MPG'S

[borto1990]

well, put a few hundred miles on my brand new 08.. however my MPS's blows goats... I'm only getting about 30.. totally stock. any suggestions??? I'm in the break in period, so it's definately getting babied...

[Netnorske]

Why baby it? Ride it like you stole it. I know what the OM says...but hey...I left the dealership with 0.9 miles on my bike. I ran it hard up and down through each gear setting the rings over the first 30 miles. I then had it up to 90 mph with about 400 miles on it. To make a long story short...it runs awesome and I was getting 39-41 before I added the Power Commander fuel processor. Not sure yet what effect that will have.

Ride it like you will ride it...not like a grandma on her first bike. It will set itself up according to how it is ridden during that break-in period. If you want a Grandma's bike...ride it like one. If you want a mean machine....ride it like one. You only have one chance to do it right. JMHO.... http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif!

[strobe]

Seems a bit low. I was getting 36-39 on mine last year in the mountains riding 2 up and fully loaded. if you are riding around the city, that might be about it though.

I tend to agree with Netnorske...ride it like you stole it. You will get a bunch of opinions on this but from what I have heard from mechanics the break in on modern bikes is not really 'required'.

[cactusjack]

One or two tanks will not accurately represent your mileage. I have been tracking my mileage since November 2007 on a spreadsheet. I don't have it in front of me, but the low MPG is about 32 and the high is about 49. Rolling average is just a shade below 37 MPG.

[dank]

Since you only have a couple hundred miles on it, I assume this had to be the first tank. Was it truly full to start with or just close and did you refill it to the same level? My son was concerned on his 1500 Classic on the first tank. Once he filled it and then refilled to the same level his MPG went up 8 mpg, which we think just reflected how full the tank had started. The dealer could have filled it up to where it showed all of the bars, and you were actually 40 miles worth of gas below truly full, which would drop your calculation by 8- 10 mpg if you added between 4 and 5 gallons.

They don't sip gas, but I'd be certain run a full tank where you fill it before and after to the same level before getting excited about it. If I'm reasonable with the throttle on starts and don't run above 70 with no headwind, mine gets 38-40 in cold weather and 42-44 in warm weather. (But that doesn't happen often. I'll leave it to you to guess if I mean speed or wind.)

[dogdoc]

I was getting 30-32 city and 40-42 Hwy before my TFI. now my city is down to 28-29 havent checked Hwy yet. 30 seems low but the bike is tight since new and will get better as time goes on IMO.

[MarkG]

You are still moving your wrist too much. That will settle down as you get used to the Nomad. I had the opportunity to talk to the factory mechanics. They told me that I wouldn't see really good mileage for the first couple of thousand miles, the more miles on the engine the better it gets. They were right, I started in the mid-30s in town, high 30's on the highway and it gradually increased. Now I get around 36 - 38 in town and 41 to 43 on the highway. Depends a lot on how hard I get on it with the throttle.

[coacha]

MPG will also vary with time of year due to fuel grade...winter blend and summer blend...at least it does with the carbed bikes.

[bosko]

I'm another one that broke her in hard. Tell you the truth I haven't ever checked my MPGs. :-/ Just fill and go and usually fill up at about 250km or if the low fuel light is on. Never really paying attention on how much I but in the tank. I've only got 3500km as I bought it just before the snow came.


They have winter blend in Florida? ;) http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif

[pooker]

I bought mine new on January 5, I have over 1300 kms on it and my mileage isn't the best either.
I'm getting on an average of 175 kms per 13.5 liters of high test gas. So,.......what ever that converts to, it's not good!

I don't baby it but I don't drive the hell out of either. I would say I drive it "Normal"!

[dantama]

Riding style might have a little to do with it, but I've had 4 Nomads and get about 37mpg on all of them. Of course I ride the same on all of them too :)

[ringadingh]

I seem to get about 180 miles on a tank of fuel, this does vary a bit with lows of 150 miles and a high of 200 miles per tank.

[rflnomad]

I get in the mid to high 30s on ours. At first the mpg was not impressive. But, this bike breaks in over 3K - 5K miles! Now it is so perfect.
I do mostly two up riding and I usually do not go too fast. 75 mph tops.
Also, the Nomad is not a light bike and has a large front inmage with the windshield & lowers. It punches a big hole in the air.
Tip... Is your air pressure correct in both tires? I run 40 rear and 36 in front.

[dandolfn]

I seem to be getting around 37 mpg.

I normally fill up when the guage shows one bar. That amounts to around 3.5 gallons and my trip mileage from the prior fill up is around 130 miles.

[watchman]

I got about 30 mpg on the first tank of gas. Last Monday I got almost 40 mpg. Yesterday I am guessing I got around 35-37 mpg as I have not fill up yet to be sure. I just have a little over 1000 miles on the bike now.

[MikeInFla]

When mine was new I was getting about 35. I'm now getting 42 in the city.

I usually get better gas mileage with Sunoco (42-44) everyone else I get a consistent 42.

[ponch]

You have to make sure you put a load on the engine when you ride it home from the dealer. I don't know about ride it like you stole it though. My bike got low 30's on the first tank or so and got better after that. I was getting 37-38MPG, but lately it has been in the low 30's, probably from the winter blend gas.

[novijoe]

I've been running in the low 30's (city) since I got the new bike but I only have a little over 1300 miles on her. I do admit I like to get on it and tend to rev the engine a bit, kinda surprised I haven't got a ticket yet (knock on wood) I have the power commander and V&H pipes on it too so I don't know how much that affects MPG's I'm hoping it will get better but hey, it's a sweet bike!

[nomadliz]

I rode my 08 the first 200 miles just taking it easy on take off, not too rev on the rpm to much, with varing top speed for 5 mph either way after that I rode the bike as I always have with 15,000 miles and the bike runs good average between 38-41 depending on wind, cold, etc. I did the same on the 04 blue and silver that I had and she ran great had 58,000+ miles on it with no problems.

[jamiep24]

I, too, was scared after the first fill-up. I only got in the high 20's my first tank, but was the tank reallly full? The dealer might have put just enough in the tank to show 5 bars. My second tank I got about 35 and my third I got over 40. Went 166 miles and the light hadn't even come on, yet. I think the low mileage was due to being tentative that first tank and playing with the throttle too much. I think we get better mileage going 75 than riding at slower speeds. As long as it's a consistent 75. I'm new at this, though. This is really a helluva lot better than my F-250 getting about 14 or 15. Got almost 900 miles in a little over two weeks on her.

[dogdoc]

I just re-tweaked my TFI after a few months and I got 43.5 mpg hwy run of about 100 miles which is my all time high so far. im a happy camper and with new Avons to boot. :-)

[ponch]

Needless to say, tire pressure will affect mileage as well.

[Badger: Black Hills]

We bought our '02 last year in North Carolina and road it 2200 miles back to the Black Hills. We were two up with a big T-bag and head winds most of the way. We ran highway speeds +5 (indicated) and got 39.9 overall.

[moenko]

I'm right up there with most of what's been reported. I have a TFI, KN Air and V&H pipes, but also extra-large custom lowers, adding to the drag. I am throttle-happy as well, like to open up occasionally. Using Lucas Fuel Treatment with most fill-ups and get, on average, 38-39 mpg.

Oh, rider weight should be considered as well. Some here may weigh about as much as my left leg - I'm in the mid 200s and I'm sure the additional weight takes a toll.

[goldstar225]

I'm getting about 36 highway, 31 city. 2006 with oversize lowers, Roadhouse pipes, PC III and Hypercharger. It doesn't seem to matter if I'm solo or two-up.

[Blue Rebel]

After I bought mine new a year ago, was getting around 35~36mpg, now getting 41~42mpg, but alot of it depends how I ride. http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif

[Cajunrider]

Most of my riding is 2 up and I average 35 - 37 mpg. Riding alone, I've done 42 mpg.

[nightmare]

The mileage might improve in time, I would kill for the 30mpg, I get 17 - 20mpg

[ccmjr77]

Ouch, Nightmare, that kind of mpgs is a nightmare, how do you ride and what has been done to the bike?

I get 37-39.

[flavor]

I don't know why. But with no intake, exhaust and TFI installed,
I almost always get between 38 and 39 mpg. I guess I crack it open about the same amount of times on average per tank of gas...........

Curious after the mods...........