What is your other bike ?

50, 60, 70, 80 MPG ?
What ? I forgot to seach for best mpg bikes for over 5 years now. What in the world am I thinking.

Why am I driving this gas drunk around at 40mpg when a new Ford focus gets 40.

I got the bike for mpg when compared to a car and I suffered through heat rain and snow hoping to save some money here in there.

Do you know of any highway worthy bike that gets better mpg than silverwing? I think is the silver in the wing that slows this bike down.

L

I'm averaging 62 mpg on my CTX700D. I have had 6 tanks now and I ride about 70% highway and the rest on 45 mph country roads. You should get better than 40 mpg though. Have you checked your air filter to see if it needs cleaning/replacing, depending on whether it is a stock or a K&N filter? Also, what percentage is interstate and slower road useage?

I commute 94 miles per day and I save enough on gas to pay for tires or insurance but not both.

It'll never be about saving money on gas, the math never works out.

Bottom Line on Costs: Scooter-associated expense/maint if you pay somebody to do it, etc. cheap car like Hyundai Accent, leased probably cheaper or just as cheap as scooter/bike in long run, period with the plus of heater/AC/Radio. But where is the fun??

When Sears sold Vespas @ $325 there might have been scooter advantage.

Big scooters today not cheap to buy/fix----they save on gas some....if you drive pickup which I do not.

Have leased Hyundai Geneisis----As nothing goes wrong/has spare tire and jack/100,000 mile warranty---uses cheapest oil---light foot can do 35 US mpg on highway and will be turned in @36,000 miles----real life probably costs about the same or less than SilverWing to keep. Wife drives it....I have no interest as it lacks crank down windows/reg key, etc.

WOW John, we are in similar circumstances. We both ride Swings, and our wives both ride the Genesis Coupe. Mine being 2002, and hers being 2013. It keeps her happy. That is good for me. Mine also keeps me happy. Ride safe and be careful on you pending trips.

My other bike is a MEC Attack, carbon fibre frame and forks, Shimano Ultegra 6700 Gruppo, 13-23 cassette, 46-36 chainrings, weighs only 18 lbs ready to ride, gets infinite gas mileage.

My other bike is a 2008 Surly Long Haul Trucker. Instead of gas , it runs on Guinness
On a good day, I can get about 25 miles to the pint. On better days, somewhat less

My other Bike, well it is just a bike with an engine.
It is a 50cc 1965 French Mobylette AV76.

This past week I put on 700 miles on a camping trip and averaged 50 mpg. I am happy.

My other bike is an 800 cc motorcycle and it doesn't do that well.

My other Bike is a Burgman 400. I just got it M.O.T.'d ( that's a yearly inspection all motor vehicles in the UK must have to prove they are safe to be on the road). It is now 14years old, i have had it for four. I use it for journeys of 50mls or less. A good machine and lots of fun but, not enough room to stretch your legs out, and no Backrest, but 80 plus mpg.  

My other bike is a honda hornet 900 which I have to admit of being rather found of also the silverwing my sons bandit 600 and a honda pcx 125 got to maintain all of them dont know how I got time to work

Havelet 2013 did you buy the mobelette from paul in wales as he brought one in once and said that he might sell it

Very nice Mobylette! I used a newer model when living in the Central African Republic back in the late '80's. It was a bit finicky on fouling the plug, but never let me down.

Current stable:
2004 Silver Wing, MPG - yet undetermined
2005 Burgman 400, MPG - 55-65+
1990 XT600 (Yamaha dualsport), MPG 40-55

Hi BJ & John,
I got it on Ebay from Surrey and restored it over the Winter. It wasn't in bad condition but had a fine surface rust over it, so decided to paint it to as near original as I could.
I use a 1:33 petrol mix and the plug does seem to stay clean.

I'm with Surlybiker58; 2 touring bicycles, 2 go fast, and 1 recumbent.

My Goldwing makes me appreciate the fuel mileage of the SWing...       I just finished an 824 mile trip on the "big" Wing and mileage varied from 34-43 MPG US.  Average more like 37-38 MPG.  My Silver Wing actually does much better at 55-60 MPG which isn't much worse than the CTX...

