Yep, that would do it. I used to have an old 4 speed, chain drive Sportster and liked it alot. Lately though when I sit on them they seem really small and "weird". Plus, I loved the shape of my old sportster tank, the new ones, not so much. Of course my range was about 100 miles...
With a 2 Gallon peanut tank and a hack the range was about 60 miles at road speeds and with a passenger.
L.
Lonnie that sounds like my 1960 Willies.
1 gallon would not bring me to the other side of the village...
I find dropping around 15 MPG when you tack on a hack to be about right.
I just purchased a 2003 wing with a Hannigan Astro Sport. At 70 mph via speedometer, I was getting 30 mpg. When I dropped the speed to 60, I got between 38 and 42 over a 4300 mile trip. Just that 10 mph difference made a dramatic difference in gas mileage.
You're pushing a lot of wind with that outfit. Around 65 is your best cruise speed getting decent mileage.
L.
My '99 BMW R1100RT w/EZS car gets around 26 mpg in town and about 30 mpg on the highway cruising at about 60 mph. Never owned/rode just the bike but my understanding is that most R1100's get around 45 mpg solo. The poor thing's dragging around 235 lbs empty with a heck of a lot of frontal area pushing through the wind. With a six gallon tank I'm only comfortable going about 125 before I get gas. Still, it's a sidecar rig, and I love the thing.
Karl
I guess I am not too far off MPG wise.
Just to update, my last few fill ups have resulted in the same MPG each time, 31 MPG. The wife has been away for three weeks so that is all solo riding with the sidecar rig. A little expressway, but mostly city streets and two-lane highways.
I always fill up when the gas gauge shows 1/8" of a tank or so. But invariably, that only takes 4 gallons. Supposedly the tank holds six. So I should have at least another 45+ miles in the tank for a range of 160-170 miles, with a drop or two to spare. That is pretty good.
Jack
My 1987 BMW K75C, with Dauntless sidecar, was getting 37 mpg the one time I checked it -- considerably better than I thought it was getting. That was pretty steady highway running, with a passenger and a whole buncha camping gear on the back.
The book sez the K75C should get 50-ish mpg at highway speeds. So (based on one data point) I'm seeing about a 25% fuel mileage penalty for hauling hack, passenger and cargo. Not that shabby, considering.
The K75C is a water-cooled, fuel-injected 750 with a 5-1/2 gallon (US) tank. It has plenty of beans to haul the hack around. Get the revs up to 5,000 and the afterburner kicks in. I've had the rig up to 80mph. I haven't gone faster simply because I didn't want to.
If you have an air-cooled, carbureted bike with a small gas tank I can see you're going to be making a lot of stops.
Best,
Ed Bianchi
Delaware USA
Ed Bianchi - 10/25/2011 3:04 PM
... If you have an air-cooled, carbureted bike with a small gas tank I can see you're going to be making a lot of stops....
Yep, that'd be me and my rig. 😮
Lee
MB5+TW200+CRF250L+GTV300+INT650
XL883R w/Texas Ranger Sidecar
Zuma 50F + Burgman w/Texas Sidecar<Mrs. SwampFox
its been many years since i could ride for a few hours and not have to stop to p**
so all i really need is a hundred mile range
to
"so all i really need is a hundred mile range"
************
Depends on where you ride. Out West (so I am told) it could be that far between gas stations. If you have to go over a mountain, or into a stiff headwind, you could have an issue.
Once, in Nova Scotia quite a few years ago, I found out that the gas stations weren't open on Sunday morning. My bike was sucking fumes, and I still had many miles to go to make it to the ferry, where I had reservations. Were it not for the kindness of the natives I might still be there.
Another time, riding from Boston to NYC, I rode through three or four thunderstorms in a row and fought vigorous headwinds. When my bike started to stumble I looked at my tripmeter and thought sure it was too soon to switch on the reserve. I tried to keep the bike going, but it soon died. In desperation I tried the reserve tank anyway. Va-zoom! Sunuva... Nothing wrong with the bike. I'd just gotten lousy gas mileage and used up my tank faster than I ever thought I could.
An empty tank is a sad, sad thing.
Best,
Ed Bianchi
Your gas mileage may improve if you set your tire pressure at the sidewall max, but you will pay for it in tire life. I bought a 1987 BMW K100LT with a Hannigan sidecar in 2007. It has a Metzeler Block K in front and automotive radials on the back and the hack. I had another BMW rig from 1985 to 2007, with sidecar tires all around. Through 26 years of trial and (mostly) error, I have found the best pressure for the best tire mileage is 22 front, 16 rear, and 14 on the hack, all with no load. That may sound light, but remember the auto tires are carrying less than half the weight they were designed for.
Dan W.
Alot has been said about the milage but jackstrat also metioned the time/problem of stopping! I have heared this before, people wanting bigger tanks for longer distances! Unless your in the boonies where there is no gas ( by the way we do carry 1gal spare can) why the problem with gas stops? We find it part of the fun, get to see some towns we wouldn't normally see and talk to some interesting people, some more interesting than others 🙂 With more stops we can and have riden 8+ hours!
Now I understand the want to cover distance (see my other posts) but when riding the rig, the stops are part of the fun, not just the destination!
