got some time finally, MPG questions.

[baylensman]

Oh well i may have a bit of time going up. Honey do list is empty finally. Social calendar shows empty days this weekend and both upcoming holiday weekends during the days, and i don't have to work. So I never did get the horn fixed (went on the santa parade with just one) going to do that for sure, I got new lights for under the saddle bags (got batman instead of yamaha logo). I'm thinking of the "Jason" mod and maybe syncing the carbs. I have a tool on order.

 

I changed to Road King pipes and KN style fair filters. I've never managed more than about 34-36 mpg even on trips ever since I got the bike. I also have the "popping" thru the pipes on throttle shut down. (Road King pipes do make it very loud, gun shot loud sometimes) I hardly ever use the cruise control but I'd like it to stay operational.

 

: Will the "J" mod help the popping on throttle shut down.

: Will it help with the MPG?

: Do I sync the carbs fist then do the mod or vice versa?

: I know that riding style has a lot to do with mileage, however even keeping the rev's up doesn't help as much when all your driving is stop and go. I do get slightly better on trips by keeping the RPM higher (shifting into 5th above 60 MPH) What else will help with fuel economy? i'm currently getting about 125 135 miles per tank when the fuel light comes on.(i always pull over and get gas the second the light comes on) i'm usually putting in just around 4 gallons sometimes a little less sometime a little more.

[snyper316]

Wait I usually use 5th gear when I get up to about 50 mphs and dont down shift till I hit about 45. But my bike is an 83 so is it better to keep the rpms up. Like say I am going around 25 mph do I want to keep it in 2nd?

[Flyinfool]

The sync is the last thing you do when messing with things. However if the sync is way off then you may need to sync before and after doing mods. Once you have the tools, The sync is a fast easy process.

 

I often stay in second if cruising at 25. If I am cruising at 25 it means I am in city traffic. Being in 2nd not only puts the engine closer to its max efficiency rpm but it also give a much more instant acceleration when a texter runs that stop sign or red light. Often instant acceleration and getting out of the way is the better option than trying to stop. that half second slower take off or time to down shift mite be the difference in making the escape. I do not use 5th till I am over 60 mph.

[snyper316]

Fool I have seen people say that on the 2nd Gens I thought maybe there gears were higher, I would have thought Higher Rpms meant less gas mileage. But thanks for clearing that up for me.

[Flyinfool]

An easy test to see if you should be up or down one gear.

Hold the throttle steady, slide your hand up so that you are also gripping the housing in front of the throttle so that you do not unconsciously move it. Now shift up or down 1 gear. Whichever gear ends up with the higher speed for that throttle setting is the gear you should be in for that combination of speed, loaded weight, wind, grade, road surface etc. If you are in to high of a gear you will actually have the throttle more open than if you were in a lower gear with higher RPM but a more closed throttle, thus better MPG. It is counter intuitive, but thee higher rpm in a lower gear the engine may be working less hard to maintain speed.

[videoarizona]

: Will the "J" mod help the popping on throttle shut down.

 

I tried both ways. Never noticed a difference in backfiring and/or mpg's. I've got all 4 ports capped now. Gave up trying to figure out what it does...or did for me!

 

: Do I sync the carbs fist then do the mod or vice versa?

 

Last thing you do is sync. Check everything else first: plugs, wires, coils, air cleaner, valves, etc., then sync.

 

: I know that riding style has a lot to do with mileage, however even keeping the rev's up doesn't help as much when all your driving is stop and go. I do get slightly better on trips by keeping the RPM higher (shifting into 5th above 60 MPH) What else will help with fuel economy? i'm currently getting about 125 135 miles per tank when the fuel light comes on.(i always pull over and get gas the second the light comes on) i'm usually putting in just around 4 gallons sometimes a little less sometime a little more.

 

On my 89VR, I let her rev. MPG's on the VR seem to be solely dependent on my right wrist action!

 

On the 05 RSV, I shift at lower speeds until 4th gear. Then stay in 4th until 65 ish. Yesterdays 4 hour trip I never hit 5th at all, riding the country roads at 55mph or 60. That seems to give me the best mpg's on the RSV. Averaging 38 to 40. I'm thinking the only thing I can do is to change to a VMax rear end to bring the rpm's back up a tad higher in all gears. That should help me keep the engine in it's most optimum RPM range.

 

Regarding your fill ups. One thing to note: If you are only adding 4 gallons with the fuel light on, that means you have 2 more gallons to go....about 60-70 plus more miles before empty. So that tells me your fuel sender/float is a tad off. Not a problem, but you should be able to ignore the light and keep going until your motor stumbles, then turn fuel to reserve and continue another 30 to 40 miles. In other words, your gauge and/or light may be off, but it sounds to me your miles per tank would be right if you kept going....so bottom line is...if you get stuck in nowhereland and the light comes on...keep riding. You should be good for another 60 to 70 miles!!

That's a good thing.

 

Plus the RSV plows a lot more air than the VR does. I have the largest Clearview windshield as well....and that doesn't help with mpg's!!

Edited December 16, 2016 by videoarizona
clarification

[MikeWa]

The popping is air entering the exhaust. It can come from an air leak in the piping or it can come from a faulty AIS system. An overly rich mixture can aggravate the problem.

 

The air induction uses two valves. One for each side. They are vacuum operated. The plan is for the normal cruise vacuum to open the valves and allow air to enter the exhaust. This will burn off excess emissions. During high vacuum, idle, closed throttle or deceleration the high vacuum shuts the valve off closing the air supply to the exhaust preventing popping. So vacuum to the valves and integrity of the internal diaphragms are critical. There is no horsepower cost when this system is operating correctly. Repairs are actually quite simple although some owners choose to by-pass or disable the whole system

[MikeWa]

Depending on how aggressively you ride the bike your mileage may or may not be out of line. Then AIS system will usually not affect gas mileage. Around town 34-36 is pretty good. On sustained highway with no traffic I would expect to see something over 40. The easiest way to explain mileage is power to weight. If you have plenty of reserve power then lower rpm is better. If reserve power is limited as on these motorcycles than the best mileage will be obtained by keeping enough rpm to achieve adequate power to overcome riding resistance like wind and hills. So on the Venture sometimes a lower gear provides better fuel economy, mileage.

 

Will air filter and exhaust mods make a difference in fuel economy? I have no idea. The Venture is affected less than some bikes. Carb balance and mixture do make a difference though.

 

Mike

[bongobobny]

OK as already mentioned, you should be getting around 40 mpg, give or take, depending on driving styles. Go over 70 mph and mpg drops drastically!

 

As far as the K&N filters, yes indeed you will loose a couple of MPG! Everything is a trade off, so with the K&N it is more free flowing which gives you a slight increase in HP or performance, but at the cost of economy. Proper carb sync, or lack thereof, will affect gas mileage as well!!!

 

Popping with deceleration is usually due to improper AIS operation as mentioned, but carb sync can add to the issue.

 

I've heard both pros and cons concerning the Dyna ignition module as far as MPG...