Motorcycle economy

[TresCrows]

Well, I am a motorcyclist since I was like 15, not a biker, a Motorcyclist. What brings this post up is that I have noticed since the recent and hopefully temporary high gas prices there are a lot more bikes on the road. I read that local cycle shops were being hit hard in the used department and quite a few new bike sales as well. Several guys at work are wanting a bike "to save money" on fuel /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif. Hmmmmm, this is what I told them, get yourself a used Geo Metro and not a bike. The Geo has all weather capability and good mileage and is slightly safer /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif. However, if you really want a bike then get one but don't expect to save money, payments, maintenence, protective clothing etc--get a bike cuz you want one and if in the end you save a bit of money--great /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif.
Anyway, I have seen motorcycles on the road lately that look like they have been sitting in the back of a garage for twenty years--really cool old school stuff /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif and often as not with some old geezer propped on top /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif. I wheelied by one old dude on a old Kawasaki and darn if he did not give chase /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif. He caught up at the stop sign where I slow down cuz there is a cop sitting there all the time and I spoke to him a second. His tires were in terrible dry rot condition, his chain was rusted, the tires were not radial--not radial /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif and his pipe was all rusted and it was running so rich I cannot see how he could be doing much on the gas mileage front. His helemt was an old Bell with a tattered chin strap /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif. Well, at least he wore one.
I have not gotten a ticket on a bike somehow or other, the cops do blink their lights at me and like one did recently point at me and yell keep that bike on the ground.
My little Suzuki can get 70 MPG or more. I have modded it a bit, of course but it is not like a GXR /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif. Being a V-twin it is torquey and a lot of fun to ride but not super fast, especially above the ton (100MPH). It does 0-60 in about 3.4 seconds or so and will top out at about 135 MPH or a bit more. Have not tried top speed since some of my mods. On the dyno she pulls a solid 74 horsepower--rear wheel. Consider that there are performance bikes now with 160 (crank) horsepower. Well, they don't get 70 MPG /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif.
I am amazed at the number of guys buying bikes in their 40 and even much older who have never been on a bike in their life. What gives with that. It is usually some type of cruiser thing or a Hardly. Feller at work built a hardtail. He named it Hardcore /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif, he better be to ride that thing. He claims it has 110 horses. I told him that 110 Hardly horsepower equals 25 Suzuki horsepower. I don't think he gets 70 MPG either /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif. The front is so chopped out it is got to be unstable and it has just a single bitty liitle brake up front. In my opinion, if a bike cannot make the front tire smoke on hard braking it is lacking in the stopping power department. He don't wear a helemt either, like all the Harley and cruiser types, just a bandanna and a black t-shirt. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
Well, anyway, if you get an old bike out to save on gas, better get some tires on it and give it a good checkup--a stay in the hospital might be more costly than a few gallons of gas if the old grinder is not road worthy. J

 

[Mrwurm]

Nice rant, you obviously have spent some time thinking about this /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif I too, was thinking that a lot of people will be switching to bikes to save on fuel. I won't be one of them.

I bought a new bike, recently, but I've owned bikes on and off since I was 18yrs old (Now 40). I have a plate on my bike so I can cruise the backroads, but you won't see me on the freeway. If drive to work every morning at 5am. The road I travel moves at about 70mph bumper to bumper. There's no way I'm gonna put myself in that situation.

 

[TresCrows]

Darn windy day, so windy I think I will just stay in the shop and "rant". Well, you call it a "rant", I call it a story, I like to tell storys /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif.

