["Captain D"]

Have the fuel manufacturers gone and swapped to winter blend???
I`ve noticed a drop in MPGs lately...

BUT then again, I did add those "air dams" / deflectors down low, onto the crashbars...

Thinking MAYBE they`re the cause, until I started this thread - to ask jkustom IF you had noticed a drop since adding the "air dams" as I call them, when talking to folks...
My feet are warmer and they stay dry when I`m riding in these wet rainy days...
But then as I started to type this thread, got to thinking on fuel blend too, may be the culprit...
Just shy of 4 gallons to get 150 miles is near`bouts 40MPG...
I normally get 45 on ethanol gas/ 50 non ethanol...

Just me thinkin` outloud,
Dennis

 

[adlowe]

Don;t know about your part of GA but we've been running winter blend fuel for quite a while around here.

I normally get 45 on ethanol gas/ 50 non ethanol...

Ethanol blend shouldn't cut that much. The alcohol has a third less energy than gasoline so mixing in 10% should only cut your MPG by 3.3% -- less than 2 MPG. If your 45MPG & 50MPG are accurate then there's something else going on.

 

[7xclm]

My money is on the " Air Dams ".

 

["Captain D"]

Yeah, fairly consistant figuring on MPGs and both 10% and non ethanol, over a period of time sufficient to get these figures...
No calculator involved just round numbers as I go to fill up at the gas stations...
Across the country too, as my trip to Sturgis was included in these figures...
Approximate is close enuff...

Does winter blend affect your mileage too?
IF so how much?

 

["Captain D"]

My money is on the " Air Dams ".

Yeah, I kinda figure the flat surface has a drastic effect on MPGs...
That WAS gonna be my initial thread topic when I started this quest, with the question directed to JK, I know of his modification, which is similar to mine...
Winter will be gone soon

 

["Captain D"]

BUT, don`tchyaknow, I`ve been riding Mickeys Goldwing here lately, and my "******* modifications" has less wind on ME than his full factory set up...
His is more aerodynamic, I`m sure...
But I like my wind protection better

 

[Gnarly]

Dunno for sure.
Fuel prices dropped....temperatures plummeted....unable to say.

Been so long since it was really fitten to ride here, I'm trying to recall if I replaced the bolt thru the kickstarter on the FlyinJenni.

Oh. Wait.
She's electric start.

50 days til Spring.
Daym.

 

[7xclm]

Well I have 40 days to get my Ida to Steve's.

 

[Gnarly]

Just posted about that, xxxxxxxclm1954, over in the Broke Bikers thread!

 

[Mike R.]

Have the fuel manufacturers gone and swapped to winter blend???
I`ve noticed a drop in MPGs lately...

BUT then again, I did add those "air dams" / deflectors down low, onto the crashbars...

Thinking MAYBE they`re the cause, until I started this thread - to ask jkustom IF you had noticed a drop since adding the "air dams" as I call them, when talking to folks...
My feet are warmer and they stay dry when I`m riding in these wet rainy days...
But then as I started to type this thread, got to thinking on fuel blend too, may be the culprit...
Just shy of 4 gallons to get 150 miles is near`bouts 40MPG...
I normally get 45 on ethanol gas/ 50 non ethanol...

Just me thinkin` outloud,
Dennis

It may just be to small of a sample. Motorcycles have small tanks and filling it up not all the way to the top, then getting it all the way to the top the next time can effect the mpg by a couple of mpg. Then the air dam could also be knocking the mpg by a couple of mpg. I would wait until at least five fill ups, then check your average mpg.

 

[gat803]

Winter blend fuel is very regional.
Because air quality has improved in most areas, the use of winter fuels has been greatly reduced.

I forget where I saw it, but somewhere there is a website showing a list of the places where winter blended fuel is still required. Those areas are fewer than you'd think....

 

[2500hdon37s]

my motorcycle mpg always tanks in the winter time, due to the gas blend, cold temps/ a little warm up time, and short usually city rides.

My current bike got a nice 48.5mpg 100% stock, added pipes, intake, tuner, windshield, and hand guards and have get to see anything over 42mpg, usually 39-40. 32.5 on my last tank with riding temps in the mid 40's and running quite hard. I think my larger rear pulley may help the city mpg a little.

