What do you have, and what kind of gas mileage does your bike get?

Considering the rise in gas prices, and they dont look like they're going to fall anytime soon, I'm considering getting a bike if it will be worth it for savings on gasoline.

I'm driving a '96 Ford Mustang GT 5-speed (only the 4.6L engine, not 5.0L), but I only get between 16-20mpg.

8/12/2005 3:38:05 PM

'98 honda F3 600 with full exhaust and stage 1 jet kit, stock gearing, 40mpg
but i'm a slow/cautious rider

8/12/2005 3:45:22 PM

4 gallons gets me to 200 miles...

8/12/2005 3:46:00 PM

aka 50mpg

8/12/2005 3:50:35 PM

Harley Dyna

44 city 50+ highway

8/12/2005 3:51:07 PM

I'll just add that I really dont know shit about motorcycles. I do know how to ride though.

I would only be getting one for the savings in gas mileage, not for racing, or trying to kill myself on like theDuke866

8/12/2005 3:52:44 PM

saving money on gas should not be the primary reason to get a bike. how are you really going to save money? you've got the purchase price of the bike, all the related equipment like helmet, insurance, etc...

8/12/2005 3:54:35 PM

gg on pointing out that it might not be worth it at all, I figured if I could get a used bike for cheap, and helmet, insurance, then i'm good to go

I figure if I drive about 5 out of 7 days a week entirely on a motorcycle, I stand to save 50% to 75% on what I spend on gas

[Edited on August 12, 2005 at 4:05 PM. Reason : numbers]

8/12/2005 3:56:10 PM

since you don't know anything about bikes, you want to make sure you get a good one. that's going to run you at least 1500-2000. helmet will be ~100, insurance about the same... you'll have to ride it a while to make that up.

8/12/2005 4:05:11 PM

If I drive slow (not gunning it or past 7k revs), I get about 55-65 mpg on my cbr600 f2. Gunning it everywhere, about 45mpg. Mine is completely stock though.

8/12/2005 4:07:08 PM

If I spend $2000/year on gas, at a mere 50% savings I could have half the cost of the bike paid for by savings, 2 years of owning a bike would have it paid for, and by then gas might be $5/gal

8/12/2005 4:07:22 PM

^ you could get a mid 90's 600 sportsbike for 2-3 grand.

8/12/2005 4:08:31 PM

I have a gs500, I don't mistreat the bike but I beat the shit out of it everywhere. I'm starting to grow out of it (not enough power, suspension's a bit soft, not enough brake) but I still get 40-50mpg. I'm open to the possibility of selling it since the dsm is all but driveable. A gs500 is about the best bike if you're motivated by cost. It's cheap, cheap to maintain and hasn't changed ever really so the parts are plentiful. I'm looking to get $1500 for mine to give you a decent price gauge of what they're going for.

I got a real nice icon jacket for $215, gloves for $25 (closeout), and a helmet I really liked for $120 but you can get a good joe rocket jacket for $100 or less, gloves for $25, and a baseline hjc helmet for $60-70. Insurance with almost complete coverage runs me ~$600 a year with 6 points on my license

[Edited on August 12, 2005 at 4:52 PM. Reason : .]

8/12/2005 4:50:47 PM

My '91 Yamaha SecaII xj600 got like 40mpg or so. Its carburated with a jet kit and k&n and when I rode, I accelerated as hard as possible pretty much as much as possible.

8/12/2005 6:36:37 PM

get a civic, if you are simply looking to save monay on gas that would be much nore practical. you can get one for half the price of a bike, too

8/12/2005 6:48:31 PM

^^^ So you did decide to keep the DSM... what's left to do on it?

8/13/2005 10:06:11 AM

^^i don't think he's willing to get rid of the stang

in the long run, getting into motorcycling is not gonna be a money saving proposition. it's just nice that, if you're going to ride anyway, gas and insurance are pretty cheap.

i'm not saying don't get one, though. riding is fun as hell.

8/13/2005 1:30:38 PM

but heres what i found

i rode my bike for fun more than i rode it to get places....

8/13/2005 2:17:56 PM

I only get 40mpg but my bike is an 1150. I agree you should ride because you enjoy riding. You may save money but maybe not.

It you're looking for really good fuel economy, get something in the 125-250cc range. A 250 Ninja or Helix scooter gets amazing gas mileage.

Or like someone said, buy an old Civic or Saturn for a thousand bucks.

