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Cruiser
Posts: 106
L.I., N.Y. | My Vision fuel mileage has steady moved for the 35 to 38 mpg range in summer to fall to steady 33 to 25 mpg currently. Last top off was 25.2 mpg using Sunco ultra 93. Just before tonights run I topped off with 3 gals of 100 octane and rode about 68 miles 60 miles hwy with 30 miles at 65 to 70 mph and 30 at 70 to 75 mph. Windshield raised about 2 inches. Oustide temps were 37 to 30 with windchill 27 to 20 degs. The gas gauge is about the half way mark. The bike was reflash at 4300 miles I currently have 6000+. Is it possble that it is an eletronic problem, I read about bikes getting 40 to 50 mpg as a norm. I don't rider hard, just everyday putting around town. I've tried several diffferent brands of gas, grades and octance, with about the same reults. The only time this bike got 40mpg is went I rode the bike to 217 miles, 5.3 gals. on one tank and couldn't start the bike unless I stood the bike straight up. She's due for the 5000 mile service which will happen in the next week, and I've talk to the dealer about the mpg, whose going to consult Victory.  |
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Visionary
Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA | I know you would want a better gas mileage but that just might be the norm for your bike. I think you'll see the gas mileage improve as you put on the miles, as mine did. I got my bike just a year ago and when the temps dropped, so did my gas mileage. The best I could get in the begining was about 42 and that was riding very conservative. It normally ran around 35 - 38 and the temps would be anywhere from the 30's to 40's. When the temps rose up around 60 and above, then I would get around 38. Now the bike is broken in, and has had the flash with stock pipes, I get around 44mpg. On my trip to Texas it was more like 42mp on the way down doing highway speeds. On the return trip I got what I considered exceptional at 39mpg. The temp for the most part on the way back was around 40's and I even rode when it was as low as 26 degrees.
I think what you are faced with is 1) the bike is not yet broke in, 2) the temps are below 50 deg, windchill has no affect on an engine. 3) most gas has that ethonol which brings it down some as well. Hopefully the dealer has a way to improve, but the EFI is not adjustable, maybe another reflash will help. Check your plugs for fouling and your air cleaner as well. Also, check the exhaust nuts at the engine.
BTW, your my hero if you ride all winter long up there on L.I.
Go, go, go Slowryder. |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 600
Linwood, MI | Most people have reported that economy went up after about 5k miles as the engine "broke in." The bike calls for 91+ or 92+ octane fuel. Using higher octane will not improve your economy, but using lower could degrade it.
Ambient air temperature will play a role in your economy, also. The engine is closed loop fuel injection and air cooled. When you first start the bike it will be in open loop, dumping extra fuel in to make sure it stays running while it warms up (much like the effect of a choke on a carb), so you will get poor economy. Once the engine warms up--and some other parameters are met--it will go into closed loop and your economy will improve. If it is very cold outside this could take quite a while. I usually ride about 15 miles to and from work and mine never warms up enough to get into closed loop. In the summer I was averaging 42 mpg; so far this winter I'm averaging about 32 and never get above 35 mpg on my commute.
And, obviously, how you ride will affect your economy, also. The more you rod on it, the worse your mpg.  |
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Cruiser
Posts: 266
Hartland, , WI | My bike has just less than 3000 miles and not close to being broken in...no problem getting close to 40 right off the floor and 40+ now. Gas expands and contracts with the temperature too...one of the reasons why we get better fuel mileage as the temperature rises. Obviously living up here I see wild fluctuations gas mileage in the cars I've owned too.
I have heard many say that "it" is like throwing a switch when you finally get about 5000 miles on the engine...can't wait.
Edited by Vinner1 2008-11-21 10:35 AM
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Cruiser
Posts: 228
| I have 8000+ miles on my 08. Fuel mileage is usually 36-40 riding two up. I am somewhat of an aggressive rider and my usual cruising speed is 70-75 mph. I have S1L1 with the current reflash and have the tall windshield that is all the way up when riding two up.
Do not rely on the digital readout for your mpg figures.......it is very optomistic.
