Why is MPG so poor of VFRs

Got to do some long hauls on mine. While I have been averaging about 35-36mpg on city commuting with one tank at 31mpg, on a long haul, I got 44mpg on one tank and 46 on the other. Bike gets just fine MPG for me.

 

I picked my 6th gen up last week in Dallas and super slabbed it back to Canada (2000 miles) on our first run together. Using the vista cruise set at 75 mph I saw 200 - 210 miles between fillups. My ass will only go 100 miles between breaks on the stock seat so this works just fine and by my calculations (which are rough) I was getting just under 50 mpg, which is pretty good considering the load I was carrying and the speed. The bike has a two brothers exhaust and a PCIII.

 

I have checked the mileage on every tank of gas on my 2007. Purchased new in Sept 2008. Currently 6000 miles. I have gotten as bad as 32 mpg to as good as 42mpg. I am 6'2" 265lbs. My best mileage came at about 3500 miles running regular gas with Honda Bags installed and loaded. I have run premium and also midgrade gas. Mostly with 10% alchohol, standard midwest blend. Everytime I check the mileage I try to figure out what I did right or wrong. I never can. Many things to consider. My size, =wind resistance. Headwind and tailwind. My Weight. Tuck in 4 or 5 lengths behind a truck and watch your mileage go up. Also watch your temp gauge go up! I find that even as much as 10 car lengths back the temp gauge goes up. VFR's love free air for cooling. I have run on very hot humid days and cold and dry days. It seems my best mileage comes with regular gas. Living 3 miles from O'hare Intl' Airport means I have to go 30 to 50 miles on slab to find quiet country roads. Some tanks I hit v-tek hard and mileage seems good. Some tanks no v-tek at all and mileage is bad. With so many variables I don't think I will ever figure it out. But one thing I know it is always better than my car and always way more fun. I guess the bottom line is don't worry about mileage unless it is way outside the norm and just have fun.

 

With that being said can you imagine the great lengths a car manufacturer could go to for a favorable mileage rating. I am sure they do not run the AC and all the windows are shut, but that must just be the tip of the iceberg. OK enough, btw 1991 VFR with stock can and K&N filter with some tuning on carbs but no jet kit gets 37 seen it as low as 27 or so too during extended autobahn riding.

 

I am getting 41 to 43 MPG with my 02. 99% fwy riding. I have Cortech sport soft bags, I am 6' and weigh a measley 240#'s. :crazy:
I used to have an 05 GL1800 Goldwing and I would get 40 MPG out of that big heavy bike, provided I stayed around 70 MPH.

I know for sure I need to change my air filter though.

 

:thumbsup:

 

Yeah I pretty much consider my VFR and anything I spend on it to be under the category of THERAPY or MENTAL AND PHYSICAL WELLBEING.
I average about 18km/l or what you guys would call 42mpg, my usual weekly highway commute. If I pushed it I would be getting the same distance from my bike as I do from a full tank of juice in my jeep
for less than a third of the cost and immeasurably more enjoyment.
As for comparative mileage from other bikes, theres obviously a dozen or more variables as to why your mileage may differ but I tend to think it has to mainly do with weight of the bike vs the torque curve
of the bike your comparing to. Either way like others here I prefer to measure the whole thing from an enjoyment point of view and for me the VFR has great range, pretty good consumption and a highlevel of riding satisfaction.
Cheers from OZ
MGVFR

 

If I remember correctly I averaged mid 30s for the 3 months I rode last year. I expected 40s out of an 800cc machine seeing as my friends dad gets 45 around town on his Kawasaki 1300 (model just slipped my mind.) my friend gets 40s on his BMW f800...I'm a little disappointed in the fuel economy of the vfr but its just so fun to ride I can't complain too much.

Sent from my T-Mobile G1 using Tapatalk

 

I saw a Honda 50 step through that had been sleeved down to 25cc that got tremendous mileage. I thought about buying it and then I thought who really gives a shit about mileage when you should be having fun.

Motorcycle Fuel Economy Guide

 

My Katana 600 routinely earns around 47mpg highway. However my new '07 VFR received 33mpg on my first recorded trip with 450 miles on the moto. Hoping to get better economy as it breaks in.

 

My 2nd gen is just broken in 7k on it and is at 53/54 hiway at 70 mph, city about 38 to 41. My XX about 44 hiway and 35 city. Both carbed bikes.

 

I consistantly get 43 mpg around town, have gotten 45. Will be on a mostly freeway ride in 2 weeks (SLO) and I am expecting 45 or better. I am just over 200lb with my gear and ride around 70 when the law allows. Thank god for the helmet or it would be a lot less, when I was a kid I had to ride looking to the right or left, if I looked forward my ears were like speed brakes. I am not at all unhappy with the mileage, I have ridden with a club with lots of other kinds of bikes, mine is one that has longer legs than most of the sport bikes I'm sure do to the larger tank. My 750 and 850 Nortons were about the same in mileage but a lot less in power and tank capicity. When I'm haveing this much return on my investment I really don't care about the mileage, I love my VFR. And my mom, wife, kids, and of course my junk.

 

My usual haunts are hilly, bendy and frequently windy. This all dictates lots of relatively low gear riding, lots of gear changing and often lots of crouching behind the fairing. The results have been 32mpg - 35mpg when I'm on the pipe, and around 45mpg to 50mpg if lazily cruisin' around. I generally use midgrade because that avoids that awful pinging. Honda makes note in the owners manual that the pinging isn't harmful on the 5th gen, but having grown up on old Brit twins I ALWAYS associate pinging with imminent engine failure, and I gets cold sweats when I hears it.

 

Unlike most people on here, I do care about mileage. I bought the bike to commute to work and back since I have a 100 mile round trip. I am consistently getting 41 to 43 MPG, which is way better than the 23 to 25 MPG I was getting in my cage, so I can't complain to much. I would like 50 MPG, and will likely try different things to achieve that (although I don't know what they will be):tongue:

 

Raise your overall gear ratio.