8/14/2005 12:11:40 PM

yeah those smaller engines get like 80-150mpg

and they're cheaper initially too

8/14/2005 3:06:37 PM

00' Kaw ZR-7. I've gotten 52 mpg on the highway, but averages about 45mpg. You'll save money on gas, but you'll be spending more money on tires. Tires usually last about 4000-7000 miles and they are about 250-300 a set. The fun factor makes it worth it though.

8/14/2005 7:55:41 PM

haha, i destroyed a set of tires in 2500 miles one time with my GSX-R 750, and that was all public road riding. Throw in a track day, and it would've been a lot less than that.

that's the low extreme, though (unless you do track days or stupid shit like burnouts).

8/14/2005 11:51:24 PM

I've got over 5000 miles on my tires. I got major chicken strips I ride the bike every day and most of the time is spent on the interstates. I ride to school, errands, etc. I hardly ever take my other vehicles. I really do need new tires though. Maybe I'll do a burnout and blow these bitches then that will force me to get better tires.

MiniMe, your best bet is to just keep driving the stang like others have already said. Most people pay out the ass for insurance on bikes. And you better live in a nice neighborhood with a secured garage...theft is a bitch...

8/15/2005 2:05:22 AM

or a blessing, if you wrecked your bike, owed more than it was worth, and needed the money to buy a car you really wanted.

that was my experience with theft.


i don't know if i'd ever get 5k miles on a set of tires, even though i eased up a little on my riding style.

8/15/2005 2:09:03 AM

The tires thing is good to know, I only assumed that tires on bike would last like on a car (unless you drive like theDuke did)

It looks like it might not be worth it after all, maybe when I get my next raise or promotion I'll get a bike just for fun. That way the cost factor wont matter since the extra money will cover it.

As for my neighbors, I live in Cary, in a small townhouse complex (21 homes) with one entrance. No one has a garage though, but its quiet enough that I wouldnt be worried about theft there, compared to say Lake Park or Wolf Creek.

8/15/2005 9:31:32 AM

people understand that cary has money and a lot of pussy residents. if I was going to try and steal something of value and not worry about getting shot or caught, a nice neighborhood in cary is exactly where I'd go, but maybe I'm too smart to be a crim... OH WAIT

8/15/2005 9:33:56 AM

the neighbors aren't the ones you have to worry about stealing your shit

8/15/2005 12:02:07 PM

Are you familar with bicycles? They're kind of like motorcycles, but they don't use any gas.

8/15/2005 12:48:16 PM

Right now, both of my tires have bout 3300 miles on them and have plently of thread left in them. I have dunlop tires. I'd expect to replace them in about 2500 miles from now. I've done a few burning of the tires from sliding because of hard stops (damn ppl cuttin me off).

Yeah, you better practice how to stop quickly and safely first. I did that the first week and accidently did an endo (scary to a new rider, still scared of it)

8/15/2005 3:06:01 PM

^^^ what I mean is the neighbors are often around when I'm not, hence the whole "neighborhood watch" program, they look out for my shit and I look out for theirs. We've only got 21 homes, and I'm on the HOA board, so I know pretty much everyone, they're good people

^^ who do you know that makes an 8-10 mile commute on a bicycle BOTH WAYS to work every morning? I dont know anyone who does that, and I'm not about to start that trend. plus the area doesnt have bicycle lanes for convenient and safe travel by pedal bike

^ what is endo? a front wheel stand? like, your ass is going endoverend if you brake any harder? haha

8/15/2005 3:53:24 PM

like that

8/15/2005 3:55:21 PM

I'm sure that would freak someone out if you dont mean to do it and arent expecting it

8/15/2005 3:56:31 PM

mine wasn't that high, but a good 6 inches off the ground. It was a fast stop from going about 100mph. Trust us (motorcyclist), its not the question of if you will crash, its just a matter of when. usually within the first 6 months. Mine was a little under 3 months and involved a deer about a week or two ago.

8/15/2005 4:02:42 PM

Quote :

"^^^ what I mean is the neighbors are often around when I'm not, hence the whole "neighborhood watch" program, they look out for my shit and I look out for theirs. We've only got 21 homes, and I'm on the HOA board, so I know pretty much everyone, they're good people "

i bet most of those people go to bed by midnight-2am. it's not the daylight hours you have to worry about, it's the 3, 4, 5 am in the morning when someone pulls in with a van or pickup and 4-5 guys and they throw your bike in the back and they're off.

