| Author | Message | ||
     08uly |
Approaching 100 Ulys & over 300 samples! Great! Updated the leader boards. --- 08Uly Uly Data Page  | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Things that potentially alter mpg: Filling into filler neck area ... I'm guilty as charged. Unnecessary idling ( warming up ). Mostly in town riding ( idling fuel away at stop signs ). Hot rodding... ULY is built for this. Windshield size. Rider weight and size. Oil weight in crank and in tranny. Highway droning vs in-town. 55 mph vs 65 mph vs 75 mph vs 85 mph droning Wheel bearing condition. Premium vs Ethanol Shifting rpm... 3500 vs 4500 vs red-line. State of tune. Fan-on mpg vs cooler engine mpg. 2 wheel on pavement vs wheelie riding. | ||
| Alchemy |
Here are 2 potential contributors I wonder about. 1. Basic idle setting. Does a slower idle have noticeable impact on fuel consumption? 2. Drafting. Particularly when riding on the slabs at higher speeds where a little tailgating can significantly reduce air resistance. | ||
| Smpl5 |
The factors that Electraglider, Alchemy and others mention would undoubtedly be factors, but wouldn't they be relatively consistent across model years (except fan-on, which seems to be lower in 08's, according to anecdotal reports). To me, it seems more likely that design factors (mentioned in this thread) and average mileage are the most prominent candidates. The raw data is incomplete with regard to mileage ... just eyeballing the data suggests that economy increases somewhat with mileage, though the data is decidedly mixed. | ||
| 08uly |
All good points... The one-offs really throw a curve into the data too. Maybe I'll make another sheet and just average the highest & lowest sample from each user to compare those two numbers. EG - got the dipstick installed and gathering some readings. I'll post to the other thread soon. Thx --- 08Uly Uly Data Page | ||
| Bobr |
Just posted my most recent data. 173.4m/3.53gal=49.12mpg. Interactive exhaust working properly for the entire tank. Mostly highway miles with speeds from 65-80mph with some slowing down and stopping going through small towns and some in town riding. I altered my riding style minimally to see what would happen. I tried to avoid unnecessary hard acceleration and tried to keep my cruising speed between 65-75mph. I have about 3500 miles on the odometer. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
"unnecessary hard acceleration" Blasphemer! ha ha ha! | ||
| Bobr |
I know. I'm so ashamed. It was done in the name of science. OMG that probably makes it worse! Steven Colbert will never forgive me. | ||
| Xcephasx |
i'm only getting like 43mpg  (Message edited by xcephasx on May 11, 2008) | ||
| Etennuly |
I've been running Sunoco Premium gas. Today it was necessary to buy BP Premium. This BP gas is a ethanol blend (10%). My bike has been consistently over 50 mpg lately, so it will be interesting to see what happens on this fill up. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
08Uly, What brand and model thermometer have you ended up with? Got a photo? It's been pretty warm here in Omaha and the hottest I'm getting my oil is about 203 F. I'm running Mobil 1 15W50 as usual. I'm real curious if the 08's are running warmer than pre-08's and if so, why. | ||
| 08uly |
The Uly's in the shop for it's 5,000 mile service. some warranty work also so have not been riding lately (been kind of rainy too so just as well). Thanks EG, got it. The highest I saw it go so far is to the R in IRTL (I estimate that at about 235 F) and that was after some fairly high rev riding. It's high but not too high. We'll see once I'm on the road again with the Syn3. I'd like to find a remote sensor with a small digital readout but that may be asking too much. --- 08Uly Uly Data Page | ||
| Chas1969 |
Hello all I was amazed this weekend with 80-90 degree weather and 400 miles of travel ... mileage was 50, 52, 54 mpg! Fantastic mileage than 40-50's temperature and getting 45 mpg going to work and back. I also changed to k&n filter that makes all more responsive ... maybe help with mileage too. Chas (06 uly with 07 maps, 07 box and k&n filter) | ||
| 08uly |
I've updated the Leader Boards and consolidated them to only show users with 5 or more samples. This should help smooth the trends and eliminate the odd one offs. I think we are starting to see real solid data. Thanks to all that are continuing to enter data. We have 113 Ulys & 400 plus samples. --- 08Uly Uly Data Page Leader Boards | ||
