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Motorcycle Hypermiling?

Inst

New member
Is anyone a motorcycle hypermiler here? I wonder if I can get some tips; on my G650GS, I tend to average around 60 mpg, which is solely average, even though I shift at peak BSFC points (2500-3000 rpm) and time traffic lights.

Of course, I could attempt burn and coast, but to be frank, that's too labor intensive and it's too distracting (and thus dangerous) on a motorcycle.

I'm not totally ignorant as a hypermiler; with a Nissan Xterra, I've managed to get 22 mpg (20% above EPA rating).
 
Motorcycles are not very aerodynamic. Lots of wind resistance. We, on this forum, report all sorts of variations in fuel mileage on our bikes, but that is mostly from different wind conditions and different speeds. Never heard of anyone specifically "hypermiling" on a motorcycle. At least not since Craig Vetter came along and changed the whole industry.

Good luck.
 
Congratulations on getting a little better than typical fuel consumption for that model while probably destroying the bottom end of the engine in not too long a time. That engine is designed to operate in the 4k to 6k rpm band very nicely but at 2500 is lugging the engine whether it is herky jerky or not.
 
I'm not a hyper-miler, but I do keep track of my gas mileage to predict my expected range on trips. In my area with all the traffic we have, it really is a futile effort. I can get low to mid 50s in my pre-retirement commute...or I can get about 48 on the same commute when I sit at traffic lights. On trips, I'm usually getting mid-50s, though on back roads, I can often get in the low 60s. Much of that seems to be dependent on speed. If I keep it at around 55-60 mph on the back roads, I get much higher gas mileage than if I hit 70+ mph.

Riding smoothly and simply enjoying the ride, is the most rewarding for me.

If you really want to hyper-mile...get a Prius. My wife routinely gets about 69 mpg on hers.

Chris
 
Driving to get hyper-miles out of a bike is to me about as much fun as trying not to offend someone who is easily offended. Big on effort and small in payoff. If I needed better mileage, I'd buy a bike that gets better mileage. I bought a Honda NC700 for this reason and it literally bored me to tears. It is gone. I am with Paul on this. There is another thread going where the OP is looking to run the tallest gearing that will physically fit on the bike looking to run at uber-low RPM's. The way many people ride motorcycles, their bikes would last longer if the highest gear were missing.
 
If you really want to hyper-mile...get a Prius. My wife routinely gets about 69 mpg on hers.

Chris

That's very good for a regular Prius. Over the first 20K miles, my Prius Prime gets just above 89 mpg...but I cheat, I run on electric-only (EV mode) much of the time, especially around town and short trips because it is a plug-in hybrid with a large battery pack.

For my bike, I get around 50 mpg on trips. I try to stay close to the speed limit. Some say that is impossible - just find a big truck doing your desired speed and tuck in either behind or in front. In front means less turbulence. Besides getting better mileage, your tires will last longer. My Anakee III's had almost 13K miles on them when I had them replaced, and I could have gotten another 1K miles out of the rear (but wanted new tires before the trip to Des Moines). I saw a post from one guy who lamented that his Anakee III's only last 6K miles. As they say, YMMV.
 
Hyper-miling on motorcycles is like the ladies of a brothel competing to see who is the most virtuous. It is a pointless endeavor that defeats the purpose.
 
.....{snip] just find a big truck doing your desired speed and tuck in either behind or in front. In front means less turbulence.....{snip}

I have heard this before :eek :eek :eek
Screwing around in the front of a truck or in the rear is just asking to be road kill.
A little lite reading on this subject- https://www.quora.com/Why-is-drafti...red-dangerous-Why-do-truck-drivers-dislike-it

As for this Hypermiling stuff........Lets try not to foul up traffic more that it is. If your going to experiment with some driving technique that the rest of the road doesn't enjoy, please stay far right.......Perhaps with some sort of emergency light as extra identification.
OM
 
I hyper-miled once in 51 years on motorcycling when I thought it made good sense. I was on my way to Inuvik, NWT and I got to Eagle Plains where I planned to camp in the early afternoon. So, I decided to make camp and then ride on to the Northwest Territories border sign for fun. On the way back it became apparent that I had neglected to fuel up the bike when I got to Eagle Plains and I was on empty and about at my normal tank range. My R1150 held ten gallons, but it is just as empty as a Sportster with a peanut tank when all of the gas is gone. So, I shut it down and coasted the downhills and restarted when my speed ran low on the uphills. Somehow I made it without being demoted to pedestrian.

The only other time that came close to making sense was when I decided to ride out an entire tank of gas in my Honda NC700x on the Blue Ridge Parkway while obeying the 45 mph speed limit. The bike got nearly 90 mpg.

One time I was scared to death and the other I was bored to death. I hope I am now smart enough to not try either trick again.
 
Ehhh, hypermiling is a recreational sport just as much as racing is. Hypermilers actually refer to their MPG meter as a game gauge, because it's fun riding or driving in a such a way as to maximize fuel efficiency.