It is hard to get a consistent figure unless you are very careful to get the tank full to the same level every time. |
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Jacksonville Florida | I rode today and it was a pleasant 65 degrees. Fuel average was 46 mpg. Bike has a little over 10,000 miles on it. I would suggest trying to stay away from any fuel that has 10% Ethanol in it. I would also suggest a Lloydz VFC 3 fuel controller. All the dyno sheets that I have seen indicate that as the rpm increases the air fuel ratio increases. It dumps more fuel, makes it richer, the VFC 3 allows you to control your fuel mapping. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 87
Lusby,Md | My bike has 14,000 miles on it and during the summer I got 42-43 mpg,riding 2 up.Now that its cold,28 degrees in the mourning going to work,only 18 miles to work,the bike never gets up to running temp,I get 32-33 mpg.I've heard that the gas here in the notheast is oxygenated for winter and thats the reason gas milage goes down.The most I ever got in the summer time is 44 mpg. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 106
L.I., N.Y. | I've been asked about howww I fuel my bike by two different dealers and I have a system down pat. I pump til the fuel gets to the bottom of the fill opening. Now the exercise begins, my right foot stays on the floor board and I begin rocking the bike with the key in accessory position. Let the gurling begin. today after the turkey run, we rode 74.5 miles and I put 2.61gals. in. At 1.8 gals. the fuel comes up the neck and the gauge reads 3/4 full. the next .8 tenths of a gallon goes in very slowly as I push down on the floor board and rock the bike, the gas continues to come up the fill and gurles down til the gas stays in the neck of the fill. Yes it is time consuming. the longest fill up, just pumping gas alone was 9 mins and 54 secs., by the bikes timer, for 5.3 gals of fuel. I love it if the had a fix for wonderful gas tank sharing design they came up with, like a center stand to straighten up the machine while it's being fill, although I'd miss my stepping fill up exercise, NOT. After todays ride though I could have used heated floor boards with the seat and grips. Tomorrow I'm having the 5000 mile service done and I'm going to have them check the reflash. It was done at 3600 miles and the plugs were replaced at 3800 miles cause the bike was running rough, the plugs were burned. Hopefully this will be ironed out on the morrow |
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Cruiser
Posts: 101
| Mornin all
My question is does anyone know at what temp the the fuel system goes from closed to open ? As I have noticed my mileage is down to low thirtys in 20 to 40 degree weather. I also have the oil temp gauge and it is hard pressed to hit 180 and that is with the lower faring all the way out for wind proction. I am at 13,000 miles and getting a little more pops out of the pipes. Stage 1 level 1.
Have a good day
Bob |
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Cruiser
Posts: 80
| Think of a motorcycle engine as a heat pump. It gets happier the higher the air temp, and it tells you that by improved fuel mileage and improved performance. You may not like the heat sitting behind the big fairing, but the engine does. Wind, weight, speed, type of fuel, ambient air temperature, altitute, state of engine tune (plugs, air/fuel mixture) all contribute to fuel mileage. The 106 cubic inch engine has a big bore and long stroke, so it needs more fuel to make the big bang, than say the 92 cubic inch. Remember the Victory engineers are pretty smart people who research things like fuel economy everyday. Too much messing around with an engine -can- cause degrading performance. So the whole point to my story is, don't evaluate your engine in the winter time, that's a warm weather project.
DP
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Cruiser
Posts: 293
Arkansas | Note that a VFC III (as earlier suggested) will only ADD fuel! You cannot lean your mixture with one. |
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Visionary
Posts: 1324
So Cal | Bikertrash666 - 2008-11-29 3:25 AM
Mornin all
My question is does anyone know at what temp the the fuel system goes from closed to open ? As I have noticed my mileage is down to low thirtys in 20 to 40 degree weather. I also have the oil temp gauge and it is hard pressed to hit 180 and that is with the lower faring all the way out for wind proction. I am at 13,000 miles and getting a little more pops out of the pipes. Stage 1 level 1.
Have a good day
Bob
May want to check gasket seal of the exhaust at the heads because of the pop. Colder weather wont allow for higher engine temps and expansion to allow better sealing. Even though oil will flow it will offer more resistence at lower temps. I agree cold weather is not a good time for the best fuel economy. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 125
Kerrville Texas ( now a homeowner on six acres) | I do not understand all the variances in fuel economy!! My tour premium has gotten in the 40's since I rolled it out of the show room in late September of 07. Now with 21000 miles it averages 46 mpg. That is an average regardless whether I am climbing up and down Pikes peak or running cross country on the interstate. Sometimes tooling around the curvey roads at under 50 mph it will get into the 50,s mpg.It doesn't seem to matter what brand of gas I put in. I always put the highest octain available. Usually it's 91 octain.
Smadge |
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Cruiser
Posts: 125
Kerrville Texas ( now a homeowner on six acres) | I know, Motorcycle riders are with gas mileage as fishermen are with big fish but, I have nothing to prove and am too old to start trying to impress anyone!!
Smadge |
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Visionary
Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA | personally I do not buy my vehicles based on gas mileage, but when I get the vehicle I want it to run optimately so I use the gas mileage as an indicator of how well it is running. If the Vision got 5mpg as a standard and it dropped to 3mpg then I want to see what is wrong. If folk get 40mpg constantly and someone else gets 30mpg constantly one must ask what is the conditions and variables. If I want to run hard I'll expect 30mpg, but if I run it easy and it still gets 30mpg, then I want to know the problem is and fix it. I don't think folk are trying to catch the biggest fish, that just want their machine running at peak. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 106
L.I., N.Y. | Victory's official postion is that 34 mpg is about the norm for a Vision and I can accept that. I agree that I did not buy my Vision for it's fuel economy. They also agree that consistently poor fuel mpg, under normal riding, that 25 to 29 mpg range is an indicator that some thing else could be wrong. I was curiuos if anyone else had experience this problem? The dealer is leaning towards rechecking the reflash, mapping, then into the fuel injection system if these fail to correct the problems. |
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Tourer
Posts: 496
Scottsdale AZ | I live in a warm climate (AZ) where it is rarely below 65-70 degrees. I have had my V for over a year and have never been below 40MPG. That is confirmed on my Zumo 550.
