FZ6 Mileage drop

[Karate.Snoopy]

Hello
I ride a 2007 FZ6 with 8k miles on it.
The mpg's were not as great as reported by most here.I get some where around 35-40 mpg with 60% of highway commute and some spirited riding.

I switched from 91 to 87 octane rating and saw a slight drop in the mpg's.But after the last fuel up I saw further drop to about 32 mpg.
I live in New England and the temperature has been around 50's in the morning when I ride to work. I am guessing the additives in the fuel may have something to do with it.

What may be causing this and how may I improve the MPG's over all. Change the air filter? different gas,oil?
Thanks in advance

 

[Gelvatron]

Check fluids if you don't know the last time they were changed it's time to change them Check chain tension and I get 45 not sure why your so low try not accelerating at wot and see what happens?

 

[Karate.Snoopy]

Check fluids if you don't know the last time they were changed it's time to change them Check chain tension and I get 45 not sure why your so low try not accelerating at wot and see what happens?

I had the oil changed 1000 miles ago, I will try not accelerating too much or running it on revs higher than 7k.Will check the chain tension.
Thanks

 

[OneCheekRider]

I got 47mpg on my last fill up with probably 80% hwy averaging 70-75mph. As stated, check fluids, chain, and tire pressure. I short-shift most of the time (traffic permitting) to get better mileage. I commute 60miles/day, fuel up twice a week, and have consistently been between 45-48mpg

 

[ChevyFazer]

Another thing to check would be your rear brakes, mine have a tendency to drag and that can severely hurt your mileage

 

[ChevyFazer]

I got 47mpg on my last fill up with probably 80% hwy averaging 70-75mph. As stated, check fluids, chain, and tire pressure. I short-shift most of the time (traffic permitting) to get better mileage. I commute 60miles/day, fuel up twice a week, and have consistently been between 45-48mpg

Most people on fz6 and similar 600cc bikes tend to get better mileage by not short shifting since they don't have the tq. The engine ends up working more by short shifting, vs using the same amount of throttle but letting it rev up more before shifting. Basically trying to keep it in the "sweet spot"

 

[OneCheekRider]

Another thing to check would be your rear brakes, mine have a tendency to drag and that can severely hurt your mileage

This reminds me...check your front brakes too. When I bought mine (used) one of the calipers was stuck, dragged, and wore down the pad quite a bit. The pistons were filthy. A good cleaning fixed that up real quick

 

[mxgolf]

Unfortunutly my mileage is about as bad. My could be due to the 15 tooth sprocket on the front. I also have the Leo Vince exhaust and a Bazzaz power unit with it having been on the dyno. My HP was suprisingly only 87? I ride pretty aggressive so that could have something to due with it also.

 

[mave2911]

I don't use anything but 98RON in my bike. (your 95PON)

It runs better, I get better mileage and the detergents, as part of the additive package, keep everything squeaky clean.

If your catalytic converter starts to fill up due to the extra carbon buildup because of the lower octane fuel, that also hurts economy.

I'd put some 95PON in it, and some fuel system cleaner (Seafoam) and see if it improves.

I know it does for me!

Cheers,
Rick

 

[Karate.Snoopy]

I checked the oil, the chain tension, brake drag. Everything checked out okay.
I shall try adding the fuel injector cleaner and gauge the performance.
Thank you all for the excellent advice

 

[Gelvatron]

maybe previous owner changed front sprocket or rear sprocket, and if you search up manometer build id try syncing the throttle bodies and adjusting the idle all the little things add up. ESPECIALLY in EFI systems 1 bad sensor or false reading puts the computer into a different model.:rockon:

 

[Karate.Snoopy]

I checked the oil, the chain tension, brake drag. Everything checked out okay.
I shall try adding the fuel injector cleaner and gauge the performance.
Thank you all for the excellent advice

Even after using the fuel injector cleaner the performance of the bike seems to be more or less the same.

I had the Spark plugs changed, could a faulty spark plug lead to a dropped mileage, is there a way to check this without taking the bike apart?

 

[RJ2112]

Another thing to consider with the cooler weather... your tire pressure has almost certainly dropped. Check them and put them within 1 lb of where they are supposed to be, and see what happens.

 

[Karate.Snoopy]

Another thing to consider with the cooler weather... your tire pressure has almost certainly dropped. Check them and put them within 1 lb of where they are supposed to be, and see what happens.

