$6 a gallon gas

[taters]

gas has a good chance of being $6 a gallon by november. i get about 40 miles per gallon on my 1150rt. is there a bike out there that i can get an honest 60 miles per gallon and still be a hoot to ride? any suggestions? i'm ready to trade in if there is. thanks taters

[smiller]

gas has a good chance of being $6 a gallon by november.

Short of World War III, no way. But there are many mid-size bikes that can get you into the 50's if ridden conservatively, although an honest average figure in the 60+ mpg range will be more difficult to come by. In any event you would probably have to put a lot of miles on your 40 mpg bike to make a trade for that reason alone economically feasible.

[David]

F650.

[Bullett]

Maybe one of these?

[leikam]

Depending on what it takes to make you hoot, it's going to be harder or easier to get there. The Ninja 250 clears 60mpg pretty easily but power is modest and it's no touring machine. Still, it's fun enough to carry all the speed you can through a turn rather than screwing on the throttle.

[soboy]

My old 2004 Kawasaki Vulcan 500 regularly got mileage in the low 60s over the 18,000 miles I rode it. It was a quick and fun bike, handled well for a cruiser. Had more of a standard riding position than most cruisers. My 1989 Transalp has averaged 59 mpg for the last two years. Great road bike. My 2006 DR 650 has averaged 57 mpg over the last 9000 miles and it is a hoot to ride. And my 2004 Honda Shadow Aero 750 has never gotten below 61 mpg. You can also get mileage in the 60s with a Suzuki Burgman 400 or a Yamaha Majesty, and they are both fun maxi-scooters with plenty of power to keep up with traffic.

 

For what it is worth, I see gas hitting $6 a gallon by year end.

[Firefight911]

Piaggio MP3

[motoguy128]

1) I've heard for F800 riders claiming at or near 60mpg.

 

2) KLR650 should get close to 60mpg.

 

 

I'd love to see some 350 or 400cc machines with full fairings, belt drive, good upright ergos that are ideal for commuting with standard luggage options.

[taters]

problem is i am 6'2" and have a 33 inch inseam, but thanks for the imput

[Dick_at_Lake_Tahoe_NV]

Even at 6'2" You'd still have no problem riding the F-650 and getting great MPG.

[Tony_K]

Even has a built in gun rack for the OP.

 

Piaggio MP3

[HairyCannonball]

60 mpg? Why ride such a gas guzzler? I get 160 miles per gallon of diesel with this:

 

 

Yeah, ok, it's pretty slow but still fun to ride.

[soboy]

F650 in the Dakar model would be another choice - tall seat height (34"), good handling, enough power to stay entertained, and I hear they get 60 mpg. Engine and tranny are a bit on the agricultural side.

 

For half the money you will spend on an F650 Dakar, you can get a KLR 650 or DR 650. They would be my choice since they are very fun and simple machines that you can easily work on (DR oil and filter change takes 10 minutes, I just adjusted the valves myself and it was ridiculously easy).

 

My DR does 0 to 60 in 5 seconds and I have out cornered sportbikes up in the mountains with it. An absolute hoot to ride. Jumps curbs with ease in urban use. Narrow and tall so it is perfect for dealing with traffic. Looks better dirty and/or with a few scratches. Dirt cheap to buy, operate and insure. And fantastic gas mileage on the cheapest grade of gas - I have averaged 57 mpg since buying it new, best tank ever was 69 mpg. (F650 needs premium gas).

[rkd]

... (F650 needs premium gas)

 

I don't remember what the manual says, but my F650GS has been fed regular gas since new (as many other owners have done) and it runs fine (FI / knock sensor). Google seems to indicate the FI F650's are rated for 87 gas.

[Marty Hill]

The new '05's and on 650GS's get 70 mpg on regular. I had one.

 

Might just get another.

[eddd]

While hardly a hoot to ride, I bought a used Rebel a few years ago that got a consistant, no BS, 70 mpg. Riding that rather than my diesel pickup, it paid for itself in about 15 months.

 

With today's fuel prices it would pay for itself in less than 8,000 miles or only 22 miles per day for one year! I'd bike the 15 miles to work if it was a safe option.

[Firefight911]

1) I've heard for F800 riders claiming at or near 60mpg.

 

Jamie's F800ST gets high 50's. My G650 X Challenge is just above 60 when riding semi reasonably.

