Ah, Some Data ... And Better Results than Expected

Contrary to my prediction in a previous post, the Italica Bulldog didn't get 60-70 miles per gallon in its first "fuel up, read odometer, ride, fuel up again, read odometer again, do the math" check.

It got 72 miles per gallon!

That's based on only about 60 miles of travel, but I suspect the travel produced a fair average. It included "at the limit of its power on the highway," "wondering if that f**cking light is ever going to turn green," and pretty much everything in between.

And I suspect the mileage will improve as I mod the bike.

For example, if the stock plug and coil are kinda crap (likely), and the new NGK iridium spark plug and Nibbi coil I have sitting on my desk right now are substantially better (also likely), well, better spark = more complete consumption and of, and less wasted, fuel in the cylinder = less fuel needed to produce the same amount of power output from the engine.

I'm also now reasonably sure that the tank holds 1.3 gallons, not the 0.9 gallons some sites say -- I got 0.817 gallons into the tank today, and it did not look all but empty on pre-fill visual inspection.

So, 1.3 gallons @ 72 miles per gallon = 93.6 mile range. I will plan any long trips around refueling every 80 miles or so (with my 750ml fuel bottle kept full in case I take a wrong turn, a station I expected to be open isn't, etc.).