"Nice rant, you obviously have spent some time thinking about this I too, was thinking that a lot of people will be switching to bikes to save on fuel. I won't be one of them"

I was not recommending it, you might notice in the "rant" I recommended a Geo /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif. It was simply an observation of economics in motion when they are used to justify a purchase of something that can only be justified for fun purposes etc. and not supposedly saving money.
Also, I was commenting that anyone who might take an old bike out of storage might want to give it a thourough checkout before doing so. Oh, another thing people don't think about, like car pooling you can also Bike Pool. What is that you ask? Well, if you have buddies that also ride who live fairly close together you (the informal you--not the you you /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif) can ride as a group to work, both fun and economical. People in automobiles tend to give more respect to a group of bikes than to just one, one bike tends to be invisible /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif. Just some thoughts from someone who has ridden motorcycles for--well--longer than you--and is still here to talk about it and plans to remain so /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif.
Sooo, you got a plate on your bike, is it a Trail 90? /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif (I got two of those). Yeah, I would not take that on the freeway either, thing is that most places I have lived with the exception of Denver and Houston the traffic was not so bad as your situation. Around here if I see another vehicle it is a heavy traffic day /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif. You take care now. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif J

 

[Mrwurm]

I think I may have used the term 'rant' inappropriately. By saying 'rant' I mean that you went on for quite a spell about something that you felt strongly about. Does that clear it up?

My bike is a Suzuki DR350SE (350 cc four stroke single). I have ridden it at speeds up to 70mph but its really best suited for off road riding at lesser speeds.

 

[ducati996]

As for economy fuel consumption for motorcylces to give a range my Ducati996 with fuel injection gets at best 45 Mpg...
My Yamaha Vmax gets only 30 Mpg never more - not very efficient the Vmax is. It only has a 4 gallon tank as well..
The Ducati is a much more efficient machine as well as faster and lighter....pictures are in my profile link

Duc

 

[Robert_in_NY]

I have no idea what my CBR954RR gets for mileage and I really don't care either. Ride for fun. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[MossRoad]

Hmm, I must be doing something wrong. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

My 1977 Yamaha RD400 gets worse mileage than my 2000 Chevy Impala. Can't figure out why. The huge carbs, the lightened reed valves, the shaved heads, the bored cylinders, the porting, the expansion chambers, the two teeth less than stock on the front sprocket, the R compound tires or the wheelie bars??? All that stuff should increase mileage, right???. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[AMP762]

Well, lets see, shaved head, bored, lite reed valves all less weight,should get better mpg /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif just needs a tune-up I guess /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[TresCrows]

"Hmm, I must be doing something wrong."

Uhhhhh, yeah, probably every time you get on it. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

I love those old ring-a-ding machines.

There are three different groups of people I ride with sometimes, one group rides really old and or bizzare machines and custom built stuff like a Yamaha 650 twin converted into a cafe racer. Pulls about 50 horses on the dyno. Really cool old air cooled machine. One guy has a Royal Enfield thumper with about 16 horsepower from 500cc and another has a Savage 650 cc single engine in a custom built frame (himself) and it is styled like a cafe racer as well. They are my favorite group /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif. The rest in that group have newer mid line sporty bikes like my little SV etc. The second group rides only modern fast crotch rockets including one Hyabusa (I passed him on the only twisty road in Kansaw, now he don't like me /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif) and the other group I ride with are a bunch of boring cruiser guys including my boss who insists I come along /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif.
Like I said, I have seen a bunch of bikes on the road lately and most are fairly old so I cannot help but think they are pulled out of a garage cuz of the gas prices as of late. They probably don't care what a CBR954RR is, come to think of it, I do but not my kinda bike, great machine though /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif. J

 

[MossRoad]

Come to think of it, I have noticed a lot of older bikes out and about lately. I'll keep an eye out. But it has been raining about every other day since I can remember, so not many bikes.

As for my old RD.... I got married and once the kids came around, I put it away so that I wouldn't kill myself. I had little self control and the bike was my "Christine". /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif Now that 12 years have passed I am looking forward to when they are able to take care of themselves. I would like to get a nice road bike to take on weekend jaunts with my wife. No more crotch rockets on the street. Wish we had a road track nearby. It would be fun to scrape the pegs again. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif