Why not a Sixth gear for over drive?

[starkruzen]

When I sold my Harley and Got my RSTD (which I love-a much better machine than the Harley) I got to say, that the sixth gear on the Harley was a true overdrive. With my RSTD I find myself in fifth doing around 45 or so. I wish I had a tack so I can see the RPM's.

 

So why not a real over drive. Does any of the Japanesse bike have it?

 

Markr:240:

[ArticusMedicus]

I try not to hit 5th till I get up around 50-55 mph. My RSV like the RPMs to run high.

[flb_78]

Well, if you were to read the manual, you'd know these bikes actually have a double overdrive. 4th gear is a slight overdrive and 5th gear is somewhere around a 30% overdrive.

 

These engines need to rev.

 

Coming off a Harley, you're used to running under 2000rpm most of the time. This engine will cruise at 5000rpm all day with no troubles.

 

3rd gear will get ya to 85mph.

[BoomerCPO]

Well, if you were to read the manual, you'd know these bikes actually have a double overdrive. 4th gear is a slight overdrive and 5th gear is somewhere around a 30% overdrive.

 

These engines need to rev.

 

Coming off a Harley, you're used to running under 2000rpm most of the time. This engine will cruise at 5000rpm all day with no troubles.

 

3rd gear will get ya to 85mph.

 

Yeah what he said............

 

Boomer.....who knows when ya wind up that Venture you'll be flying and running up yer pucker factor at the same time.

[starkruzen]

Yea, I know...but it just seems different and I guess it will take some time to get used to. The other issue had higher revs your burning more fuel.

Not a show stopper.

Thanks for your responses.

[flb_78]

Yea, I know...but it just seems different and I guess it will take some time to get used to. The other issue had higher revs your burning more fuel.

 

Not a show stopper.

 

Thanks for your responses.

 

That's not true. The best performance and efficiency come at where the torque and horsepower curves intersect.

 

Many on the board have actually done the opposite of what you want to do and put a lower final drive in out of a V-max to raise their highway revs and it hasn't affected their fuel mileage, but they have more power because the engine is in the power band.

[starkruzen]

Well that makes since. Thanks for the info.

[V7Goose]

When I sold my Harley and Got my RSTD (which I love-a much better machine than the Harley) I got to say, that the sixth gear on the Harley was a true overdrive. With my RSTD I find myself in fifth doing around 45 or so. I wish I had a tack so I can see the RPM's.

 

So why not a real over drive. Does any of the Japanesse bike have it?

 

Markr:240:

As others have already said, your Tour Deluxe already has a much taller overdrive than your Harley did.

 

And if you think you like it now, you will be REALLY blown away when you quit riding it like a Harley. Unless you are stuck behind a VW in downtown traffic, you really shouldn't be in 5th gear at 45 MPH. Although you can cruise at that speed in 5th, it doesn't have any pulling power. If you try to open the throttle in 5th it will just hammer and shake and stumble all over itself untill you finally get up around 65 or 70! 65 MPH in 5th gear is around 3,000RPM.

 

If you want to feel what that engine is supposed to feel like, jerk the throttle open in 2nd gear on the next on-ramp and hold on untill you feel it falter on the rev limiter, then do the same thing in third. But watch out for the cops - by the time you hit the rev limiter in 3rd you will be doing 96 MPH (and you still have two more overdrive gears to play with after that!).

Goose

[Riderduke]

I too think 6th gear is needed but only when riding with the muffinman. When cruzing over 100 for any length of time 6th gear would be great to get better gas milage:happy34: as others said these puppies need to REV:banana:

[Yammer Dan]

I too think 6th gear is needed but only when riding with the muffinman. When cruzing over 100 for any length of time 6th gear would be great to get better gas milage:happy34: as others said these puppies need to REV:banana:

 

 

Not needed if you ride a 1st Gen.. Just need a few more numbers on that guage in front of you that tells you when you are getting in trouble!!

[RandyR]

Its easy to add a tach, I've put one on my RSTD. You really don't want the engine running much below 3,000 rpm. Thats 70mph in 5th gear. At 45mph I'm just starting to think about shifting from 3rd to 4th.

[LilBeaver]

Not needed if you ride a 1st Gen.. Just need a few more numbers on that guage in front of you that tells you when you are getting in trouble!!

 

More numbers? No. I thought that's what the little red area on the right side of that one gauges was for

[Dave77459]

That's not true. The best performance and efficiency come at where the torque and horsepower curves intersect.

 

Many on the board have actually done the opposite of what you want to do and put a lower final drive in out of a V-max to raise their highway revs and it hasn't affected their fuel mileage, but they have more power because the engine is in the power band.

