Any ideas on how to increase fuel mileage

Hi, I was curious about any possible modifications that could be made to my new '02 VFR that would increase fuel mileage. (New to me, that is.) I'm still a High School student and can definately feel the gas prices depleting my already small budget.
And out of curiosity, what kind of mileage are you getting out of your VFRs?
Any ideas and suggestions are appreciated.

 

Limit travel on the throttle to about 25%.

Fuel economy is, to a great extent, a function of you and when and where you ride. In town I get about 38mpg. On the interstate I get about 42mpg. On two-lanes, riding semi-hard and enjoying the ride I get nearly 50mpg. Traffic kills gas mileage. High speed kills gas mileage. Pick times of day when traffic is light, stay away from the top end of the power band. Get out of town on rural roads where there is little traffic and no stop lights.

 

Yah it's about 98% rider controlled.

I had a friend (clearly retarded) that was adamant that 4th gear was appropriate for freeway cruising at 70 because it was below the "shift point" in the manual. Naturally, he got under 30mpg on his honda.

Expect mid 30's while "racing" around on your bike. 45+ while conservatively cruising the highways. It's up to you really.

That being said, if your bike is really low mileage, it may still have a 6 year old air filter/spark plugs/etc. If you've got a power commander tucked under the seat, that'll sap a mile or two as well, but that's only when you're pushing it.

 

In addition to what the others said, you could go one tooth larger on the front sprocket. It would give less torque off the line but give you lower RPM's at cruising speed. If you are curious what other 6th Gen's get check out this thread - LINK

Action

 

hey thanks for the posts guys

 

Fillled my tank and im tryin to ride every where without the vtec lol will see what that makes with short shift and none heavry braking

 

Go on a diet.

but like most said lower throttle and lower reves.
also keeping consistent speeds helps rather than speeding up slowing down.
Try to look far far ahead and if you need to stop a head just let off the throttle and coast, no point racing up to a red light. try to time it so you don't stop(within reason).
brake less.
keep tires in a good shape.
same things you would do in a car.

as for bike specific or mod's unsure as most mod's are aimed at performance. make sure your filters are clean.

 

MPG Info.

Here is the link to your question.
http://vfrworld.com/forums/sixth-generation-2002-2007/13753-6th-gen-average-fuel-mileage.html

 

Less:
frontal area - factory side cases cost me 1 or 2 mpg, top case influence is in the noise, and I'm short

weight - don't carry stuff you don't need. I do need that protective layer to keep my six-pack abs safe, so no diet for me....well, unless it is a beer diet.

acceleration - your wrist and the rpm range you run has a huge impact on your economy

I am going to bet that the stock set up on your bike will give you the best fuel mileage, vice getting a pipe etc... the fuel injection system is optimized at the factory, I don't know of a shop that "tunes" for mileage, but maybe that is a new business opportunity?

 

An '02 VFR and you can't afford gas? I can't imagine how you'd pay for insurance and other maintenance.

I wish I was riding in High School, I had to wait a few months after I turned 18 to get my first bike though.

 

I was gonna say the same thing....... but to you question I have the perfect answer....... give me the bike.... you'll get great mileage out of your schwinn and the insurance is hella cheap.





or do what the others have said

 

haha very funny. It's not that I simply can't afford the liquid dinosaur, I just don't like handing my money over to Exxon, Y'know?
and no, crustyrider, you can't have my bike... haha

 

Interestingly enough, one of the most overlooked factors in decent fuel mileage is engine temperature, both on carbureted and fuel injected motors. If a lot of your trips are short and the bike cools off in between, it will spend a lot of its time running a bit rich and/or inefficiently while the engine is coming up to operating temperature. Until the motor gets up to temp, a lot of the heat that is being generated in the combustion chamber is getting absorbed into the surrounding surfaces and water jackets, rather than being converted into mechanical energy.

As everybody else has pointed out, wrist control and wind resistance are the other major factors. Even on longer highway trips (200+ miles), my mileage will range from a low of about 40 MPG to a high of about 54 MPG. The low is due to top gear cruising at 5500-6000 RPM with some occasional hard acceleration and downshifting. The high is a steady top gear cruise at 4000 - 5000 RPM, no downshifting and mild acceleration very occasionally.

 

More down hill riding-

 

All in the twist of the wrist, to make 100Hp, you need gas. 55 mpg, or 35 mpg, your choice.
My car makes 425Hp, I can get 20 mpg, or 6 mpg, my choice.

Mac

 

Arguably, if you do a lot of downhill riding you need to do uphill riding to get back... they cancel each other out.

 

Make sure your tires are aired properly! It really does make a difference and is not just a way for the media to make fun of political candidates.

Either way, $15 in a vfr beats $40-100 in a cage.

Vs

 

I realize that. I wsa being a.... how do you say it.... a SMART ASS!

 

you gotta be kidding - Honda already corked off the VFR in so many ways, that I don't think it's possible to squeeze anymore out of it.

But Honestly, synch your TB's, Make sure your tires are spinning free of the Rotors (no hot spots), Tires are inflated, And that your Gas Mileage Log hasn't shown a dip in recent mileage - this would indicate showing is out of spec.

..oh yeah:

Bags cost you about 2 mpg on the highway

And Ducking behind the windscreen at 70+ seems to help the speedo raise another 3~4 mph without any more throttle. But around town, I'd say travel at a higher speed, but not accelerating as much and as briskly.

 

Don't engage VTEC. (stay below 6k RPM)