Quote :

" ^^ who do you know that makes an 8-10 mile commute on a bicycle BOTH WAYS to work every morning? I dont know anyone who does that, and I'm not about to start that trend. plus the area doesnt have bicycle lanes for convenient and safe travel by pedal bike"

two people in my office do it several times a week.

8/15/2005 4:28:05 PM

well all the rest of the crap aside, if I were to get a bike, what would be a good starter motorcycle? suggestion?

8/15/2005 4:37:04 PM

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/
anything 600cc and under

[Edited on August 15, 2005 at 4:40 PM. Reason : ]

8/15/2005 4:40:25 PM

don't sweat your bike getting stolen. just get theft insurance, and use some common sense. then if it happens, oh well. get another bike.

you almost certainly will eventually crash. dress for the occassion.

endos (aka "stoppies") are definitely harder than wheelies. they're also harder on the bike. i don't know that i've ever done one as high as that picture, but i've had them up pretty high. scary high a couple of times.

one time i did a rolling stoppie at about 55 mph on western blvd b/c some dude almost hit me...had to brake that hard to avoid a crash. he'd also almost hit me (missed by about a foot or two) about 1 minute earlier on pullen, so i was pretty pissed. i stopped behind him at the western/avent light, got off the bike, and went to go whip his ass, but when i got up in his window, it was a little asian dude who quite clearly was totally oblivious to the fact that he'd nearly killed me twice in about 60 seconds (he was even still on temporary tags). after a lot of cursing and barely controlled yelling at him, which i'm sure he understood none of, i let him go...he wasn't driving like a jackass...he just didn't know any better.



oh, and good first bikes. not a sportbike, ideally. medium sized cruisers are good (Honda Shadow 750). Standards (Suzuki Bandit 600 or SV-650/SV-650s) are good. if you're gonna get a true race replica sportbike, get something like a late '90s yamaha YZF-600 (not R6) or kawasaki ZX-6e. ride it for a year or more, then get a new, state of the art 600 or 750 if you want to. i wouldn't tangle with a liter class sportbike until i'd ridden for several years and owned at least a couple motorcycles.

8/15/2005 5:36:29 PM

a gs500, sv650, a 650cc or less v-twin or I-2 basically

8/15/2005 9:37:28 PM

oh i've done a endo like that before except I did a face plant I crash more than I ride

8/15/2005 11:06:03 PM

raliegh sucks ass for riding, the roads are absolutely horrible, my entire ride to class is one long slalom run, and there are some potholes that will damn near put you over the handlebars if you dont see them.

btw, i have an 83 yamaha virago 920cc v-twin i will be selling soon, the chrome and paint arent in perfect condition, but the drivetrain is in great shape, i bought it for getting to work and class and wouldnt have to worry about it getting stolen around here and did a lot of work to it and checking it over, its a very reliable daily driver, i used it for about 5 months before a got a good deal on a 97 honda magna and couldnt pass it up, pm for details if you are interested.


[Edited on August 17, 2005 at 7:03 PM. Reason : (55-65) mpg if you go easy on it]

8/17/2005 7:02:54 PM

What you gonna be askin for the 920?

8/17/2005 7:09:09 PM

i get some pretty shitty gas mileage. but i like the way the bike runs good down low and nice up top, so im not complaining.

getting a motorcycle for better gas mileage sounds stupid, i've invested 5k into getting my motorcycle, the gear and repairs already, it's definately not cheap. but it is great for getting to class, especially now since they closed the free exp. tunnel.

8/17/2005 9:28:38 PM

^^same question

8/17/2005 9:30:38 PM

http://videos.streetfire.net/Player.aspx?fileid=CB72CA7E-E77F-458B-A967-09E280072CE9&kw=28&p=0

8/17/2005 10:11:27 PM

^everyone has seen that video, if ur going to ride a bike ur going to take risks, everyone knows that as well.

8/17/2005 10:39:23 PM

25% of riding a motorcycle is your personal skills say in a track situation, on the road, 75% of the skills you need is watching out for asian drivers in traffic

8/18/2005 4:33:35 PM

^totally wrong, that 75% are just normal assholes who use cell phones and ignore traffice laws. Specially the ppl who don't use signals when the cut through traffic. I hate those with a passion

8/18/2005 4:56:13 PM

that video has potential, but the flashing photos are stupid. can't see anything in them at all.

8/18/2005 5:06:58 PM

^ I hate asians with a passion

8/19/2005 11:26:51 PM

i damn near laid my new one down today on dan allen cause an asian fucker whipped out in front of me, he ran the stop sign at sullivan dr.

8/19/2005 11:32:15 PM