Fuel Gauge Question

[bgross]

Then, compound the confusion by:

1) getting old and forgetful

2) having three bikes

3) trying to remember from one bike to the next.

Knowing that I have a safe 50 miles remaining after I've "seen the light" on any of the bikes doesn't give me much comfort.

Knowing that I've never failed to get 200 miles on a tank (when I've tried) is similarly hollow.

I usually just plan on refueling at around 180-190 miles. Or less.

Worrying about fuel just sucks.

 

[Bounce]

And then there's aberrant tank that, after filled, only got 13 mpg even though speeds weren't "enthusiastic". This wasn't the FJR. It was a carb'd bike. I have never been sure if it was the CO elevation (heading down from a max elevation), the station serving up poor fuel, or what. The low fuel light came on how far back? Why? Wouldn't it be nice to know how many miles ago?

 

[Mortenk]

So far my 2016 ES fuel economy has been very consistent. The computer says 44 MPG, but the actual number validated when I fill up is 42 MPG, which I think is great - a little better than my ST1300 and it's regular compared to the high octane required by the ST. The Range on the computer isn't very useful as it is based on current conditions, and it doesn't seem to include the 1.5 gal reserve it seems. My Lexus range indicator has the same problem: when it says 0 mi left, the tank still has 2 gallons, which is about 80 miles (hybrid). Useless!

Yesterday the last fuel segment started flashing, and shortly after the Range indicated "LO" rather than a number - it made me nervous. I know that I should be able to get 60 miles from the reserve, so I trusted the reserve count-up rather than the range indicator this morning. I filled up when the count-up reached 35 miles and I only added 5.8 gal. That tells me that the count-up started with approx. 1.5 gal left, which is as per the spec.

Conclusion: I love the reserve count-up and will use this in the future to determine when to stop for gas. Will probably stop before I reach 50 mi, just to be safe. If driving conditions vary from my normal, I will of course take that into consideration. The range indication is totally useless. This means 250 mi per tank on my daily commute...not quite the 300 I am used to on the ST, but not bad at all.