2009 w/PC crappy mileage. What to do?

[Eric L]

So I bought my 2009 with a PC under the seat. It came with some papers suggesting the bike had been dyno'd .. I dunno if there is a custom map or what might be installed on the Power Commander. Obviously I also have no idea what the bike might be like without the PC or with a different map. What I do know is that my commute on easy 35-50mph back roads for 45 miles a day I average 30MPG. Yuck. When I ride on slab, I am averaging about 40mpg.

Oh, one more piece of info.... I have been commuting with a givi 46 top box and I have a v stream shield. I know there are a lot of variables about this, but does this sound right to you?

If not, and I want to dabble with swapping out the mapping bit in the PC, is it possible to save the existing map and try another (and where do I get that one?) Is there stupid simple instructions somewhere?

 

[joebiodiesel]

From what I read here your mileage doesn't seem too far off, but if you think the PC might be set on the rich side, I'd simply remove it. Your FJR has an oxygen seosor in the exhaust that keeps the air/fuel ratio very close to where it should be under cruise conditions. Let the system work as it was designed to, and see what happens.

Joe

 

[yamafitter]

Here is the Power Commander Download site:

Power Commander Downloads

From here you can download the manual for your Power Commander along with the necessary software to interface a laptop to the Power Commander.

A search of this forum will lead you to other PCIII maps. UselessPickles has done much work in this area.

It is explained in the manual how to read and save old maps as well as upload and create new maps. As stated by Joe, if you disconnect the PCIII and return all the connections to the original configuration, everything should return to stock.

Hope this helps.

 

[BkrK12]

If you are going to disconnect the PC, be aware that your O2 sensor may currently be disconnected (probably is if it's a PCIII) and will need to be reconnected when you take the PC out of the system. It was probably disconected at the rear right of the cam cover. You will find a disconnected four wire connector there. OTOH, with a 2009 you probably have a PCV - I'm pretty sure the O2 sensor still had to be disconnected. But, you should check the documentation before you do anything.

Edit: Yes, the PCV is the one for the 2009 and the documentation suggests disconnecting the O2 sensor, also. Go to: www.powercommander.com for the installation manual and other data. You'll also need a USB/miniUSB connector to access the maps on the PCV.

 

[Aasland]

What I do know is that my commute on easy 35-50mph back roads for 45 miles a day I average 30MPG. Yuck. When I ride on slab, I am averaging about 40mpg.

Oh, one more piece of info.... I have been commuting with a givi 46 top box and I have a v stream shield. I know there are a lot of variables about this, but does this sound right to you?

Yeah, that's about right.

 

[Eric L]

What I do know is that my commute on easy 35-50mph back roads for 45 miles a day I average 30MPG. Yuck. When I ride on slab, I am averaging about 40mpg.

Oh, one more piece of info.... I have been commuting with a givi 46 top box and I have a v stream shield. I know there are a lot of variables about this, but does this sound right to you?

Yeah, that's about right.

OK, I will read some, install software on my pc, read some more. I would really love to get high 30s in commuting mode. It's not stop and go, and I am not pushing it.

 

[escapefjrtist]

My $.02, either remap the PC to improve mileage to an acceptable level or my favorite... remove, sell it here for some $$$ and use the funds for something you really need.

You're riding an '09, the PC is a waste of good money. YMMV

--G

 

[SkooterG]

Well, I am going to go against what others have said and say that 30 mpg is unusually low for the type of commuting you are describing. What rpm do you usually run at?

The only times I have gotten 30mpg or under is when running consistently over 120mph.

As for advice, others have given some good stuff.

 

[FJRAE]

Just another +1 for that being on the low side, as I get 30 mpg at steady low triple digits, although my speedo reads 4 mph high across the board so the mpg calculation is a little skewed, which brings up another possibility; might your speedo be off to the low side? Do the fuel fills match up with the mpg readout?

I'd definitely try disconnecting the PC just to establish a baseline so you know what to tune for.

Good luck! 30 mpg adds up quick at current prices

Just wanted to add what is probably obvious, but anyway; are you resetting the avg mpg at each fill up? That will be more accurate than a running average of every consecutive fill up.

 

[ionbeam]

I didn't see it mentioned, may have missed it -- is your mileage the result of actual math using miles and gallons or is it from reading the FJR's readout? The only true mileage is to do the math over several tanks of 'normal' riding. A PC with a fat fuel map can drop average fuel economy (by average, I mean math average, not typical roads) to mid to upper 30's. Stock header? Stock exhaust? Cat converter still in place? Stock air box and stock filter?

If your low mileage is really from manually calculated fuel use, then one easy thing to do is to unplug the PC injector connectors and plug the stock injector connectors back on and plug the O2 sensor back in. Once you get base-line fuel use without the PC connected and it still shows very low fuel economy you can start troubleshooting from there.

 

[Eric L]

I didn't see it mentioned, may have missed it -- is your mileage the result of actual math using miles and gallons or is it from reading the FJR's readout? The only true mileage is to do the math over several tanks of 'normal' riding. A PC with a fat fuel map can drop average fuel economy (by average, I mean math average, not typical roads) to mid to upper 30's. Stock header? Stock exhaust? Cat converter still in place? Stock air box and stock filter?

If your low mileage is really from manually calculated fuel use, then one easy thing to do is to unplug the PC injector connectors and plug the stock injector connectors back on and plug the O2 sensor back in. Once you get base-line fuel use without the PC connected and it still shows very low fuel economy you can start troubleshooting from there.

