High fuel consumption solutions?

[Hiflyer]

Hey Guys,

Had my 250 Hornet for about 2 weeks now, and I've had to fill up 3 times, each time only getting about 10 litres in the tank, and only getting 140-150 kms out of it.

I've checked the choke and that seems sweet, what else could be causing this? (that I could check and possibly fix without professional help)

Cheers!
Jordan

[cowboyz]

that doesnt seem really out of the ordinary to me? 15k/litre? surely its got a bigger than 10 litre tank though??

[bungbung]

That's about 6.6l/100km, that's good that is.

[crazyhorse]

My bike has an 18 litre tank and I get about 220-250 km's per tank.

So think yours is fine and you should stop worrying :done:

[avgas]

ride slower

[Hiflyer]

Haha I keep it under 9000rpm most of the time, well that's going to be crap going on long rides then!! Dammit I'm used to 350kms per tank

[slofox]

350km from a 17 litre tank...even when pushing it...not that I EVER push it of course...I just got TOLD that...:whistle:

EDIT: Actually it uses NO GAS AT ALL when I'm pushing it...kinda hard to do for very long though...

[Grubber]

350km from a 17 litre tank...even when pushing it...not that I EVER push it of course...I just got TOLD that...:whistle:

I'm about the same...300k's on about 14 litres. Man you other guys got thirsty machines.

[Hiflyer]

Even my mates 250 bandit gets 200km's off the same amount of petrol..

[CookMySock]

Change up earlier.

Steve

[Hiflyer]

Change up earlier.

Steve

Thankyou for that constructive input. :bash:

But no. I could change up 7000rpm later and not have hit the rev limiter. so If I change up any earlier I'll probably be pushing the bike faster that it could accelerate

[YellowDog]

ride slower
Yep, I get better economy out of my 3-litre Subaru than I do out of my 1-litre bike.

Can't imagine why...............................

[AllanB]

Says here you have a 16 litre tank.

Fuel lights/gauges on bikes are often way out. I'd experiment and strap a small 4.5 l or so fuel can to the back of the bike (fill it up of course!) and ride it for 200 or so kms. If you run out at least you can refuel.

Or

Drain the tank and refill it from scratch too see what it actually holds.

Or

Carefully run a magnet over it (use one of those flexi fridge ones) to see if the tank is full of bog and the low capacity is due to it being severely dented! (sorry).

It is also probably that even if it holds 16 you can only really use 14-15 due to the position of the outlet.

[Hiflyer]

Says here you have a 16 litre tank.

Fuel lights/gauges on bikes are often way out. I'd experiment and strap a small 4.5 l or so fuel can to the back of the bike (fill it up of course!) and ride it for 200 or so kms. If you run out at least you can refuel.

Or

Drain the tank and refill it from scratch too see what it actually holds.

Or

Carefully run a magnet over it (use one of those flexi fridge ones) to see if the tank is full of bog and the low capacity is due to it being severely dented! (sorry).

It is also probably that even if it holds 16 you can only really use 14-15 due to the position of the outlet.

I run it from full to reserve and got 147 most recently, get 10 litres each time I do it, no fuel light or anything. The bikes only done ~5500kms so cant imagine it's bogged. Dam, how Am I supposed to do another coro loop haha

[brendonjw]

Checked the plugs to see how its running? (could it be jetted to rich or something? (i dont know about carbs but in cars if the fuel injectors get clogged it can effect fuel efficiency)) I wouldn't think 14-15ks per Ltr would be very good from a 250 unless its a 2 smoke :hug:, im getting about 26kpl from my 250 ninja and about 14kpl from my 2ltr silvia if i nana it :girlfight:

[Hiflyer]

Hmmmm I forgot to mention it does have an aftermarket exhaust, but that wouldn't make it run rich would it?

[bungbung]

It's the bike and how you ride it.

Compare apples with apples, your hornet should be roundly similar to a zxr250 or cbr250 when ridden in a similar fashion. I don't think your bike is overly thirsty. You could get it checked on a dyno with a gas analyser if you're still concerned.