My observation (and my opinion) is that Honda tweaked something for the 2011 on up models as all the people I know that have these get noticeably better mileage.  From reading here on the forum it seems that the 2002-07 models get the worst mileage, 2008-2010 were better and later ones better yet.  Don't beat me up this is just my opinion from reading on here...    

I owned a 2008 Smart car for three years (sold last Oct). After some 'tweaking' I got 42 city and 50+ highway. The V-Strom 1000, I had around the same time, got about 35/46. I have not as yet checked my current SWing but hope to do a bit better than the Smart, which is a bit sad. I think it should have the capability to do considerably better.

Frustration with poor motorcycle fuel consumption was a big factor of why I jumped to maxi-scooters back in 2000. I had just come off a 6 state tour on an 1100 Gold Wing and the best it did was 35mpg.

The new Honda 700/750cc engine, as used in the CTX, is encouraging and I am very happy to see Honda take motorcycle fuel consumption a bit more seriously.

I think bikes/scooters in many cases do not get good gas mileage as they do not "slide" thru the air very well. I used to keep written records of my gas mileage---sample---my R51/3 BMW 500 (1954) ridden like an idiot in Europe averaged 60mpg solo/40 Sidecar Heinrich fairing equipped---Yamaha YDS-3 Ceco Fairing----42 mpg---2 stroke ridden wide open most of time-------recent years many bikes 40mpg seemed to be average---Barge I had, Kawasaki Voyager 1200 4 cy, did 45 so not bad. Suzuki GS500E which I rode 62 or 64,000 miles did over 60mpg

Cars---Smart not had but in other markets Diesel, so probably do better overall than Gas for our market. 2CV I got only about 30mpg overall (had one new and one used) But recent years, living in Europe Fiat 1100 Polish made got 40mpg overall driven very hard-----which I think is very good given the speeds run in Germany.

Scooters---Vespa 2 stroke, either 125,150,200 seemed to get 50-55 mpg ridden hard. My most recent Burgman 400 did just over 60mpg on 6,000 mile trip----Silverwing, I doubt will ever get better than 50-55mpg, even well run in. Am on second SilverWing, first slightly better.

My TU 250 Suzuki may be mpg king!! light throttle hand---slow speeds---Blue Ridge Pwy, end to end 75-80mpg----near wide open will not drop below 70mpg-----Nice bike, but I don't like as it has no centerstand--rode it 6 months,6000 miles, for sale and not moving. Rode to Quebec, hwy and back roads over 70mpg.

I have a 2005 Harley Road king with fuel injection that gets better gas mileage than my silverwing. I get 40 mpg on it. I'm lucky if I can go 150 miles on a tank of gas on my wing. As far as good mileage goes, I have a 2006 Honda Big Ruckus 250 that gets great mileage. I don't have the exact numbers but it goes many miles on a tank full of gas and great fun to ride in the Summer months. Not much wind protection for Winter riding. OH

I recall reading the results of the Craig Vetter mileage challenge years back. All bike's were ridden using hyper mile techniques. To make a long story short, (and relying on memory) the modified Harley Sportsters did the best by far and got around 100 mpg. Smaller bikes could not do as well. Rationale was that the slower turning engine fires fewer times and less firing equaled less fuel.

The new Honda engine is a slower turning engine using low-mid range rpm and tuned for mpg. The engine uses torque, as did those Sportster engines. The Silver Wing engine is designed for mid-high rpm range for it's power. Thus the pistons fire more and use more fuel.

Not saying the Sportster engine is anything special, just that (in theory) the fewer times a piston fires, the less fuel it uses. I personally like the feel and rideability of a torquey engine over a buzzy high rpm engine.

So, should we expect to see more engines designed for lower rpm to increase mpg?

I think it's more the efficiency of the transmission .
My CB 500t and CB550K were high revving engines and got about 50 mpg depending on how hard I rode The CVT belt drive in the Silverwing is not particularly efficient .

surlybiker58 wrote:

I think it's more the efficiency of the transmission .
My CB 500t and CB550K were high revving engines and got about 50 mpg depending on how hard I rode The CVT belt drive in the Silverwing is not particularly efficient  .