From what I am reading here there is a fairly wide variation in the MPG. I guess I have to believe it has something to do with the temps in AZ. I run it pretty hard from time to time. I have had the reflash and have S1. |
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Tourer
Posts: 412
Fargo, ND | I think it would be a good idea to post your elevation along with your mpg as I have noticed huge differences in mpg in different parts of the county and different elevations. |
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Tourer
Posts: 506
Woodland Hills, CA | I keep reading how mileage somehow magically gets better after 2600 miles, or 5,000 miles, or some other milestone, and I am sure those people are seeing those results. But for me, mine has been fairly consistent since I bought the bike, with only a very slight improvement after the reflash. I have not seen any other improvements at those reported milestones (although the bike does seem to run better the more I ride it). I consistently get between 35 and 38 mpg, with a couple of excursions just north of 40. But even in the worst conditions (riding hard and fast in very windy conditions) I have never been below 34 mpg. Personally I think that if you are getting in the 20's, there is something wrong, and you should have your dealer look into it. |
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Visionary
Posts: 1350
| I see that the poster concerned with low gas mileage mentioned his fuel gauge. Hopefully you are not using that to figure gas mileage. All fuel gauges lie. Please divided you mileage by the amount of fuel you put in. Even if you fill up several times as long as you total miles traveled you can get MPG.
Hope this helps.
Also remember that winter gas gets lower mileage because of manufacturing.
Edited by BlueOx USA 2008-12-01 6:13 AM
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Cruiser
Posts: 228
| Also, do not rely on the digital MPG readout, it will lie to you every time!! |
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Visionary
Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA | savage - 2008-12-01 7:53 AM Also, do not rely on the digital MPG readout, it will lie to you every time!! I would expect it to as I don't understand the algorithm behiind it. I fill-up everytime I get gas and try to put it to the same level everytime. I have found that mine avg mpg reading is on the money 95% of the time. The times it has been off I was never really sure why other then it gets confused in cold weather or a lot of start stop riding. I've always been in the habit of using the trip meters and doing the math based on miles riden and gallons taken in to get the mpg, only for the performance aspect. So at nearly every fill-up I check the read-out and have almost come to trust it. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 106
L.I., N.Y. | I don't know where to start with instrument panel read outs eg: Turkey Run 11-23 outside temp 22 deg with windchill 15 deg. My temp readout started out at 36 degs, by midday it was 36 deg by my read out was -0 degs, by days end it was 28 degs, my read out -08 degs. Now I don't know about anyone else, but I thought oil freezes at those temps, kidding, but I know I would have, not kidding. There are numerous times my gear indicator is wrong, eg: I'm in netraul at a light, hand off the clutch,but the bike states I'm in 6th gear. It frequently messes up the gear indications, but usually corrects itself by the next gear shift whether up or down, hence I count or remember up and down shifts like I used to. When I fill my bike it stops at 3/4 then I rock the air out of the tank to get in another .08 tenths to a gallon in so it stays in the neck, tedious process, but I love my Vision. When I start my Vision if it doesn't start immediately or it cranks over more than 5 seconds the radio switches to AUX on it's own. Just have to remember to turn off radio. For all I know My mileage/trip odo could be off and maybe I really don't have 6300 miles. The last two fill ups of 77.1 miles with 2.95 gals. = 26.13 and 88.3 miles with 3.13 gals. = 28.21 we are at sea level and it has been 38 degs or less for these fill ups. Like this morning it's 28 degs out windchill of 23 degs and the bike temp gauge in the garage is 36 degs and will probably be 30 deg when I go out. I will let the bike warm up longer when it's cold out 4-5 mins, and I'm nice and easy for the frist mile or so to let the rubber warm up, psi no change 40f & 42r, been the same since Aug., except three weeks in Sept., where I tried 36f and 38r. I didn't like the way the bike handled in turns so I had the psi moved back up to 40f & 42r. I have the shock set for 44psi haven't lower it since my co-polit bailed when the temps went below 55 degs. in hopes she'd want to bundle up and want to go for a ride. I have thought about a performance upgrade, but almost everyone agrees fuel consumption will increase, besides I'm not looking for my ride to go faster. Since the SC sherriff has taken over the L.I.E. they've been ticketing everybody, you'll see 6-9 of them on a 30 mile stretch. Hence I'll do my 55-58 mph when in their sights and 65-68 mph when not, & stay out of harms way. |
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fuel economy