 

[Eagle7840]

This is a good read on the subject. THE TRUTH ABOUT WINTER GAS. BY JOHN HUNKINS
This excerpt from his article sums it all up:
Here's the poop: As specified by state law, reformulated winter gas contains any number of lighter, lower-boiling-point hydrocarbons (butane, propane, etc.) that just so happen to have an excellent octane value. Added to this may be any number of oxygen-bearing ether compounds (MTBE, ETBE, ethanol) that improve emissions and also have a relatively high octane blending value.

So what's all the bad hype for? Price, for one thing "It's actually more expensive to make reformulated winter gas than normal, summer fuel, ' says Thomas Hart. Lower fuel economy is another concern.

"The oxygen-bearing compounds displace fuel components, so it takes more fuel to get the job done. Normal gasoline has a stoichiometric ratio of 14.7:1, reformulated winter fuel runs between 14.3 and 14.4:1," says Mitch Markusich.

 

[gat803]

This is a good read on the subject. THE TRUTH ABOUT WINTER GAS. BY JOHN HUNKINS
This excerpt from his article sums it all up:

So what's all the bad hype for? Price, for one thing "It's actually more expensive to make reformulated winter gas than normal, summer fuel, ' says Thomas Hart. Lower fuel economy is another concern.

Every single thing (except for this guys article) that I've read, says that it is less expensive to blend winter gasoline....

 

[JerseyDoug]

Every single thing (except for this guys article) that I've read, says that it is less expensive to blend winter gasoline....

Interesting. I found the following article (which references two other articles) which says the cost of producing summer gas is higher. Why is summer fuel more expensive than winter fuel? - HowStuffWorks

 

[adlowe]

Every single thing (except for this guys article) that I've read, says that it is less expensive to blend winter gasoline....

Not sure that's an apples-to-apples comparison. The cost of blending may be higher for winter fuel but the total cost might be a wash if the additives are less expensive (for lack of a better word) than the fuel they replace. Never studied it enough to know. I do know that "enhancing" octane *generally tends* to reduce MPG and power thereby leading to increased fuel sales. It's also a way to sell lower quality fuel since most of us know little more than the octane number stickered onto the pump.

 

[Theja1]

In the Deep South, winter blend is generally used Nov. through Feb.

 

[MikeB]

This is a good read on the subject. THE TRUTH ABOUT WINTER GAS. BY JOHN HUNKINS
This excerpt from his article sums it all up:
Here's the poop: As specified by state law, reformulated winter gas contains any number of lighter, lower-boiling-point hydrocarbons (butane, propane, etc.) that just so happen to have an excellent octane value. Added to this may be any number of oxygen-bearing ether compounds (MTBE, ETBE, ethanol) that improve emissions and also have a relatively high octane blending value.

So what's all the bad hype for? Price, for one thing "It's actually more expensive to make reformulated winter gas than normal, summer fuel, ' says Thomas Hart. Lower fuel economy is another concern.

"The oxygen-bearing compounds displace fuel components, so it takes more fuel to get the job done. Normal gasoline has a stoichiometric ratio of 14.7:1, reformulated winter fuel runs between 14.3 and 14.4:1," says Mitch Markusich.

I'm surprised that MTBE is still allowed as an oxygenate additive. It's been banned in CA for more than a decade.

 

["Captain D"]

In the Deep South, winter blend is generally used Nov. through Feb.

YUP, THANKS!
It was since November, when I noticed a change was happening but attributed it to my clutch and wind protection changes...

I`ve only recently started paying any attention to winter blend, additives and other fuel related discussions, I thought they were all "Snake Oil & Rumors"

Thanks,
Dennis

 

[John Hopkins]

I can't see what all the fuss is about, here in Britain we pay about three times as much for gas and cannot buy unleaded gas anywhere, we have to use what they sell us or not ride. I get about 30 mpg from every bike I own due to my bad riding style. My head knows that I should keep the throttle down and not break the speed limits, but the devil bites my bum and I keep racing the wind. My new year resolution for this year is to try to slow down, maybe sell my fastest bike and maybe save a bit of the money I spend on fuel, Insurance, taxes and (MOT) road tests.

John.