But the thing is, not everyone hypermiles all the time. When I first got the xterra, I spent a fair amount of time burn-and-coasting with a 5-mile gap around the speed limit, probably to the annoyance of other drivers. This was in the right lane, of course. These days, however, I am willing to sacrifice the fuel economy for greater convenience, simply because it's fatiguing to constantly watch your speed and keep it variable. Likewise, I used to draft trucks with the xterra, but with a 3 second distance to ensure sufficient stopping distance. I don't do so anymore; it's not worth the trouble or risk. On the other hand, I still ridge ride, whether I am running the CUV or the motorcycle, simply because staying slightly out of alignment with the traffic improves my field of view and allows me to see obstacles in front of the vehicle ahead of me.

Using hypermiling techniques on a motorcycle is a question of capability, not necessarily something you do all the time. Even competition hypermilers don't use all their skills on day-to-day driving, because tailgating trucks is ridiculously dangerous both from the collision risk and loss of visibility, and because some techniques, while offering good mileage on a tank of gas, are just too annoying to use routinely. However, say you're in a remote rural area, and all of a sudden, your reserve light comes on. You think, or you'd like to think, you can get to a gas station before the engine dies. But under those circumstances, why take the chance? That's a good enough situation to justify hypermiling your vehicle, even using aggressive techniques, because the alternative is to be straight stranded and waiting for a tow to come with fuel.
 
However, say you're in a remote rural area, and all of a sudden, your reserve light comes on. You think, or you'd like to think, you can get to a gas station before the engine dies. But under those circumstances, why take the chance? That's a good enough situation to justify hypermiling your vehicle, even using aggressive techniques, because the alternative is to be straight stranded and waiting for a tow to come with fuel.

Exercising poor fuel management is hardly a good excuse for driving in a manner that obstructs the flow of traffic, inflames other drivers, and increases risk to the general public. That’s like saying airline pilots should during normal flights routinely shut down their engines and glide just in case they might need to do that due to their own fuel mismanagement.

If high mileage is important to someone, they should just buy a vehicle with that feature and get on with it. Otherwise, one is just creating a rolling roadblock in traffic.

Best,
DG
 
I have heard this before :eek :eek :eek
Screwing around in the front of a truck or in the rear is just asking to be road kill.
A little lite reading on this subject- https://www.quora.com/Why-is-drafti...red-dangerous-Why-do-truck-drivers-dislike-it

As someone who has witnessed a person being run over by a truck I can tell you it is a very ugly event. Still haunts me 20 years later. Trucks cannot see you very well, and even if they could, they can't stop quickly. And when you and a truck collide you lose.

That being said, I resorted to drafting trucks on one long motorcycle trip. I was heading north from New Orleans to Boston in late March. After I entered Virginia the temperatures began to fall precipitously. In an effort to stave off hypothermia I resorted to drafting trucks. Extremely effective. The long term solution, of course, was to limit my riding to the warmer hours and stop more often for hot meals. It took me longer to get home to Boston but I made it in one piece. Had I to do it over again I would have electrically heated clothing.
 
...because it's fun riding or driving in a such a way as to maximize fuel efficiency.
...because it's fatiguing to constantly watch your speed and keep it variable.

These statements seem in conflict. I always get the fatigue but not the fun.

...Likewise, I used to draft trucks.

Racers know when you draft that you have to occasionally pull out a bit to let the motor cool off. Motorcycle riders, especially those on air-cooled motors with no temperature gauge may not know that the oil temperature could go to bad places because of drafting not just trucks, but cars as well. Plus, as you said, the three second rule makes it either dangerous on one end or ineffective on the other.

I'm back to simply not doing it. I do find it annoying to try to follow someone who drives by the vacuum gauge instead of the speedometer. The coasting slows them without brake lights and you are constantly reacting to what they are going to do next. Easier just to pass them and let them have their "fun". It is about like following a phone texter except hyper-milers generally don't weave. The side friction on the tires would detract from the mileage.
 
These statements seem in conflict. I always get the fatigue but not the fun.

The novelty factor wears off after a while. I tried doing this over long-distance travel, but ultimately it makes more sense just to hit the cruise control on the car.

And the fact is, I'm often in a hurry these days. I try to drive 4-5 above speed limit much of the time in a semi-rural environment, although from what I hear, roads are designed for 8 mph above the speed limit and 8 mph above the average traffic speed is statistically correlated to be safest.

The coasting slows them without brake lights and you are constantly reacting to what they are going to do next.

Well, on the plus side, by annoying other drivers, you reduce the chances of being accidentally hit. On the minus side, you increase the chances of being deliberately hit.
 
Driving at or near the speed limit would be considered mild hypermiling, if it is even acknowledged as hypermiling. It is probably more accurate to say that I don't get speeding tickets on my bike, and leave it at that.

I have mirrors on my bike, two of them. I use them to ensure that whatever vehicle is behind me is at a safe distance. If not, I do something to change that. I don't suffer tailgaters gladly.

If you are consistently at 10 or 20 mph over the speed limit, I don't want to hear your complaints about your tires not lasting very long. Other than that, I don't care what speed you drive.
 
The novelty factor wears off after a while. I tried doing this over long-distance travel, but ultimately it makes more sense just to hit the cruise control on the car.

That's what I do in the car...and the bike. Where I live, there are no traffic jams, and no way I could ever hold up traffic by driving the speed limit... I'm at 58 mph on a 55 mph road, and 65 mph on a 65 mph road. Scoff at that, but it works for me.
 
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