| Author | Message | ||
     Sprintex |
Since the tubers seem to get 50 to 60 MPG (from what I have read over the years). How would you have to retune the XB's motor to get the same kind of MPG? Would it be a matter of changing cams? De-tuning the motor? Put on a carb? Just wondering, when I showed be working. | ||
| Hangetsu |
First, why would you want to. The XBs get pretty much the best economy of anything in their displacement class anyway. But the bottom line reality is, horsepower requires energy. You want greater economy, you will lose performance. You want greater performance, it's going to cost you MPG. I think the XBs ride the fine line of the best of both worlds. | ||
| Hughlysses |
I haven't seen any huge difference in fuel mileage between my 2000 S3 and my 2007 Uly, maybe ~2 MPG lower for the Uly on average. It seemed to be a little easier to break 50 MPG with the S3. Of course, that could have been due to aerodynamics rather than anything about engine tuning. OTOH that S3 would go over 250 miles on a tank on the interstate. Best I've done on the Uly is a little over 180 miles. | ||
| Sprintex |
Its not that i want to. Just a topic because its winter and its not an oil thread. | ||
| Froggy |
I can get over 70mpg on my XB12SS, I think I will leave it as is.  | ||
| M2nc |
The M2 and the Uly already get about the same mileage. Both bikes get about 42-45mpg to and from work. On the Freeway they both get 47-50mpg. My best on the M2 was 56mpg and my best on the Uly 62mpg. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
The mileage of the 2008 bikes is lower than the previous years. My friend's 2004 XB12s gets mid 50's regularly as does my X1. My 2008 XB12X gets lower forties. Before the reflash, it was in the THIRTIES! Perhaps there will be another reflash? I do notice that my fan doesn't run as much as other people's older XB bikes. I'm thinking they are running it a bit richer to keep it cool. | ||
| Hangetsu |
Do the XBs have a higher HP output than the "Tubers" did. This could be the reason. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
They list it as 103 over the X1/S3 engine's 101. That's at the crank though. | ||
| Hangetsu |
That slightly higher performance could be the reason for the slightly poorer fuel economy. HP requires burning gas. | ||
| Froggy |
Not entirely true, without derailing this thread, the 505hp 2006 Corvette Z06 is rated at 26mpg highway, and is the only 500+hp car without a gas guzzler tax. There is more to the equation than just HP. So you would ruin the drivability of the bike to *possibly* gain a mile per gallon or two? | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
Besides, my friends with older XB12 engines all get in the lower 50's while cruising. The new F.I. is set up differently is all. Perhaps in time, they will release another reflash to improve the economy. I do notice that mine runs cooler than my friends though. I think they might have done it on purpose. | ||
| Froggy |
The oiling system is different, our bikes are oil cooled, hence the difference in temperature. Also they changed the temperatures the fan turns on and off on the 08s, so you cant compare by the fan. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
Oops. So maybe it is just a fine-tuning fuel injection thing? I guess we'll have to wait for the 2009 bikes to start breaking in before we know. I hope: #1 the 2009 bikes are back to the great milages of the older bikes. #2 Whatever they do to the 2009 are retrofittable to the 2008 bikes. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I don't think the mileage will ever be back to "where it used to be". Mainly because my suspicion is (and Anon. can correct me if I'm wrong) Buell finally took to heart all the complaints about heat, and remapped the EFI to cool things off a bit. What it comes down to is, we as owners need to decide where our happy medium is, and which 'bitch' (heat? or mileage?) we find more important for the factory to fix. "You can't please all the people, all the time...". Personally, I've never had a heat issue with my '06. No heat deflectors, no header wrap, no ECMspy; just a Drummer and an open inner airbox. It's an internal combustion engine between my legs; it's gonna get warm. I'm good with that. I've also never had an MPG problem with any of my Buells (S1W, S2, Uly). Compare it to my 18mpg Jeep. Ride a bike, wallet wins. Simple enough for me (and I'm pretty simple, lol). To answer the question above, I don't believe there are any hardware changes from '08 to '09, so I'd *guess* (again, Anon. can correct me) any '09 programming would retro to the '08s. We've already seen that on the 1125 bikes. I just haven't been to work in so long, I'm not "up on updates", lol. | ||
| Hangetsu |
I'm just not clear as to what the problem is here. XB12s get about the best mileage in their class. From all the mileage related posts I've seen, I'd say Ulys are producing mileage between 40 - 60 mpg and the averages I keep seeing seems to be in the low to mid 50s. Someone please, show me a 1000cc or over 100+HP bike out there that averages anything much better than 40mpg and then I might appreciate your concerns. Remember, a bikes economy is extremely sensitive, much more so that a car and the XBs beg to be given throttle. If you're out there riding the way the bike begs to be ridden; i.e. nailing it every chance you get, don't expect to be getting much above 40. Cruise it like you would a Road King, you'll rarely see less than 50. |