I agree! And I think that is why the CTX does a bit better than the SWing. But I am sorry, I love the CVT. YMMV

A pair of Wings: one Silver the other Gold!


DerrillW

  

If someone is getting less than 40MPG on the Wing, something's wrong. I have a 2012 and 2007 in the garage getting between 50 and 60 (typically 55) MPG pretty much always, no matter how/where they are ridden.

Tires matter (the Michellin Power Pures SC seem to get maybe 1 or 2 MPG better than the IRCs), air pressure in the tires matter, belt wear matters, and roller wear matters. I've also seen video of some belt replacement techniques that almost certainly leave the front pulley loose (that would cause an issue). If your "V" light is on, you'll probably get bad mileage and should fix things.

That said, that CTX700 and the NM4 with their DCT transmissions look pretty interesting for MPG. But what it costs for a new bike would buy a lot of gas! Plus the Wing is just so darn practical.

jmaslak wrote:

If someone is getting less than 40MPG on the Wing, something's wrong.  I have a 2012 and 2007 in the garage getting between 50 and 60 (typically 55) MPG pretty much always, no matter how/where they are ridden.

A god question for me would be, what mileage should I expect here at 5300 foot elevation. Petroleum engines have a reduction in power, mpg and and fuel octane is less (95 = about 91). Air resistance is less, but not enough to offset the power/mpg loss. Any other mountain dwellers have any figures?

As per my epitaph below!

I am at about 6,000 feet.

Here is my fastest bike!
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WgIaQAAiMow

Just picked up a Yamaha V Star 650. Nice bike for my 4 Month stay here in Oklahoma. Going to hit the trails in Ozark Mtns next week.

Magoo Triker

Mudnman, if that is your fastest bike in the video. I have to ask what part of Florida are you in? That's a lot of snow for Florida.  

It's a gated community....bah haha The dues is so much we demand snow for sports week ...


Yah Im full of it!,,lol

I never made the mistake that riding a two wheeled highway capable vehicle would be cheaper than a high mileage car. I one had a Honda three door hatchback FE1800 that averaged about 48mpg on the road and about 38 around town. That beat my Goldwing hands down. Tires wear out faster on a bike and just about any routine maintenance is more costly and done more often on them as well. If it weren't that they are more fun than a car to operate they'd be long gone now. Why else do we sit out in the rain and cold paying more per mile to go somewhere? So for me it makes no sense to ask the question.

Right now I'm suffering with only one bike but I have my eye on a '94 BMW K1100GT in nice condition. Pretty close to pulling the trigger on a deal...

Exavid,

You're forgetting about "twist the throttle and you're gone " experience you get with a bike

After that, a car just doesn't measure up

Yeah Surly, Not many people I know actually drive their cars to drive their cars. Its just a commodity to them. Most people that ride bikes and scooters enjoy the ride everytime they look at it or straddle it.

I am dealing on a Honda Valkyrie Interstate right now. We are close to a deal.

My other bike is an 82 Goldwing with a Motorvation Formula 2 sidecar.  It get 28 miles to the gallon however it gets more smiles per mile than anything on the road.  I don't ride for gas mileage, I ride because I enjoy the experience.  Let's see started riding at age 16 now 61, a couple of years of smiles.

Currently, a 2005 Burgman 400 and an old 1990 Yamaha XT 600 dual sport (what us old guys call an enduro) that is slowly being restored.

Back in 2007 I got back into regular riding with my first scoot and currently have 3.

A 2006 Aprilia Scarabeo 500 GT ABS was my first scoot purchased with just over 800 actual miles and now near 26K - this has been my first choice for long distance comfort and still is.

2nd Scoot is my 2002 SW purchased with 7,800 miles and now resting at 20K - other than plastic vibration it has been trouble free and normally gets 48 to 55 mpg depending on the type of riding.

3rd Scoot is a 2007 Burgy 650 Exec which I purchased last fall with 2K miles - still learning the scoot and planning on riding this on BJ's CO tour - compared to the SW so far there are both positives and negatives.

I have one too many scoots and one has to leave the stable - probably the Scarabeo.

