dduelin
Site Supporter
I like the thrill of riding as much as the next guy and I don't ride with an eye for high mpg even a fraction of the time but now and then I like a little variety. There are "many flavors" of riding and I like mixing it up now and then. With the NC it has been interesting to see now and then how high mpg I can get but it has been months and thousands of miles since the last hyper-miling attempt. This attempt was spur of the moment..... I saw the temperature and humidity we're almost ISO standard that morning and considered a route that would allow safe progress at 45 to 50 mph for as close to 100 miles that would not hold up traffic and took off. Winds were calm and forecast to remain so during the morning. Standard density and temp allowed the engine to make as much power as possible balanced against higher drag of cool dry air. I see mpg drop in cool temps but 60 degrees F was about as good as it gets.
Recently I've spent some time in cars as disparate as a Porsche Caymen and a 1st gen Honda Insight that had some sort of integrated electronic engine cutoff that stops the engine at stop lights and restarts it as soon as the brake is released or the clutch pedal moves. This ride was about 25% urban roads with stop lights and 75% open roads. I seemed to catch all the lights red so when I approached a red light I clutched in and killed the engine with the thumb switch then downshifted sequentially as speed dropped to first gear then restarting the engine on a green light. This is extreme I know and don't recommend it but it was part of my technique. I would accelerate smartly up through the gears shifting at 3000 rpm and steady the speed at 45 mph. My bike will pull 6th over 40 or so in a steady state but acceleration from there is labored with the rpms only about 2200. Pulling off a light smartly short shifting like this up to 45 mph still leaves almost every car behind on a Sunday morning. Accelerating from 45 mph required dropping one or two gears but honestly in 100+ miles I don't think I encountered the need to. Once the speed was set and the road was open for some distance I set the Go Cruise to hold a steady speed and not vary it. The aerodynamic drag was minimized by staying under 50 mph at all times. Drag increases exponentially as speed increases. I didn't do anything special to the bike and did not crouch down on the frunk to reduce drag. The night before a ride I usually check tire pressure and set it to 36/40. I use 10w30 synthetic engine oil.
The economy run was fun in its own way but as soon as I topped off the tank and headed for the twisties that was fun too.
Recently I've spent some time in cars as disparate as a Porsche Caymen and a 1st gen Honda Insight that had some sort of integrated electronic engine cutoff that stops the engine at stop lights and restarts it as soon as the brake is released or the clutch pedal moves. This ride was about 25% urban roads with stop lights and 75% open roads. I seemed to catch all the lights red so when I approached a red light I clutched in and killed the engine with the thumb switch then downshifted sequentially as speed dropped to first gear then restarting the engine on a green light. This is extreme I know and don't recommend it but it was part of my technique. I would accelerate smartly up through the gears shifting at 3000 rpm and steady the speed at 45 mph. My bike will pull 6th over 40 or so in a steady state but acceleration from there is labored with the rpms only about 2200. Pulling off a light smartly short shifting like this up to 45 mph still leaves almost every car behind on a Sunday morning. Accelerating from 45 mph required dropping one or two gears but honestly in 100+ miles I don't think I encountered the need to. Once the speed was set and the road was open for some distance I set the Go Cruise to hold a steady speed and not vary it. The aerodynamic drag was minimized by staying under 50 mph at all times. Drag increases exponentially as speed increases. I didn't do anything special to the bike and did not crouch down on the frunk to reduce drag. The night before a ride I usually check tire pressure and set it to 36/40. I use 10w30 synthetic engine oil.
The economy run was fun in its own way but as soon as I topped off the tank and headed for the twisties that was fun too.
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