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Cams and mpg

11K views 33 replies 14 participants last post by  tlippy 
#1 ·
Is there one part of the cam spec that decreases your fuel mileage in particular or is it a combination of factors assuming the no other mods are made and no changes to riding style? The reason I ask is my Andrews 27 bike with 495 lift gets 50 mpg, my Andrews 37 bike with 510 lift gets 47 mpg but my SE255 bike with 550 lift gets 20 something mpg. Common sense would tell me the higher the lift, the lower the mpg. Am I right or wrong? Would switching to a Woods Tw6 with a "mild" 510 lift increase my mpg (forget about where the torque curve comes in for now) Thanks for your help!!!
 
#3 ·
IMO, a great abundance of overlap is not a good thing for MPG. Mostly, it's in the tune.
 
#4 ·
First off I am assuming that the cams were all in different bikes so the comparison of these cams and fuel mileage is somewhat of an apples to oranges thing because each bike is different. Secondly, I would strongly suggest that, if you are only getting 20 something miles per gallon with the 255 cams which are fairly mild cams, you have major tuning issues. The lousy tune is much more responsible for the poor fuel mileage than this cam or that cam.
 
#5 ·
@gree: 100%

MPG in the 20s is a piss poor tune. I get mid to upper 40s with S&S .640 cams in a 124".
 
#7 ·
@gree:

My 95 incher is way over breathed. It does 40+ mpg consistently, in town riding, better on the high way. 2" intake, 1.623" exhaust, TW67G, 1.67 rollers. Big lift, closes late, a lot of over lap. I tuned it with an O2 sensor on a 3/8" copper tubing manifold shoved up the front pipe, watching the signal on a Fluke meter, strapped over the speedo while riding it. The tune is critical.
 
#8 ·
Ok...............all consistent answers, not the cam specs but the tune itself, shows how much I know, I guess that's what this forum is for! Thank you everyone for resonding!

Yes guydoc77, they were different bikes, I just thought that was strange so i through that out there.

claydball: I always reset the trip A at fuel ups and try to run as close to empty as possible so as to get a true average.

damn colonel sanders......................I am way jealous!!!! must be a hell off a ride when you twist that throttle!
 
#10 ·
Thanks, Big John. :cheers: There are plenty of bikes here that could walk off and leave me though. Mine is a relatively mild build but I fully intended it to be to better serve my purpose for it.

For me, the beauty of this build is how docile (no, not powerwise!) it is. It does everything it should and nothing it shouldn't. No bad manners. No bogs, no hiccups, nothing jerky. Everything is smoooooooth. Starts easy, doesn't run hot even in 100+ degree weather. I almost never notice any heat coming off of this engine. It never pings regardless of the throttle position, RPM, or hot weather. And it gets fantastic gas mileage to boot. :cheers:
 
#25 · (Edited)
did you find a competent tuner yet?
Strokerjlk is in Mattoon, IL.
No idea of his $ but at 20 something mpg, if it's low 20's it could be harmfully rich. Hi 20's, well just wasting fuel and potential performance.
Hey buddy, yeah i've been corresponding with Strokerjlk, he's been very helpful explaining stuff. I had the dealer do a quick retune for free until I can get an appointment and get my pennies saved up.

Just ran the first tank out since then, got 33 mpg and a little more power. So a little better but still gonna have Stroker work his magic when I get a chance.
 
#26 ·
The sooner the better. Trust me.
 
#28 ·
empty wallet emoticon :)

Good one John...
Low 30's is nuthin to sneeze at. I read all these posts of guys getting great mileage but I purchased 2 new HD's, '01 Wide Glide (carbed) and '03 Deuce (f/inj) and neither ever did much better than that (33), stock or modified. Low to high 30's is all I've ever gotten and I don't usually ride 'em like I stole 'em.
Did a Yost mod on the carbed bike and a Dobeck/Techlusion fuel adder on the Deuce. They both ran better but mileage was about the same as stock.
Still waitin' to see 40+, but then most of my riding is in town. Wish Stroker wasn't so far from me, I'd like to let him tune mine.
Let us know how it 'tunes' out.
Ha, I crack myself up!
 
#29 ·
Good one John...
Low 30's is nuthin to sneeze at. I read all these posts of guys getting great mileage but I purchased 2 new HD's, '01 Wide Glide (carbed) and '03 Deuce (f/inj) and neither ever did much better than that (33), stock or modified. Low to high 30's is all I've ever gotten and I don't usually ride 'em like I stole 'em.
My Triglide just got 37.1 mpg on the last tank and its a 1,200+ pound brick. That was a mix of city and freeway riding with speeds as high as 80 mph. The gas mileage is all in the hands of the guy tuning it. My 06 Ultra will run 43 - 45 mpg depending on how nuts I ride it, FWIW it made 104/100 when it was tuned.
 
#31 ·
In the late 70s Bruce Crower sold some cams for fleet service for the SBC. They have a very wide LSA and late closing intake. Not much for low speed torque but they worked, and they were recommending 11:1 compression+ but back then we had real gas. Not even sure if you googled that topic you could come up with the history and logic short of calling Crower.
 
#34 ·
Bought this package on 09/13. Very easy install. I cannot believe the difference in my stock 2009 FLTR. Wish I had done some meaningful pretesting so I had something to compare before and after. Can tell you this: On a downhill run from Mt. Bachelor to Bend on my stock bike, 100 MPH and she was all in. After the Fuel Moto install on a flat run from Redmond to Bend, I backed off at 110 MPH. Also the best stock fuel mileage I ever got was 47 MPG on a solo Bend to Reno Street Vibrations trip in 2010. Wednesday I made the same run with a passenger and baggage for 2 at: 72MPH, 2800 RPM, 6th gear and averaged 51MPG on each of 4 fuel stops. At 2800 RPM I'm still in the 14.6 AFR range but the bike seems to be running cooler. Shoulda done some pretest to prove/disprove this. I did change to Mobil 1 Syn just before the trip and was able to buy non-ethanol fuel while in Oregon. Also the Jackpot 3.5" Dyno tuned mufflers are extremely pleasant on a long run. There's just gotta be some reason Fuel Moto made the mufflers side specific and added extra baffling to the Left side. I believe their claim they are 'Dino tuned'. There is one thing I wouldn't do again on this install. I removed my fuel tank to run the PV wire concealed. The wire has no end covers so to protect them when I remove the PV, I cover both ends with electrical tape then tie wrap the overlap to keep the tape on. Kinda a pain when U want to play with the PV. Do need to contact Jamie to see if a new cable is available.
Oh and another thing. I had a fault code show up during the maiden run. #B1123. Had to take it to WildHorse Harley on the Saturday before my trip to Street Vibrations. I left the PV on my handlebars and plugged in. I wanted the Dealer to see exactly what I had done to the OE ECM. I really thought they would claim I had caused the fault. In fact the service order read: "Dyna Tech Power Commander installed prior to problems - Coincidence"? No problem with my flash of the ECM or the PV install. They did replace the Brake/Turn Signal Module which corrected the fault code. It does seem that running the bike with the PV on causes some fault codes but none that require action.
Well that's it! Unscientific and undocumented. But I would say this is the best $$$ I have spent on this bike. And I'm gonna be preaching the benefits to anyone who will listen. I do believe that the Fuel Moto total package is required to reap my benefits
__________________
2009 FLTR Road Glide. Total stock - and gonna keep it that way!
OOPS!!!! After 15K miles I couldn't stand it any longer. Installed Fuel Moto's 09 Touring Package, ie; JP Tuned Muffs, SE Air, PV Tuner......Woods Tw555 Cams. Everything from Fuel Moto!
 
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