Thanks mate, I actually upgraded my tires to PR3's recently and checked the tire pressure yet again.
At this point other than syncing the TB/issue with spark plugs and air filter I have exhausted options recommended by the excellent folks on this forum.

I will check out the air filter tomorrow as it has some notoriety to dropping mpg's

 

[RJ2112]

Thanks mate, I actually upgraded my tires to PR3's recently and checked the tire pressure yet again.
At this point other than syncing the TB/issue with spark plugs and air filter I have exhausted options recommended by the excellent folks on this forum.

I will check out the air filter tomorrow as it has some notoriety to dropping mpg's

I have heard that the various grades of gasoline sold in the US are not all equal with respect to the amount of alcohol added..... the better grades have less, is the theory. Alcohol contains less thermal energy by volume than gasoline-- less power for a given amount.

I know that by brand, the MPG I get with my car varies significantly -- as much as 10%. 12 years ago, this occurred only in the winter months, when alcohol was added to the fuel ('oxygenators' was the term). Now, it happens all the time.

I mention this because my car gets 40 MPG, and I can see the MPG drop 4-5 if I shop at a convenience store outlet compared to a Shell station. The effect is more pronounced on the FZ6/motorcycles in general because we tend to whack the gas a lot harder.

I have also found that my MPG increases measurably when I run the middle grade of gas. This has proven to be consistent over more than 2 years of samples, where I am buying at least one tank of fuel per week.

Even though the bike will run on low grade gas, and SHOULD NOT require better fuel, try mid grade or high test for a couple of tanks and see if your MPG increases.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I have heard that the various grades of gasoline sold in the US are not all equal with respect to the amount of alcohol added..... the better grades have less, is the theory. Alcohol contains less thermal energy by volume than gasoline-- less power for a given amount.

I know that by brand, the MPG I get with my car varies significantly -- as much as 10%. 12 years ago, this occurred only in the winter months, when alcohol was added to the fuel ('oxygenators' was the term). Now, it happens all the time.

I mention this because my car gets 40 MPG, and I can see the MPG drop 4-5 if I shop at a convenience store outlet compared to a Shell station. The effect is more pronounced on the FZ6/motorcycles in general because we tend to whack the gas a lot harder.

I have also found that my MPG increases measurably when I run the middle grade of gas. This has proven to be consistent over more than 2 years of samples, where I am buying at least one tank of fuel per week.

Even though the bike will run on low grade gas, and SHOULD NOT require better fuel, try mid grade or high test for a couple of tanks and see if your MPG increases.

Very interesting about the mid grade and mileage, thanks.

Just checked mine, mostly around town, riding fairly easy, some whacks on the throttle, 46.3MPG's (per the odometer with a Speedohealer)... Think I'll try the mid grade next time and check for any improvement.

Did you find the extra $ for mid grade fuel paid off for the extra MPG's?

 

[RJ2112]

Very interesting about the mid grade and mileage, thanks.

Just checked mine, mostly around town, riding fairly easy, some whacks on the throttle, 46.3MPG's (per the odometer with a Speedohealer)... Think I'll try the mid grade next time and check for any improvement.

Did you find the extra $ for mid grade fuel paid off for the extra MPG's?

Any way I figure it, I am saving. It costs slightly more, but I use less fuel. The net result is lower fuel costs for the driving I have to do.

Here in VA mid grade runs about 10 cents a gallon more than low grade. It costs me about a dollar more to buy 10 gallons of mid grade compared to low. As long as the difference in cost between low and mid grade is less than 10%, I will save money on fuel.

I haven't checked to see if high test increases my MPG enough to warrant running high test-- before Bush W enacted the alcohol enrichment the Toyota Echo got 43 MPG highway, immediately afterwards I had trouble getting 40 (most often 37-38) with low grade.

Midgrade today gets me consistently 40 (compared to low anywhere which gets me ~36-37), if I shop at a national chain. Shell is my current selection, I haven't seen the same results with BP, have not tried Texaco as they are not convenient to me. Sheetz, and WaWa both give me less MPG, even on mid grade.

 

[nsaP]

I don't use anything but 98RON in my bike. (your 95PON)

It runs better, I get better mileage and the detergents, as part of the additive package, keep everything squeaky clean.

If your catalytic converter starts to fill up due to the extra carbon buildup because of the lower octane fuel, that also hurts economy.

I'd put some 95PON in it, and some fuel system cleaner (Seafoam) and see if it improves.

I know it does for me!

Cheers,
Rick

Can you explain how lower octane fuel leads to carbon build up?