| Author | Message | ||
     Electraglider_1997 |
Escalating horsepower and displacement bragging rights will take a backseat to fuel efficiency bragging rights. Who really gives a rat's arse about hp and tq if you can't afford the fuel that creates it? We gave our newly licensed son, my wife's 89' Yamaha Radian ( he rode it last summer to Buell Homecoming on a learner's permit ). He told us that he doesn't want to have to buy gas and that he'd rather just ride his bicycle to high school. Kid's tighter than his old man. Gas price was not a consideration when I was his age back in 72'. I predict high school parking lots will be full of empty spaces next year. Lots of ULY riders have shown interest in 08ULY's mpg spreadsheet and that is only because fuel prices are at the point that every mile per gallon ( or lack of )is being noticed. Don't let anyone try to tell you that gas is relatively cheap because it ain't. I used to fill my bike tank for less than what a gallon now costs and didn't think anything of it. Pretty soon the streets will be quiet and maybe that is a good thing. Today I read that Prius cars are selling at a premium because of the demand. We've got one and consistently go further on a gallon with it than I can on my Buell and that doesn't seem right since the Prius weighs 2600 lbs more, has two more tires and carries more. For those of you who will fire back that the Prius is no fun, I say, spending a small fortune on fuel is even less enjoyable. Hey, I love the ULY but it sure would be nice if Buell's top engineering goal would include "MPG" from now on. Mark my words, motorcycle sales will suffer greatly if mpg isn't greatly increased and soon. Fuel efficiency is hardly something Buell can hang their hat on if cars are getting better. By the end of next year, cars will be available that will be capable of going 200 miles and further on one quick charge of an ultra-capacitor. http://www.ultracapacitors.org/ultracapacitors.org -blog/eestor-and-zenn-motors-fall-09.html Put one of those babies in an electric motored ULY. If a 2500 lb car can get 200+ miles on a charge then I'd hope a motorcycle could do even better using this upcoming tech. | ||
| Chadhargis |
The recent jump in fuel prices is costing me about $60 more per month. Not something I'd consider a budget buster. Yeah, I can find better things to spend the money on that fuel, but it is was it is. Give me power!! More power! More speed! More fun! More POWER! Arr! Arr! Arr!  | ||
| Debueller |
My girlfriend's new Blast is getting close to 70 mpg. It's got less than 1000 miles on it. I'm sure 70+ mpg will be the norm once it breaks in. A fuel injected Blast engine in a XB chassis would be the bees knees. 80+ mpg possible with awesome handling......... (Message edited by debueller on May 14, 2008) | ||
| Pherris |
Congress needs to get off the high horse,quit pandering to the tree huggers, quit embracing the global warming hoax and DRILL FOR OIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! $1.00/gallon gasoline for all | ||
| Jwnsc |
China has no environmental laws. Gas in China is $2.90/gallon. (Of course you need a nationalized petroleum industry and an oxygen mask in most big cities. Olympic track times in smog-bound Beijing should be interesting) Or buy a new Chrysler and it's only $2.99/gallon for the next couple of years. (Periodically siphon 4 gallons out of the car and don't complain to Chrylser about the poor mileage.) | ||
| Blake |
"spending a small fortune on fuel is even less enjoyable (than driving a Prius)" Please compare/contrast the price of a Prius versus that of a Buell Ulysses, and then convert the difference to gallons of gasoline and then finally to potential miles and smiles aboard an XB12X.  | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
I own both. I'm sure most ULY owners also have a 4 wheel contrivance. As I pointed out, there seems to be great interest in mpg and bragging from folks who are getting 50 or more per gallon. Nobody brags about getting lousy, sub 40 mpg, they only complain and wonder why. At 3.60 per gallon it's no wonder why. | ||
| Cityxslicker |
Our sales are up, and it is GAS prices driving it. People are parking their big SUV's, Trucks, Cross overs and land yachts to buy bikes that at 40-50 mpg are way better than the 12-18 they are getting. The sportsters, dynas and Buells are leaving the store at record numbers... the softails and baggers are sitting a bit longer, but my numbers are on pace with 2003 (considered to be the gold rush in the HD world) Its all relative. I even had a couple say, do I look like I care about gas prices when I buying this kind of performance TOY ?!? And I think he nailed it. When they quit racing NASCAR, INDY, Busch Series, NHRA because of fuel costs, then I think you will see a revolt ~ not before. | ||
| Jwnsc |
>>When they quit racing NASCAR,..... I don't know why they would. Sunoco provides the fuel for free. Besides, there is little demand for racing fuel at the local gas station. | ||
| Windrider |
Pherris, The US uses 25% of the world's current oil production. We produce 2%. The big oil fields in the US are dry. There is nowhere to drill to make up the current gap of 23% in the US. The demand for oil world wide is increasing rapidly, largely due to increased wealth in China and India and an accompanying desire to drive automobiles and industrialize factories. The largest oil field left is in the middle East and they are not accurate in their reported "proven" reserves. One thing is clear: there is not enough oil to go around and the situation will continue to worsen for supply and demand as China and India continue to grow at a rapid pace. The future will be very different and we are just beginning to see the affects of oil shortages. The age of $1/gallon gas is forever gone. | ||
| Desmo900 |
The big oil fields in the US are dry. There is nowhere to drill to make up the current gap of 23% in the US. Not even close. My Uncle is the manager of a Shell cracking plant. He told me there are huge amounts of untapped oil in the lower 48. But its not good for business to to pump the capped off wells. Why bring the price down when your making BOAT LOADS of gold importing it. | ||
| Pherris |
There are huge oil reserves on the continential shelf off both coasts, there are huge reserves in ANWR, they just discovered a huge reserve in North Dakota. There is enough oil to meet our needs for the next 100 years. We only need to go get it. Problem is, india and china are rapidly growing economies and sucking up the capacity. Also, global warming or ugh ugh climate change now that temps are actually going down, is a hoax propogated to cause social change. There is no alternative on the horizen that can replace fossil fuels in the short or intermediate term. the only releif in the short to intermediat term is more oil. Plug in cars maybe in 25 years when more electricity is produced by clean efficient nuclear methods. But short term, more oil. Hybrids, hydro, not the answer imho. | ||
| Jwnsc |
Those huge reserves like the Bakken Deposit in North Dakota (most of which is in Canada, BTW) are non-conventional oil deposits (shale) and are only now becoming economically recoverable because the price of oil is over $120/barrel. And why is oil so high? Because the oil traders, oil speculators, and investment bankers who know about all the economically recoverable oil deposits all over the world, are looking into the future and not feeling very good about the slowly growing oil supply meeting the exponentially growing demand. | ||
| Markwoodlief |
The north dakota area is for real... My grandaparents own hundreds of acres in North Dakata that an oil company has been paying them for years for the 'option' to drill if we get booted out of the middle east, etc. That is the US's way.. We will use everyone elses resources first saying we have none, then hoard ours when the time comes.. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Buell needs to get a piece of this market: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080514/gas_prices_scooters .html?.v=1 No sense letting the Japanese get all the coin. | ||
| Ejc |
Is it time for a biodiesel KLR? |