I was getting 7l/100km from a zxr250 and 7.5l/100km from a vtr1000.
A kwaka 650r gets 4.5l/100km

[Hiflyer]

It's the bike and how you ride it.

Compare apples with apples, your hornet should be roundly similar to a zxr250 or cbr250 when ridden in a similar fashion. I don't think your bike is overly thirsty. You could get it checked on a dyno with a gas analyser if you're still concerned.

I was getting 7l/100km from a zxr250 and 7.5l/100km from a vtr1000.
A kwaka 650r gets 4.5l/100km

Well my flatmates vz bandit gets 200-220 per 10ltrs.
Should just carry big containers of fuel round with me then haha

[brendonjw]

http://www.perthstreetbikes.com/forum/f37/fuel-consumption-64800/

It does seem to be down a bit compared to what most of these guys are getting

[firefighter]

Well my flatmates vz bandit gets 200-220 per 10ltrs.
Should just carry big containers of fuel round with me then haha

Send Choco or Toto a pm and ask what milegae they got out of their 250 hornets. Do'nt bother comparing it with different models and brands when there's people on here with the same bike!

Best comparison you can do really.

Also, have the sprockets been changed to lower the gearing? I dunno why you would bother on a 250 but I know my 900 has less fuel eco by about 10km as I went 1T down front 1T up rear.......however the 10 km less per tank does'nt bother me in the slightest, and I have'nt actually noticed it at all.

If you were curious I get 240-250 before reserve. In fact on a long trip last week I got 260 before reserve. 17L tank from memory.....

[paturoa]

Are you sure that the odo is reading correctly?

[Hiflyer]

Are you sure that the odo is reading correctly?

Why wouldn't it be? How do I check if it's not

[slofox]

Do one of the odo tests on either the southern motorway or the south western...

[KelvinAng]

14-15km per L of gas is pretty good mileage for lil' ol'hornet city riding I reckon. When I had my 1997 Hornet 250 I get about 13km/L, but I tend to change up after 8000rpm so meaning most of the time I'm at gear 3 max.

I've tried to change up faster and keep the revs below 6000rpm etc for a few tanks as a comparison, but didn't get significant fuel savings and gained a pretty jerky ride, so I gave up.

It's just the nature of the beast. Can't have your fun and fuel economy at the same time :cool:

In the open roads I get about 16km/L.

[breakaway]

So is this fuel Economy include open road riding?

[Beeza]

So, the $64000 question really is WHO is the greatest carb guru in New Zealand who can sort out these questions fully, finally and forever. Surely? What's his name and where does he work?

[Icemaestro]

George the MC doctor :-) my cbr250rr got down to 14-15km/L, he rejetted the carbs, cleaned them, replaced some things, got it back up to about 19km/L

[gatch]

Dyno it..

My 400 gets 15k/l and I think that is thisrtier than necessary..

[FJRider]

Hmmmm I forgot to mention it does have an aftermarket exhaust, but that wouldn't make it run rich would it?

Was the bike re-jetted when this was fitted ... ??

This is standard practice with the fitting of aftermarket exausts ... more power comes with a price...

[warewolf]

5500km on a 13 year old bike... it's had to have sat around unused for long periods, that's never good for keeping everything in good working order.

Choke thingies can often seize up, sticking on. Ruins fuel economy real quick when you leave the choke on.

[koba]

Dyno it..

My 400 gets 15k/l and I think that is thisrtier than necessary..

Mine is thirstier, about 13 KM/L.

[megageoff76]

350km from a 17 litre tank...even when pushing it...not that I EVER push it of course...I just got TOLD that...:whistle:

Have you got any tips you can share on how you can get 350 kms to a tank? How much are you putting in at fill up time?

I only use my SV for commuting, and I fill up once the fuel light stops flashing.

The most ive ever seen is about 280kms, which was about 14 litres. Ive tried different fuel grades too and it doesn't make any difference to the result.

[Hiflyer]

Holy Thread Dredge!!!!!!

Decided to leave it for a while. It's started getting worse (down to ~130kms out of 10L) so I changed the oil now it gets about 10kms more.

Just having a bit of a think about it at work, could a blocked airfilter be causing it to be thirsty?

