get a a point where the low fuel warning comes on. This also depends on you having a properly functioning fuel strip in the tank. Frank Link to comment
81delorean Posted January 14 Author Share Posted January 14 33 minutes ago, Hosstage said: Also, proud of you for getting out in 5° weather! Sometimes we just gotta ride! I've never been accused of being to bright! thanks for the input. My old Suzuki was really accurate on range left on a tank. I need to learn the bike more and figure out all of it's quirks. Link to comment
dirtrider Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 1 hour ago, 81delorean said: Haven't had my '05 RT to long, still haven't done a ton of miles on it but decided to get it out today for a nice brisk 5 degree F ride around town. Fuel gauge said I had about 1/4 tank when it started hesitating and finally died. Checked the tank and sure enough it was out. Wife brought me some gas, it fired up and I finished the ride home. So my question is, are the fuel gauges on these things a little optimistic and like to give you false hopes? Luckily I was closer to home and not out on the interstate or something. I will look into carrying a small reserve bottle of fuel now if anyone has any real world experience with any of them and would recommend one. Afternoon 81delorean Typically the 1200RT has a fairly accurate fuel gauge right up to the point that they aren't. Some possibilities are: Your present fuel strip is starting to fail (doesn't happen often as the strip usually works or it doesn't but I have seen a few that read incorrectly until total failure). Or, the fuel strip failed & someone installed a new one without calibrating it. Or, a new fuel strip was installed & calibrated incorrectly. The new fuel strips are calibrated differently as they are calibrated dry, hanging outside the fuel tank, then installed in the fuel tank. Link to comment
81delorean Posted January 14 Author Share Posted January 14 51 minutes ago, dirtrider said: The new fuel strips are calibrated differently as they are calibrated dry, hanging outside the fuel tank, then installed in the fuel tank. I haven't looked into this at all but how in the world do you calibrate something like a fuel gauge when it's outside of the tank dry? Seems weird. Link to comment
dirtrider Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 15 hours ago, 81delorean said: I haven't looked into this at all but how in the world do you calibrate something like a fuel gauge when it's outside of the tank dry? Seems weird. Afternoon 81delorean You need to remove the fuel strip, then COMPLETELY dry it (like overnight or longer), then plug it back into the motorcycle's wire harness, then use a GS-911, or dealer computer, or possibly MotoScan to calibrate it. Both the GS-911 & dealer computer walk you through the operation, I'm not sure on the MotoScan. Link to comment
Dave P Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 81- My 07 RT has that same optimistic fuel gauge. Stranded me twice. Gauge said about 1/3 of a tank and just plain ran out of gas. Replacing that fuel strip is probably the correct thing to do, but I've heard mixed reviews on if it is a lasting fix. Quite involved procedure seems like also. Im pretty good at swapping out parts, but all of that calibration stuff just kinda makes my head spin. Bigger fish to fry, you know? It's kinda a drag with this creature feature bike, but like most others, I reset my odo and gas up (fully) at about 250 ish miles. But it works and I haven't been stranded for a long time. I seem to remember using that technique on my old Airhead! Dave Link to comment
dirtrider Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 2 hours ago, Hosstage said: Problem solved! Afternoon Hosstage On a fairly consistent sized container shape that does work pretty good. Unfortunately the BMW 1200rt has a multitude of dissimilar sized compartments so an external sight tube would make gauging remaining fuel quantity very difficult as the fluid level height in the tank varies all over the place quantity wise. Link to comment
Hosstage Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 1 minute ago, dirtrider said: Afternoon Hosstage On a fairly consistent sized container shape that does work pretty good. Unfortunately the BMW 1200rt has a multitude of dissimilar sized compartments so an external sight tube would make gauging remaining fuel quantity very difficult as the fluid level height in the tank varies over the place quantity wise. I know, I was just posting it as a little dig! That's really just a solution for old school choppers. And BMW R18s... Link to comment
Dave P Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Our RTs have some crazy shaped gas tanks! 1 Link to comment
JZ67 Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 I imagine the fuel warning indicator is connected to the fuel strip? So if one has failed, the other doesn't work either? Link to comment
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