| Cityxslicker |
Alright, been following the uly data page with great interest. (the econ geek in me loves graphs and stats) can we add the off road function to the mix? ie do you take said ULYSSES off road NO NOT EVER YES OCCASIONALLY YES EVERY CHANCE I GET or something to that affect. Inquiring minds want to know  Thanks | ||
| Growl |
2006 Uly, stock pipe & ECM: 50 mpg + in the street 40 mpg in the dirt, riding 2 up | ||
| Bobr |
Ha ha. I'm getting the best mpg on an '08. Nanner, nanner, nanner!  | ||
| Etennuly |
Ha ha. I'm getting the best mpg on an '08. Nanner, nanner, nanner! 'Cause you ride like a gimpy great Grandma!  | ||
| Jwnsc |
Ha ha. I'm getting the best mpg on an '08. Nanner, nanner, nanner! So, Bobr, in addition to riding like a "gimpy great Grandma" and equipping your '08 with a "Buell tank bag. Seat modified by L&S Auto Trim in Gainesville, FL. Boots with humoungous thick soles," what's your secret? Bike mods? Gas brand and octane? Windshield? Bags off or on? Loaded or unloaded (the bags, not you)? Riding in the flattest state in the U.S.? Type riding? Weigh 145 soaking wet? Inquiring '08 riders are dying to know. | ||
| Rotorhead |
Hey I have about 5,000 miles of fuel tracking for my trip should I average it myself or plug them all in?? I must be in the front row of the sample chart!! | ||
| 08uly |
Rotorhead, PM me if you want me to place it in whole into the chart (easier than you entering them one at a time). That will be better than you just entering an average. Thanks, --- 08Uly Uly Data Page Leader Boards | ||
| Bobr |
"'Cause you ride like a gimpy great Grandma!" He rides like a gimpy great, great, great-grandma. Bob's Clone "So, Bobr, in addition to riding like a "gimpy great Grandma" and equipping your '08 with a "Buell tank bag. Seat modified by L&S Auto Trim in Gainesville, FL. Boots with humoungous thick soles," what's your secret? Bike mods? Gas brand and octane? Windshield? Bags off or on? Loaded or unloaded (the bags, not you)? Riding in the flattest state in the U.S.? Type riding? Weigh 145 soaking wet? Inquiring '08 riders are dying to know." Well, the boots are the real secret of course. No engine mods, try to avoid ethanol, tall windshield, top case only-overloaded probably (I wait until I'm off the bike to get overloaded), FL is pretty damn flat, mostly my daily 96 mile round trip I-75 commute averaging 70 mph with some in town riding, weight 170 lbs including roadcrafter 1-piece suit and fullface helmet. Sorry about the late post. I been fishing out of my kayak over the holiday, then actually had to do work-related things when I got back to work-it was so unfair. My clone isn't allowed on the bike until he agrees to stop riding like a teenager on a gixxer. Bob | ||
| Jwnsc |
So Bob, how about the next time you go fishing, you let a couple guys I know who say they do their own Uly maintenance, give your bike a quick going over to see if we can determine if your lower fuel consumption can be shared with other '08 Uly owners? It would kind of be like when someone donates their body to science to help the living, except you'd get the bike back. What'd ya say? I promise they would be gentle and perform invasive procedures only as a last resort. | ||
| Bigkuri |
Now on over 8k on 08 Uly - have not posted mileage for a while as too lazy... But still checking it, and it is still around the same. I've done some experiments, and I can get 45 mpg if I take it easy, and 26 or less if I cane it. Average is still around 31-32mpg. Simple as that - rider style? However it is still a lot less than pre 08's, and when I say I've taken it easy I mean just don't try to accelerate at all and don't go above 80mph...(impossible!). Plus as others have pointed out - the obvious rider weight, drag, etc.. So maybe just 2-5 mpg less that previous years? I think that we need a ECM-tuned example to even the balance (in that i runs rich/lean/funny whereas the pre-08's seem to be more consistent). Also, have been thinking, is it possible to derive or add to this survey through ECM Spy log data? Throttle open position etc.? I've not yet bothered with ECM Spy (on to do list..) however if it has throttle position then we could read a lot more into mileage? | ||
| Bobr |