I ended up asking a few other hornet owners who said they were getting arounf 200kms out of theirs :angry:

[marty]

so 12 months later you still haven't done anything about it? It's obviously not a huge issue then is it?

[avgas]

Holy Thread Dredge!!!!!!

Decided to leave it for a while. It's started getting worse (down to ~130kms out of 10L) so I changed the oil now it gets about 10kms more.

Just having a bit of a think about it at work, could a blocked airfilter be causing it to be thirsty?

I ended up asking a few other hornet owners who said they were getting arounf 200kms out of theirs :angry:
Get it serviced man......you have something fucked.
Could be:
- Air filter
- needles/jets
- Carbs
- Spark plugs
- Engine seals........

[Hiflyer]

Get it serviced man......you have something fucked.
Could be:
- Air filter
- needles/jets
- Carbs
- Spark plugs
- Engine seals........

WOOHOO! haha

Needs some new rear brakepads anyway. Damn right before xmas as well even.

Think I might to the plugs and air filter myself. Get someone with the knowhow to clean the carbs and if that doesn't work I'll take it into a shop.

Yes, yes i am a cheap bastard haha

[Hiflyer]

so 12 months later you still haven't done anything about it? It's obviously not a huge issue then is it?

No cos the bike runs fine.

Just thought maybe I should get around to addressing it

[davebullet]

Is the exahust drak brown / black (doesn't that indicate an overrich mixture)?

[Hiflyer]

Is the exahust drak brown / black (doesn't that indicate an overrich mixture)?

Yea it is quite black on the inside. Will have to get that checked out as well

[Logpot]

George the MC doctor :-) my cbr250rr got down to 14-15km/L, he rejetted the carbs, cleaned them, replaced some things, got it back up to about 19km/L

My bike is older but runs the same engine.

I replaced the air fliter and plugs but didn't noticed a significant improvement in fuel consumption until the carbs were stripped, rebuilt and balanced.

My carbs were leaking due to some stuffed o-rings hence the rebuild.

It now starts from cold a lot better and I'm getting more km's per tank.

You can get carb rebuild kits here http://www.motorcyclespareswarehouse.com.au/products/k-1052hk-carb-repair-and-parts-kit

[psycho22]

:Offtopic:But try riding an SV thou... you will be lucky to get 9 or 10 km/l out of it

[Gremlin]

Surely in the last 12 months you've done enough km for an entire service interval to be covered? :blink:

Botany Honda know their Hondas

[p.dath]

Think I might to the plugs and air filter myself. Get someone with the knowhow to clean the carbs and if that doesn't work I'll take it into a shop.

Yes, yes i am a cheap bastard haha

Sounds like your spending more money on petrol than you need to me ... hardly the cheap bastard approach. :)

I'd go for a service, and tell the bike mechanic the issue you are having.

[nomnomnom]

So average fuel consumption is *someone fill this space*

I have a 250 Bandit and the fuel gauge doesnt work so I work out when I need to gas up off the tripmeter. I've only run it outta fuel once and am too scared to do it again (first time was on the motorway, peak traffic, going up a steep hill, I couldnt reach switch to reserve tank :o).

My trip to and from work is 75k each way, so 150ks a day. And I worked out I can get approx 180Ks to a tank, which doesnt seem like much considering I basically have to fill up everyday :(

[Gibbo89]

So average fuel consumption is *someone fill this space*

I have a 250 Bandit and the fuel gauge doesnt work so I work out when I need to gas up off the tripmeter. I've only run it outta fuel once and am too scared to do it again (first time was on the motorway, peak traffic, going up a steep hill, I couldnt reach switch to reserve tank :o).

My trip to and from work is 75k each way, so 150ks a day. And I worked out I can get approx 180Ks to a tank, which doesnt seem like much considering I basically have to fill up everyday :(

Suzuki Bandit 250's are not purely 'commuters', your Bandit is an all rounder much like a hornet, jade, zeal. They are all 4 cylinder bikes that are a lot of fun to ride, but aren't going to be as cheap as say a vtr 250 or a hyosung or something with only 1 cylinder. Take a Bandit on some nice pieces of road and then you'll forget all about the economy of it.

