Mileage

[Deadshort1]

I am new to the venture world and am curious on what to expact as far as gas mileage. Around town i pretty much follow the speed limit but on the highway I sometimes get up to 80 or 85

[V7Goose]

The wind resistance kills the fuel mileage on these bikes very fast. If you keep it to 60 or less, you will probably see at least 40, and maybe 45 or more MPG. If you spend a lot of time at an indicated 80 or higher, you should not expect to see anything above 35, and often less, depending on the exact conditions.

 

BTW - your speedo is actually about 9% fast, so an indicated 80 is actually no more than 72 MPH. I generally just round it off to an even 10% to make the mental check easier, so if the limit is 45, you are safe at an indicated 50, if the limit is 65, you are safe at an indicated 72.

 

Welcome to the site,

Goose

Edited July 24, 2011 by V7Goose

[Deadshort1]

Thanks for the info

[carlkaren]

I am new to the venture world and am curious on what to expact as far as gas mileage. Around town i pretty much follow the speed limit but on the highway I sometimes get up to 80 or 85

 

 

I ride 5 over the spead limit and by GPS so 65 or 75 and I keep 40 or 42 with 2 up on my 99. Around town I keep about 35 she likes the road after 80 she drops quick though.

 

Car

l:7_6_3[1]:

[Bobby G]

The faster the worser.....

 

Mine really starts to drop when I am cruising above 70 (which is 75 on the speedo). As stated, around town it's about 40 - 42. Cruising at 55, it's a pleasant 44 - 47 mpg under ideal conditions. Above 70 it drops to 35 if I'm lucky.

 

FYI, I have always used 89 octane gas, since that's all that's been in it since it was new in '99.

[muaymendez1]

Just did a 500 mile trip . the first leg only took me 100 miles before reserve but i was riding 95 and hit 110 a few times. After hitting reserve and fueling up I decicded not to speed in order to conserve fuel.

All slab 145 miles before reserve doing 75

but on the way home I arrived at my door with 162 on the clock and have not had to switch to reserve yet. WHich means at 80 or so in heavier traffic then when I first left I should be pulling at least 47 mpg.

i guess drafting behind trucks works.

[CalhounWV]

Interstate - 47 running 65mph to 70mph

 

2 lane twisties- 42 running 45mph to 65mph

[Rick Haywood]

WOW I find it amazing how many different miels per gallon each bike gets. I get 41 mpg unless I am on the interste running 75 then I get 36. Doesn't change 1 up or 2 up still the same.

[lshafer]

I just returned home from a 500+ mile trip through northern WI and MN. I mostly ran around 60MPH and ended up averaging about 43-44. That was with me and the wife on the bike. She's a light-weight but I'm not.

[allwx]

I live at higher elevation, just over 5000 feet. the carbs on my 07 have been tweaked to lean out the mixture, by means of pilot screws and float levels. The bike today has just under 22k miles on it. I've kept careful track of mileage since the bike was new, however about six months ago I stopped keeping track. Just got tired of it, I guess.

 

Anyways, here's what I've observed. If I ride the way most people drive their cars, that is, no hard acceleration, riding right around the speed limits, I will get consistently better than 40 mpg on regular gas. Sometimes it will hit 41 or 42, but usually hovers right around 40. I've tried burning a couple of tanks in a row riding VERY gently in city/suburban traffic, and gotten into the mid-40s. But it is extremely difficult to ride like this, and probably unsafe as well.

 

Out on the open roads if I ride at an easy 60 or so, I will hit 40 as long as there's no tailwind and I'm not carrying a big load. BTW I weigh 200 lbs and seldom carry a pax.

 

If I get on the interstate and ride the usual 80 to 90 mph everybody else is going, mileage falls precipitously. It will drop into the low 30s right away, and I've even seen it in the high 20s riding fast into a headwind.

 

I kind of think this is typical for most vehicles. that's why they dropped the speed limits down to 55 back in the early 70s. Drive 55 with no juicing around and we get very good mileage. Once you hit 70, there's a big fuel penalty.

[BuddyRich]

About 32 to 34 Everywhere. But I like twisting my wrist as much as possible so that's part of it. But still, 34 and getting there fast ain't bad

[allwx]

About 32 to 34 Everywhere. But I like twisting my wrist as much as possible so that's part of it. But still, 34 and getting there fast ain't bad

 

No it isn't bad at all! I find I get my worst mileage when I'm riding with ear buds hooked up to my blackberry playing music. I can barely hear the motor or road noise at all, and tend to ratchet up the rpms, nearer unto thee, o lord.

[kyle]

were pulling a trailer all week 60-70 mph and lucky to get 38mpg.... alone i get about 38 with girl on back i get 42, must ride smoother with passenger.....

[muaymendez1]

42 with the wife on.? I think someone is riding conservative for the audience.

I usually dont rev over 3k till i get blocks away from my wife. She doesnt understand why it takes so long to ge places when alone I get there in half the time.

[darthandy]

I noticed from Deadshort1's profile that his bike is an '04 Road Star. Since it's a twin, would it not get slightly better mileage than the V-4's? I seem to remember reading somewhere that the twins tend to get better mileage, especially at lower speeds, due to the better low end torque that a twin puts out.

 

By the way, my wife and I recently came back from a trip to Wellsboro, PA on our 2000 RSV. Leaving Wellsboro and riding the two lane roads through the mountains at 80 to 90 kph (About 50 to 55 mph), I filled up in New York state with 232 km showing (About 145 miles) and calculated 52 mpg (Canadian gal. - I converted) which is about 43 mpg per U.S. gal. I thought that was pretty good for two up and fully loaded.

 

Andy

[allwx]

Seems like the Roadie is pretty similar to the Venture mileage-wise. I had an 05 Roadie, put about 40k on it before selling it to a friend, so I still see the bike frequently. I used to get an average of 40 mpg on that bike. If I had a tailwind on the highway it might get above 45, but not much. I got sub-30 mpg on it once pushing a severe headwind across I40. I've got a hunch the Roadie is a hair better than the Venture at interstate speeds. It is lighter, and mine had no windshield.

[XV1100SE]

I started a thread when I was bored one evening that covers the 2nd Gen for fuel capacity and mileage. Unless anyone can correct my calculations... think it is accurate.

http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=61967

[warriorhoneybee]

pretty broad statement concering fuel milage,to me way to many factors to try to throw a blanket statement on it. i guess the 37 mpg is close but you'll find 15 other people tell you why you should be getting more and 12 saying they wish they got that much so carry on good sir.i'm sure there will be a flip chart and a spread sheet on this by dinner time, or is it super time?? see what i mean. guess i;m just boared today.