"So Bob, how about the next time you go fishing, you let a couple guys I know who say they do their own Uly maintenance, give your bike a quick going over to see if we can determine if your lower fuel consumption can be shared with other '08 Uly owners? It would kind of be like when someone donates their body to science to help the living, except you'd get the bike back. What'd ya say? I promise they would be gentle and perform invasive procedures only as a last resort." You are a very scary man! Let my XT out of my hands to "--a couple of guys--" for "--a quick going over--". Sounds like something out of The Sopranos. Let me think--ummmm--nope, I'll pass. But seriously though---I think it's just the interstate miles and the granny-like riding style. When the whole thing about the difference in fuel economy between the the '06,'07, and '08 models started I decided to see how much difference a SLIGHT change in riding style would make. All I've done is to accelerate only as much as I need to in order to get on the slab and to pass, keep my cruising speed to about 70 mph, and use the highest gear I can without lugging the engine to keep the rpms down in other riding conditions. I'm shooting for 50+mpg eventually, but expect I will have to cruise on the slab at a slower speed to get it. At some point as the engine loosens up I expect to see a jump in fuel economy. It happened around 10K miles on my xb9 if memory serves. After that I got around 52 mpg pretty consistently and I was not riding conservatively. The xb9 was stock except for a Drummer exhaust. I monitored my fuel usage before and after the Drummer install and did not see any difference in mpg, but the bike sure sounded better and felt like it had a lot more punch. Once I've hit the 50 mpg mark on the XT I'll probably go back to a more aggressive riding style for a while. I expect my fuel usage will go up. Sorry about not being willing to donate the XT to science. I'm sure I'd get her back, but would she ever be the same? I mean, think of the psychic trauma--the recurring nightmares, the sense of alienation, the exaggerated startle response, the panic attacks, not to mention the effects on the bike. It's just too much to ask! Bob | ||
| Bigkuri |
So roll on 10k - interesting. Other posts have said the mileage increases at around 5k+, so maybe it is as simple as that... I agree completely with you on riding style. Cheers Bobr Bigkuri | ||
| Bobr |
Yeah, I'm not 100% about the exact miles when the xb9 improved but I'm pretty sure it was more than 5K. Before that it was getting around 48 mpg. It'll be interesting to see what happens as the '08s get a few more miles on them. I also wonder how many of those posting to the spreadsheet have had some of the '08 teething problems. I rode mine with the interactive exhaust valve stuck open for a while and I'm pretty sure that caused a decrease in mpg. | ||
| Jwnsc |
My one time best of 45 mpg on a tank, came in the twisties of the Appalachians when I switched to regular. I've seen posts that say fuel consumption goes down when you cruise at a higher RPM. I'm confused! | ||
| Bigkuri |
My two cents on that is: If you putter at less or on 4k then you'll get horrible mileage. Sweet spot is just over and around 3-5.5k. Over 6k is terrible. My worst is a whole tank on 22mpg at 110mph-plus on gentle twisties. It all depends what the person classes as higher RPM's! For me it is near redline. Others rev it to redline when taking off, but then cruise at moderate revs (which gets pretty good mileage). Others is 3-4k acceleration, and even less cruising. Horses for courses. | ||
| Etennuly |
My '06 is happiest on the back roads around E. Tennessee at a moderate to fast pace, shifting at about 4500 and running from 2600 to 3600 rpms. This will net better than 50 mpg. If I really honk on it, shifting at red line, keeping it down a gear at above 4000, up on the bars and using all of the rear tire for a full tank of gas, it has dropped as low as 41.5 mpg.(that was hard running for a long time) Driving the bike, for commuting as in a little harder than one might drive a car, it will also do 50 mpg including several cold starts. On the super slab running 80 mph and above for extended periods will net 45 to 46 mpg. I run with all three bags half full of crap, all of the time(about 40 lbs), and I weigh in at about 245 with my gear. |