When was the bike last serviced? Ask the dealer you got it off about the k's you are getting too.

Also, how often do you check your tyre pressure? And how 'hard' to you drive it? Do you just sit on 100k's in 6th gear for the commute etc.

[nomnomnom]

Check tyre pressure every week, and I dont ride hard at all. Average 100Ks all the way. I mean no I dont Im on an L plate and Im restricted to 70 :innocent:

I think it had a service just before I bought it (so 3-4 months ago), is servicing a yearly thing or 6 monthly? Stupid question I know, but I literally knew nothing about bikes before I got my license and bought my bandit lol

[gale_wolf]

:Offtopic:But try riding an SV thou... you will be lucky to get 9 or 10 km/l out of it
Really? I test rode one, glad I didn't get it.

My gixxer thou gets 13-15km per litre depending on where and how I'm riding.

As others have already said, seems that 13-ish km per litre (and getting worse) on a fairly modern 250 may justify a trip in to a mechanic for a check, or an adjustment to riding style?

Edit: On 2nd thought, I just noticed the OP's Hornet's year is '96. Does that still count as a modern 250? I've been out of the 250 market for a long time.

[gale_wolf]

I think it had a service just before I bought it (so 3-4 months ago), is servicing a yearly thing or 6 monthly? Stupid question I know, but I literally knew nothing about bikes before I got my license and bought my bandit lol
Unless kept in storage, it's more distance travelled/engine wear than just 6 monthly. Depending on the bike the manufacturer will recommend it be serviced, oil and filter, maybe every 5000-7000kms (6000km for mine), also sparks and air filter, chain and sprockets need checking etc.

[Gibbo89]

Check tyre pressure every week, and I dont ride hard at all. Average 100Ks all the way. I mean no I dont Im on an L plate and Im restricted to 70 :innocent:

I think it had a service just before I bought it (so 3-4 months ago), is servicing a yearly thing or 6 monthly? Stupid question I know, but I literally knew nothing about bikes before I got my license and bought my bandit lol

good that you check the tyres regulalry, what psi do you run? I would assume that your 4 cylinder 250 would be every 5000 k's. you would hit that before 6 months is up. If my maths is right then you would do huge k's per year (150k a day for 5 days you do i think you said earlier?)

have a google for 250 bandit fuel consumtion, post 95 as I think pre 95 are slightly diff and not v tec or something. i'm sure red baron would gladly talk to you about it too

[superman]

400+ out of my 18 litre tank, :p

Seem to get around 23km/l and that's just riding normally. Well normal for only been riding the last few weeks, so 100km/h on average but changing down to 5th or 4th almost every corner just to increase the revs and torque a bit for extra control. Though country riding always gets me good mileage, don't have to stop or slow down unecessarily :yes:... well usually, till a cow pops out onto the road.

Gota love the efficiency of the new bike engines, makes my daily trips so much cheaper and I can still drive as I wish and have loadsa fun!

[Hiflyer]

Ahhh well. No need to worry about fuel consumption now. I'm in a cast for 6 weeks. Broke my heel saving orphans from their burning house......

kidding. I fell off the stairs....

[smith]

I really wonder that all these stuffs make the bike engine to consume more fuel, like more pressure tyres etc. I just take my bike to the mechanic and he usually cleans the engine and apply right motor oil, so I was unaware about all these stuffs.

[Gibbo89]

I really wonder that all these stuffs make the bike engine to consume more fuel, like more pressure tyres etc. I just take my bike to the mechanic and he usually cleans the engine and apply right motor oil, so I was unaware about all these stuffs.

I doubt he just gives your engine a spit shine and sends you on your way. An oil change is pretty basic, I'm surprised you do not do it yourself.

[Magna83]

Was wondering what the average would be for a 250 alright. Previous owner mentioned that he was getting 300-350km per tank (11 litres with 3.1 for reserve) which i initially thought was pretty high. Needless to say I was pretty disappointed when she started spluttering & fartin at 160km, before I switched to reserve.
Feeling much better about my km/g after reading this. I'm getting around 20 km/g, which is sounding pretty good now. Cheers!