some klr things for sale

[Tengai Mark Van Horn]

At 2:32 PM +0000 9/4/08, transporterosicles wrote:

>I've been commuting about 35 miles (each way) to work here in D.C. on >my KLR for about two months now -- got fed up spending $14 a day on >public transportation! I am getting about 61 mpg (stock gears, >Continental TKC-80 tires) and I would be interested in learning what >others are getting - thanks, David (Damascus, MD)

I also commute 35 miles each way. I generally ride whenever I can. The KLR gets 54 mpg versus the Land Rover's 16.5 mpg. However, I always budget for 5 days a week in the Rover. Sometimes I don't feel like suiting up in the morning, etc, so I made myself an incentive of "getting paid to ride." Whenever I ride take the KLR to work, I literally pay myself the rough difference in cash saved ($10) and stuff it into a jar. Those funds then go towards other things like moto treks or xmas. Mark

[Reverend]

When I had the knobbies on I rode slower, since then I put less aggressive tires on (no idea what kind) and can cruise 80mph far easier. I also have shimmed the stock needle, drilled the slide and adjusted the pilot. I get about 55mpg on stock gearing over my 64miles/day commute.

> -----Original Message----- > Behalf Of transporterosicles > public transportation! I am getting about 61 mpg (stock gears, > Continental TKC-80 tires) and I would be interested in learning what > others are getting - thanks, David (Damascus, MD)

[Michael Nelson]

I used to get about 50-52MPG average. Now I get 40-42. The difference is that now I have a 705 kit with a Stage II head, jetted richer and with opened airbox and Staintune exhaust. It's a TOTALLY different feeling bike now, way more fun, but you pay for that fun by burning more gasoline. It's worth it to me! -- "Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open manhole and die." -- Mel Brooks San Francisco, CA

[Rowe Elliott]

A year ago I was getting 50-55 mpg on my 50+ mile, mostly freeway commute(2006 22k, Box stock, Green). Somewhat disappointed w/ that mileage I began an iterative process trying to improve it. Low front fender (EVO) was first and I'm not sure there was much difference except perhaps in cooling on hot days(plenty of those here in San Antonio). Next was a Givi Fastbag, useful luggage and fills an aero-dynamic gap. I believe this may have improved fuel economy by 2 mpg. I replaced the Kenda 270 tires w/ Kenda 761's. Aero-dynamic drag on the un-faired front wheel is a significant portion of the total workload of moving a KLR650 down the road, in my estimation, and the knobbier profile of the 270 was more drag. Again I estimate a 2 mpg improvement. As a side note, this tire nearly cured the beast of it's evil head-shaking tendency. It'd had a bad tendency toward tank-slapping above 80-85, (75 before I set slight drag on the steering head bearings) and now it's stable at indicated 110mph. I still wasn't consistently over 60 mpg. Searching the older posts here, I became a disciple of Bill Watson. The change with the greatest effect on mileage was in software, not hardware. By modulating my tendency toward mindless acceleration, shifting @ 3k, and keeping top speeds down below 70mph, my mileage improved dramatically. I was now near but rarely above 65 mpg. The final modification was a 16T counter shaft sprocket. I agree w/ those who say the taller gearing wouldn't be the best choice for two-up mountain touring, and in my limited off road riding, I'd think it sub-optimal, but for my style of riding (mostly light commuting) I think it's an improvement over stock. My mods and continued practice at moderation in driving habits has me consistently over 65 mpg. My last tank (@ 348 miles on the trip odometer) was 68 mpg. I gotta say, I appreciate the startling wisdom I see on this forum, from time to time, and the startling lack thereof too. Rowe

[mikeypep]

Pretty consistent 55-60MPG for me. Stock gearing, Dunlop 607 tires, speed usually under 65MPH. I'm not real hard on the throttle but 5000- 6000RPM shifts are not unusual.

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Richard Bessey wrote: > > My mileage depends on what I am doing and how badly I keep on the throttle: > > Cruising down the highway with my high gearset on, keeping the RPM's > between 3500 and 3800, I have seen 63 MPG, average is around 60 MPG > > Commuting back and forth to work (3 mile ride one way) in stop and go > traffic with my wife on the back is normally 45-50 MPG > > Crusing around in the backwoods with lower gearing on is anywhere from > 40-45 MPG > > Regards, > > Richard Bessey > System Administrator > Vivio Technologies > > > > > transporterosicles wrote: > > > > I've been commuting about 35 miles (each way) to work here in D.C. on > > my KLR for about two months now -- got fed up spending $14 a day on > > public transportation! I am getting about 61 mpg (stock gears, > > Continental TKC-80 tires) and I would be interested in learning what > > others are getting - thanks, David (Damascus, MD) > > > > >