Next,

Rick V

My other bike was a Goldwing. I am having enough fun on the Swing I doubt if I will go back to 2 bikes. ADOT would get benefit but I doubt I would.   

I also have a 2000 ACE 750 Shadow. I really like it for the totally different ride quality it offers. I have it for sale at present, but if it doesn't sell I'll just keep riding the two. I used to have Honda VLX600 prior to that: it nearly threw me into the ditch, so I ditched it fast. My riding buddies pinned it down to the squiggly monoshock rear suspension.

At my house, there is the Swing 07, gets 50 mpg, the Burgman 650 Ex, 50 mpg and a BMW K1200LT, 50-55 mpg while touring, 35-40 around town. I use the 650 the most, so simple and easy to ride, is a real joy! they are all very good rides

In addition to the newly added SWing, I also have a Kymco Downtown 300i and a Honda SH150i. The DT300i gets between 70 and 75MPG and will do Interstate, though, compared to a SWing, it is *light* at about 360 lbs (and not all that much heavier than the SH150i which is 307 lbs). No real problems with performance and for what it is the mileage is superb. The problem with the DT300i is that the seat is not adjustable nor is it easily modified, and the consensus seems to be that someone with a 30" or less inseam will probably fit the bike, those taller, or with longer legs, not so much. It does feel cramped to me at times and I have a 29" inseam. The other thing is that at higher speeds, doing 70+ on the freeway, that lack of weight begins to be felt. I'd have to say that for me the stock windshield on the DT300i is much better than the stock windshield on the SWing. For 2-lane travel on short hauls, the SH150i is just the cats pajamas, IMO, and it gets around 80MPG. On an MPG basis, for the power it has, I'd rate the DT300i fairly highly, and if it happens to fit a person properly, it will do most things most people want to do (probably not longer range cruising as well as something like a SWing, but having tried riding 2-up on both, I'd have to say it does pretty well at that in comparison as well,and has an adjustable suspension very similar to the SWing, though that cramped feeling gets worse with someone riding pillion). It is hard to put into words (or to assign a value to it), but the Hondas are just smoother, and more refined feeling though than the Kymco.

....a Hayabusa '08 and a GAS GAS TXT 280 Trial '09

In addition to the SWing, I also have a Piaggio BV500 and I recently sold a VStar 650 Custom.

The SWing is a 2002 model and it averages right at 50 mpg.

The BV500 averages about 65 mpg.

The VStar averaged 50 mpg.

I agree with the sentiments expressed above regarding car v motorbike. My car is strictly an appliance with which I have no particular emotional attachment. I feel very differently about my bikes. I ride them because I love to ride them and because the perspectives I get while riding are very different from being enclosed in a car.

my other ride (trying to stay young     ) 06, 650 Suzuki Bandit. Yes it can go like the devil!!

I have a Suzuki V-Strom 650 (2013) and a neat little Honda cb500x that I'm selling to my son. I really like the V-Strom but I need to lower it a bit as I'm tip-toe on the thing. The cb500x is just a hoot and real lite and easy to move and ride. I'm really liking the SWing and use it to commute and will tour on it also.

dwoodul wrote:

I have a Suzuki V-Strom 650 (2013) and a neat little Honda cb500x that I'm selling to my son.  I really like the V-Strom but I need to lower it a bit as I'm tip-toe on the thing.  The cb500x is just a hoot and real lite and easy to move and ride.  I'm really liking the SWing and use it to commute and will tour on it also.

The guy i got the Bandit from also had a V-strom 1000 as well. They are sharp looking bikes, but like you, the seat height is just a bit to tall for me to be comfortable on. Im not sure how much a lowering kit would actually lower it.

I ride about 20,000 miles a year FOR FUN! Spend about $1800 a year on gas - if I stopped riding then I would save a lot of money - but I can't stop! The SWing mileage at about 50 mpg sucks - but it is way better than my R1200RT that gets around 40 mpg! My Goldwing buddies seem to be in the mid to low 30s mpg. Cars are a bargain compared to most two wheeled transport - but they are clearly not as much fun.

big d, i can not believe that your RT will only get 40 MPG while touring, that must be around town riding, when I rode enforcement on an RT I would get 35 MPG, something doesn't sound right!