Which way saves you more gas?

Question

is there any gas-saving difference if you ride at 45 on 4th fear and 4200 rpms, or 45 on 3rd gear at 5000 rpms? or on 5th gear at 3400 rpms?

Answer 1

Which ever requires the least amount of throttle to keep the speed constant will use less gas.

Answer 2

6th gear at 3000 rpm will work even better.  You will always get the best mpg in the highest gear you can ride without lugging the engine.  I would a 600 in fourth gear though so the bike had plenty of power on tap in case I needed it in an emergency though, with my new bike (1000) any gear offers plenty of get of and go at 45 so I no longer have this issue.

Answer 3

If the revs are lower, you should get better fuel economy, but some of that also depends on the powerband of the bike and where it is running most efficiently. You don't want to rev the daylights out of it, but you don't want to lug it either. On a steady flat surface with nobody to pass, my bike does fine at 3,400 RPM but it takes A LOT of throttle to pass at that RPM and you can feel how unhappy the engine is. If I cruise one gear down, the bike seems a lot happier. I save top gear for when I am over about 60mph.

I guess I agree with most of the people here, but some of it really depends on the bike. A Harley loves to lug around at 3,500RPM and a 600 may not like it at all.  

Answer 4

It depends, are you going down hill with the wind? And sorry, I do not own a sport bike but I do ride the street and it is not a Harley.

Answer 5

5 th gear your engine does not work as hard. your lower gears cause the engine to work harder

Answer 6

At 45 mph I ride in 4th or 5th, depending on traffic conditions. The bike still has power and isn't lugging. If there is no traffic, 5th. If it is moderate to heavy, 4th or 3rd. Conditions always dictate our style and no particular way is right for everyone.

Answer 7

Lower the rpms the less gas used.

Answer 8

It all depends where your bike makes its peak torque that is the range that is most fuel and mechanically efficient, given your range I suspect that it will be making peak torque for the range of 4000rpms upward, however emissions standards are checked at about 5000 rpm so you might find by fitting a Power Commander which will flatten out that trough you get better response.