Yeah, my numbers are from gallons pumped (center stand to filler neck) and mileage as measured by GPS, each time over 150-200 miles of commuting (3-4 days). I commute like a pansy - 3-4KRPM, 2 stop signs, 40-60 mph. My on board computer says I am getting 42-45mph, but it's on crack as near as I can tell. I do a very consistent 30-32mpg. I was actually stunned it was that bad at first, then I just accepted it. But gas is $4 a gallon and I could use the extra discretionary income for more farkles. So I will disconnect, run to establish baseline, and reassess. If I find the performance fine and the mileage great, I'll just sell the PCV. If not, I will upload a new profile and toggle between the one on the PCV and the new one and see what happens.

 

[ionbeam]

Yeah, my numbers are from gallons pumped...My on board computer says I am getting 42-45mph, but it's on crack as near as I can tell. I do a very consistent 30-32mpg...So I will disconnect, run to establish baseline, and reassess...

Good on ya Eric, using real numbers and proper fill technique! IMO, what you wrote nearly convicts the PC as being the problem. The FJR ECU sends base injection signals and fuel trim adjustments to the injectors, then calculates mileage based in part off of these trim numbers. What the ECU doesn't know is the PC intercepted the fuel injector signals and modified them. This way the ECU calculated mileage based on what it has for info, but the PC is modifying the actual injector volumes resulting in low mileage. Without the PC in the mix, your FJR will most likely return the fuel economy that your crack smoking display is showing today.

 

[Aasland]

The reason it "sounds about right" is that there two things Eric has which I have and each lowers mileage: The PC is the obvious one (I lost about 10-15% mpg) and the V-Stream is the other. I usually get low 40's, add one of the two and it'll drop to high 30's and add both and it's low 30's. Granted, I have the 2006A with PC3 and disconnected O2 sensors ... the PCV has wideband O2 sensors (I think) and may adjust better.

(and I do the manual fillup calculation method, and my onboard calculator is on crack as well).

 

[wfooshee]

If the bike was dyno'd for the Power Commander then it's probably set for max power and mileage was not a concern. You can bypass the PC without removing it, just unplug its connections under the tank and plug the injectors in without the PC. Reconnnect the O2 sensor over on the right side, and ride a few tanks.

The bike will probably feel different if the map is that aggressive.

 

[Greb]

Bone stock EFI system/exhaust on my '08 with 25K, never gotten below 40 MPG at sea level, easily 50 MPG plus at 4700 feet where I live now. My advice is to ditch the PC and put it back to stock. Also If high MPGs is what you're looking for keep the revs down and shift into the highest gear the engine is comfortable with, 20-30 MPH 2nd gear, 30-40 MPH 3rd gear, 40-50 MPH 4th gear...., If you're having too much fun on your commute you will pay for it at the pump.

 

[BkrK12]

An idea to try before taking the PCV physically out of the loop, download the "zero map" from the Powercommander site and load it into the PC. That should keep the PC from augmenting the FI table. You should also connect the O2 sensor, if it's been disconnected. YOUR choice.... as long as you already have the tank up, you can do either.

 

[cruppelt]

All good advise so far, but I agree that 30 mpg is especially low.

I have a barn door shield myself (big Calsci), top box on the back plus PC3 and a very similar commute to yours with about 20 miles or so each way, but I still get at least 35 mpg even when pushing VERY hard. More like 41-42 when going lightly for maximizing gas mileage. Straight highway I had her up into the lower 50s fully packed on a longer trip, but that was with a much shorter windshield and ONLY highway between fills.

I might be something as simple as hooking up your laptop to the PC3 or 5 you have and syncing the throttle input. The PCs sometimes will loose this, which then throws the mapping off (at least it clearly did on my PC3). My bike ran pretty bad for a while, with less power and noticeably too rich as you could tell from the tail pipes and bad gas mileage. I tried to play with different maps on the PC3, but finally figured out AFTER using other maps and getting the throttle synced every time that my original one (also done on a dyno like yours) was by far the best compromise between power and gas mileage. I just had to reload it WITH the throttle sync at the same time and all was good. I have a 2006 and the PC3 helps a lot in smoothing out the low end action, so I would never give up on it myself. That said, I do also very much enjoy the little bit of extra eagerness the bike seems to have with it.

Just another 2 cents, good luck.

 

[RaYzerman19]

First off, save the map currently in the PC for future reference. I suspect it is aggressive also. I run a PC-V with the map provided by FuelMoto.com and get decent mileage, but I know it is not that aggressive, and less aggressive than the smoothness maps posted elsewhere. If disconnecting the PC/reconnecting the 02 sensor results in good behaviour (no lean conditions causing surging or throttle snatch, etc.) then it will confirm if Yamaha improved the fuel mapping after '07/'08. However, if you're having behaviour issues, then return to the PC with a milder map and 02 sensors disconnected.

 

[Eric L]

update for those still interested. I tried to disconnect the PCV but I just don't see disconnected plug that the PCV replaced. Then I thought maybe the PCV connector is in between the two connectors that were on the bike. I don't see that either. The wire from the PCV actually seems to branch off to TWO places. That freaked me out some. I did confirm the O2 sensor is disconnected.

I ran two tanks with the side bags instead of the Givi top box. My mileage went from ~30 to ~35 just by losing the top box. Wow. I imagine that putting the stock screen back on will count a little also. If that pushes me to 37-38 or higher, that means the PCV is not really imparting an enormous penalty.

E,