[stevedyer@cox.net]

The mindset and tradeoffs behind heavy pursuit of mileage enhancement, especially when the base mileage numbers are quite good already, has always fascinated me - particularly if operating cost savings are the goal vs. simply scientific curiosity. With a 2006 KLR and 22K on the clock, for argument's sake let's assume this bike has been owned for a couple years and ridden it about 10,000 miles per year. So, some rough numbers come out like this: 10K miles @ 60 mpg = 166.67 gal, or $583.35 @ $3.50/gal 10K miles @ 65 mpg = 153.85 gal, or $538.48 @ $3.50/'gal Yearly savings of $44.87 Monthly savings of $3.74 Fill-ups (6.1 gal) saved per year = 2.1 In order to achieve these results, a new front fender and countershaft sprocket were purchased and a more street-oriented tire installed. In addition, acceleration is restricted, shift points lowered and cruising speed reduced. From the graphs I've seen, the stock KLR makes about 19hp at 3K. With the more street-oriented setup of tires, sprocket etc. and tender throttle management , the overall emasculation of this KLR has just about turned it into a Virago 250. All for the cost savings of one Happy Meal per month. So many different comfort points among riders, (of the same machine, even) between performance and economy. Steve, whose interest in fun fuel economy just manifested iself in a '84 CT110. The '99 KLR, on the other hand, is rejetted, re-piped, ridden hard and put away wet. High 40 something mpg at last look and loving it. ------------- ---- Rowe Elliott wrote: A year ago I was getting 50-55 mpg on my 50+ mile, mostly freeway commute(2006 22k, Box stock, Green). Somewhat disappointed w/ that mileage I began an iterative process trying to improve it. Low front fender (EVO) was first (snip) I replaced the Kenda 270 tires w/ Kenda 761's. (snip) By modulating my ...mindless acceleration, shifting @ 3k, and keeping top speeds down below 70mph, my mileage improved dramatically. The final modification was a 16T counter shaft sprocket. (snip) Rowe

[Bill Watson]

David, over the years this gets discussed a lot - it seems that the responses will vary plus or minus 15 mpg from about 53 mpg. The lowest numbers are 38-ish from an occasional poster, there are the majority around the middle (50-55) and the upper end of the responses is around 68 mpg. It's mostly the rider and driving cycle. Your 61 sounds great. As for speedometer error, yep, it's documented. The odometer (which we calculate fuel economy from) is usually very close. I correct my readings by a .996 factor, which is only 0.4 miles off for every 100 miles. Almost no error at all. Bill Watson Phoenix, AZ www.xanga.com/watt_man [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[D Critchley]

In 2006 I did the 4 Corners run on my '99. I kept track of mileage and stops etc for the 17,300 km that it took. That spreadsheet is available if anyone is interested. I seem to remember that my mileages went from 38 to 64 per US gal. The figures are there in metric as well. Just ask, DC [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[David Bell]

As far as I know, all bike speedos are off. The only exception I've ever seen was my Harley FLHP (police electroglide). It had "Certified" written on the speedo for obvious reasons. Both my BMW's were off by the same amount as the KLR, about 10%. Also, it was always in the direction of you're not going as fast as your speedo tells you. Maybe a liability thing. ----- Original Message ---- From: Bill Watson To: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com Sent: Friday, September 5, 2008 2:20:33 PM Subject: [DSN_KLR650] Re:Mileage David, over the years this gets discussed a lot - it seems that the responses will vary plus or minus 15 mpg from about 53 mpg. The lowest numbers are 38-ish from an occasional poster, there are the majority around the middle (50-55) and the upper end of the responses is around 68 mpg. It's mostly the rider and driving cycle. Your 61 sounds great. As for speedometer error, yep, it's documented. The odometer (which we calculate fuel economy from) is usually very close. I correct my readings by a .996 factor, which is only 0.4 miles off for every 100 miles. Almost no error at all. Bill Watson Phoenix, AZ www.xanga.com/ watt_man [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Andrus Chesley]

I think Harley is still the only one close to correct on the mileage from the tests I'm seeing. I don't remember about Victory. I know my 3 BMW's were off 7 to 8 mph, my KLR is about the same and My DL1000 Vstorm was the same. Also , the present new Bandit 1250S I have is the same 7.7% off. That's what I had to put on the speedohealer to get it running the same as my GPS and Local Police radar. Andy . 86 miles south of Louisiana