What is this thing near my bikes headstock?

[dduelin]

Over the weekend I was able to remove the device -- it is, as predicted, a BoosterPlug. Coincidentally I also just ran through my first tank of gas, hitting the reserve on Friday evening's commute home. I got about 165 miles on 2.87 US gallons, which is 57.5 mpg (the dash reported ~58mpg avg). That's much less than I was hoping for with this bike -- my 2015 CB500X reliably got 62mpg on the same commute. Today I rode the NC to work for the first time w/o the BoosterPlug, and I couldn't tell a difference in the bike. According to the dash gauge, I'm getting about 58mpg, so no big change there. I was really hoping to get at least 65mpg with this bike!

Motorcycles possess terrible coefficients of drag and aerodynamic drag kills mpg on this motorcycle. I've been many miles on mountain roads twisting the throttle on and off constantly in quick riding and still get 65-70 mpg per tank but on the open road getting to the mountains the mileage drops into the 50s. The difference is in the mountains the speed range is 35 to 55 mph and on the open road it is 65 to 75 mph.

 

[davidc83]

How is your bike setup? Does it have huge sidebags (kills the aerodynamic drag as dduelin mentioned), which will decrease the mpg? When are you shifting? No need to wring the bike out...shifting between 3000-4000 rpms will get you to speed limit almost as quick as wringing it out. I shift between 3500-4000 rpms most of the time and get mpg in the mid-upper 60s at highway speeds....I know someone on here who shifts at 3000 rpms, doest lag behind and gets even better mpg...what kind of windshield? Some of those after market windshields are huge and you are pushing a sail thru the air, causing even more drag.

 

[LearnedButt]

Oh yeah. Bags are a killer. I have GIVI trekker outback saddlebags and top box, basically, giant angular aluminum boxes. I take a SEVERE hit to MPG with them on, so I only put them on when I need them. I haven't tracked it scientifically, but it's noticeable even without calculation.

 

[670cc]

Oh yeah. Bags are a killer. I have GIVI trekker outback saddlebags and top box, basically, giant angular aluminum boxes. I take a SEVERE hit to MPG with them on, so I only put them on when I need them. I haven't tracked it scientifically, but it's noticeable even without calculation.

Agree. That why I stuck with small side bags, 22 liters each. I only install them when absolute needed. I estimate MPG impact is as much as 5 mpg with side bags on.

 

[yojimg]

How is your bike setup? Does it have huge sidebags (kills the aerodynamic drag as dduelin mentioned), which will decrease the mpg? When are you shifting? No need to wring the bike out...shifting between 3000-4000 rpms will get you to speed limit almost as quick as wringing it out. I shift between 3500-4000 rpms most of the time and get mpg in the mid-upper 60s at highway speeds....I know someone on here who shifts at 3000 rpms, doest lag behind and gets even better mpg...what kind of windshield? Some of those after market windshields are huge and you are pushing a sail thru the air, causing even more drag.

I have a taller Givi windscreen with a deflector on top, and the OEM honda hand guards. No baggage on the bike.

I've been keeping the revs down and driving at 65mph or under for the past couple of days, and I have noticed my avg MPG increasing to about 61.

 

[brb]

The only thing these "booster plugs, power enhancers" do is give the Power Control Module a untrue ambient air temp value. When that happens the PCM goes to a different map in the program that provides more fuel. That alone does not give more power but may "fix" a drive ability issue. The 3 big load sensors in fuel injected motors are throttle(TPS) ,temperature(Intake and or Engine coolant), and manifold vacuum(Manifold Absolute Pressure). The old hack from the 80s was to install a resister to the coolant sensor and or adjust the TPS(cant do that anymore). Doing any thing like that will effect the MPG and emissions that is why its illegal and can overburden the catalytic converter. These new systems are very good at detecting faults when the inputs and output circuits do not agree with each other. The Oxygen sensors(O2) only see the oxygen content in the exhaust system not fuel. When the O2 sends a voltage to the PCM that there is high oxygen content(lean) the PCM then sends more fuel to the engine and when there is a low oxygen content(rich) less fuel is sent. The catalytic converters(CAT)need this constant rich lean cycle to work properly. With a rich condition the CAT is in reduction mode (reduces Nitrogen Oxides) and in lean condition(reduces Hydrocarbons and Carbon Monoxides). This is why the EPA is coming down on all the aftermarket MFGs now. Yes better living through chemicals used to mean something entirely different to me in the 80s than today. Better MPG can always be achieved by decreased load be it throttle angle, speed, weight,wind but with mid 60s with these bikes on average these Hondas are like no other.