 

So, what are the most efficient speeds for each gear? What gear gives me best MPG at 70mph? (I have an RSTD with that huge windscreen, which seems to overtake engine efficiency in the MPG calculations.)

 

Dave

[GaryZ]

I have found that my VR is very smooth at or above 4k.

The power is excellent!

 

However, unlike others here, my mpg's drop to 32 - 35

when I run a tank at the higher RPM.

 

Running in the low 3k range my mpg's are close to 40!

[hig4s]

6th gear on any bike over 1000cc is a marketing gimmick, unless it is a full race bike. And none of their 6 gears are an overdrive.

[TDbiker]

Ok, I must be missing something but the owners manual lists the shifting points much lower than what I'm reading here. Is Yamaha that far off?

[aharbi]

So why not a real over drive. Does any of the Japanese bike have it?

I also ride a Suzuki DL/1000 it has a sixth gear which I would consider a "true overdrive" however I don't use it unless I'm doing 70+mph. Or it bogs down the engine, a v-twin that likes high rpms, at 6k it wakes up on steroids.

 

I like the gearing of the RSV, nice comfortable distribution of power without alot of shifting. At highway speeds of 70-75 the engine isn't working hard yet a flick of the wrist power is there to pass that truck or shake that a*h* off your tail. Without the need to downshift. I hate if I have to downshift to pull a hill, not on the RSV. But as others have said it likes some rpms.

[Bummer]

Ok, I must be missing something but the owners manual lists the shifting points much lower than what I'm reading here. Is Yamaha that far off?

 

I've always considered those to be the absolutely lowest point you can shift at and not just destroy the poor thing on the spot. I would absolutely never dream of shifting into fifth at 31mph. I love my bike way too much for that foolishness. I don't really like to hit fifth until I'm on the Interstate passing people.

[V7Goose]

Ok, I must be missing something but the owners manual lists the shifting points much lower than what I'm reading here. Is Yamaha that far off?

No, you are not missing anything - you read the manual, and that is what it says. Unfortunately, whoever wrote that was very high on some psychedelic mushrooms at the time. The shift points in the owner's manual are an absolute joke in real life. Think of them as the absolute LOWEST speed at which you can shift into the next gear and NOT accelerate!

 

To decide for yourself, try this test: Put the bike in 5th gear and ride steady at 50 MPH, then jerk the throttle open. See how bad the bike shakes and hammers? Now do the same thing at 70 MPH. If your carbs are in sync, you will get almost no vibration, but very quick acceleration. That nasty vibration you get at WOT in any gear when you are going too slow is what you can use to decide what your real world shift points should be.

 

I can ride all day on secondary roads in 5th gear, up through 75 in the open areas, and down to 40 in towns, without ever down shifting. As long as I am constrained by typical cars ahead of me as we head out of towns and slowly pick up speed at normal car acceleration, 5th gear works just fine. But if there isn't anyone ahead of me, I absolutely must downshift to avoid lugging the engine and that nasty shake.

Goose

[Chaharly]

I've had my 85 up to about 124 before, and thats in fifth, so i dont think they really need a sixth, if the 2nd gen is like the first gen, going 60 will be at about 3,500rpms

[massey130]

my experience is like most folks here. i have found if i want to conserve gas, i have to take it easy while going through the gears to what ever cruising speed the road permits, like city driving vs highway driving. to cruise at 70 i use 5th, but if traffic is busy and i need to be able to move around, i will stay/dwnshift in 4th. making 100 + MPH is way too easy as stated in 5th gear. my Yamaha tach/hour meter shows right about 3000 RPM for 5th gear at 70.

[wes0778]

making 100 + MPH is way too easy as stated in 5th gear.

 

The speedometer on my, uh I mean, AN RSV will run out before 4th gear does, or so I've been told...

[LilBeaver]

... my Yamaha tach/hour meter shows right about 3000 RPM for 5th gear at 70.

 

 

You've got a Yamaha tach?!?!

[Yammer Dan]

You've got a Yamaha tach?!?!

 

Yep! Thats the one that starts into that red area at about 115 mph in 3rd gear...

[Magnawake]

I am happy with my 5th gear on the Venture. Sometimes I use it at low speeds, 45-50, when thats the speed limit. I like it because the bike is quieter (bub's) at that speed, but like all said, no power for acceleration. I normally drive like a Grandapa anyway and usually get 45-48 mpg. If I want to go fast, I climb aboard my V65 Magna and get my eye lids pulled back. The V65 Magna does have a 6th OD gear. How bout that for a Japanese bike, but only back in 1983.