[too old to care]

1) I've heard for F800 riders claiming at or near 60mpg.

 

My F800S gets about 50, no where near 60MPG.

[tonyla]

what mpg do the 350 scooters get?

[smiller]

1) I've heard for F800 riders claiming at or near 60mpg.

My F800S gets about 50, no where near 60MPG.

Ah, the ever-present difference between claiming and getting.

 

[bakerzdosen]

My G650 X Challenge is just above 60 when riding semi reasonably.

That must have been on the way home from the dealer if that ever really occurred.

 

So, anyway, I'd just like to point out a quote from this Business Week article

Yet suicide bombings and other terror attacks against oil facilities, if successful, could temporarily spike the price to $70 to $80 or more. That would derail the world's economy. So major consumers need to further reduce their dependency.

Gotta love predictions... Especially from the 1992 Nobel laureate. Written just 4 years ago.

 

Don't scoff at $6/gal gas. It could very well happen.

[Francois_Dumas]

 

Don't scoff at $6/gal gas. It could very well happen.

 

It happened to us (years ago already), it will happen to you.....

 

As for the mpg stuff. It certainly makes a BIG difference on HOW you ride/drive. Long gone are the times to floor the pedal at green and go full into the brakes again at the next red.

 

You'll have to put an egg underneath your accelerator pedal, and don't touch the brakes if you don't need to..... slow down in time when you KNOW you'll have a stop coming, keep the momentum where possible so you don't have to speed up again.

 

All that goes for bikes too.

 

Saving on fuel will require a whole different way of driving/riding AND a different mindset to support it.

 

You'll learn in time, unless you are rich

 

[ShovelStrokeEd]

The egg should go on the brake pedal. If you don't slow down, you don't need to accelerate more than once.

 

Back when dirt was new, the Rolls Royce chauffeur's school used to make their students drive across London with an egg taped to the brake pedal. Break the egg and you failed the course.

 

It wasn't about fuel economy of course but rather smooth driving. It still works.

[David]

I've done that same thing, but with a cub of water taped to the gas tank.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

It's actually a great exercise, although with the cup of water you really want to watch the acceleration

 

You have to anticipate traffic, lights, etc. so your situational awareness goes way up. A good thing, IMHO. Of course, trying to do that in Nashville traffic, at least up on 24 during rush hour, will get your honked at, buzzed and maybe even Adventure saluted a few times. Down here, they'll just shoot you.

[Francois_Dumas]

The egg should go on the brake pedal.

 

Nah, don't want to get my shoe dirty !

[motoguy128]

I was thinking abut this and really the difference from 50mpg to 60mpg isn't that great. If you're driving 12,000 miles/year, that's only a 40 gallon diffrence or $240 at $6/gal.

 

On the other had, going from a car that gets 20mpg, to one that gets 45mpg in the same type of driving, (V6 sedan to a Prius) now you're saving $2000/year over 12k miles. Bt, here's hte catch, for $8,000 less, you can buy a similarly sized and equipped Toyota Corolla that gets lets say 32mpg over mixed driving. Now the Prius only saves $800/year some than the Corolla. Throw in the cost of money and factor in battery service life, and the Prius loses. You need more extreme city driving conditions that favor the Prius or even more expensive gas. But in that case you could alos give the Corolla a smaller 1.6 or 1.5L motor. This is why Hybrids have not taken off even in Europe. Compared to an already efficient a diesel or small displacement gas engine, it's diminishing returns.

[Francois_Dumas]

I was thinking abut this and really the difference from 50mpg to 60mpg isn't that great. If you're driving 12,000 miles/year, that's only a 40 gallon diffrence or $240 at $6/gal.

 

Yes, but how many motors are running in the US? Now do the math for (huge V9-engined) cars..... and you'll really make a dent in consumption and cost

[rkd]

Don't scoff at $6/gal gas. It could very well happen.

 

Some local projections are $7 by the end of next year.

 

Perhaps I'm reading their projections incorrectly but it seems that the Energy Information Administration's projections were significantly off target (as in under).

[smiller]

I was thinking abut this and really the difference from 50mpg to 60mpg isn't that great. If you're driving 12,000 miles/year, that's only a 40 gallon diffrence or $240 at $6/gal.

Yes, and if you spend say $5,000 to upgrade to the higher-mileage bike the payback is only 20 years...