[oldschooltool]

I’ve only ridden my INT 650 for around 700 miles but I’ve grown tired of the fuel indicator flashing only to fill up and find that I could fit 2 gallons of fuel. 60 miles per gallon is great but needing to get fuel every 120 miles is not.

I decided the gauge must be wrong so I decided to push it a bit. I made it 155 miles before it ran out of fuel, 200 yards from a station luckily. When I filled up it only fit 2.7 gallons.

I thought these tanks were 3.6 gallons. I get not being able to use it all but an entire gallon lost???  What has been your experience with this?

[anglojaxon]

I believe some of the actual volume is taken up by the fuel pump.

[GlennF]

The rated capacity is 3.6 US gallons or 3.0 real gallons.

Was your 2.7 gallons US or Imperial ?

Also did you fill on the centre stand ?

If it was imperial gallons you are only 1/4 gallon short which probably is taken up by fuel pump as mentioned above and some residue fuel that can not be drained.

[oldschooltool]

It was US gallons and filled on the side stand. If I can gat a little more in it on the center stand I’ll give that a go!

[mwmosser]

I have been in the same position a few times - filling up every third ride, it seems. And getting the same amount in. I also fill up on side stand but will try the center stand next. It is true that our side stands lean WAY over compared to some bikes out there. Maybe enough that we lose 1/2 gallon of capacity!

[Richard230]

Now that you mention it, I wonder if goofy fuel gauges are a modern thing?  My 2020 KTM 390 Duke has a fuel gauge that acts the same way. The other day it had just lost the last of the fuel gauge bars on the display and was showing an empty tank. So I refilled the fuel tank and it only took 2.5 U.S. gallons. Its capacity is said to be 3.57 gallons (13.5 liters). The only logical reason that I can think of for having an extra gallon of fuel in the tank when the gauge shows empty is that KTM wanted to make sure that the fuel pump didn't run dry, which would likely damage it if that happened for very long or too many times. Perhaps RE has the same sort of thinking.

At least I don't have that problem with my Bullet. It only has a warning light that comes on when there is a gallon left in the tank. But since it has no fuel level gauge and the warning light is subject to random fluctuations and the possibility of the fuel level float being dissolved by smog gas, I always refuel after a set mileage just like we did back in the day. 

[mwmosser]

The only logical reason that I can think of for having an extra gallon of fuel in the tank when the gauge shows empty is that KTM wanted to make sure that the fuel pump didn't run dry, which would likely damage it if that happened for very long or too many times. Perhaps RE has the same sort of thinking.

RE does say in the manual to avoid riding with the flashing fuel bar as that will damage the fuel pump. I'm sure the lawyers made them put that in there, but burning up your fuel pump to get a few extra miles is a bad tradeoff IMO. Maybe I should invest in one of those little one-gallon gas cans like the ADV riders do. Oh right, this is not an ADV bike and I'm not doing any superslab stuff either. I expect for commuting or other daily riding activities the fuel ups don't get too much in the way - kind of like second nature after a while, I guess.

[Jared_Lee]

I am still having trouble reconciling the motorcycle running out of fuel and then only taking on 2.7 of the stated 3.6 gallon capacity. That doesn't make sense. I too have fueled up a while after the light is flashing as my norm and averaged 2.3 gallons at fill up averaging 130 miles between fill up. By 2.7 gallon capacity, I was running right up to empty. I thought I still had about a gallon left. Next time I'm filling up at my usual marker, I'm going to take a good long look inside the tank to see if I'm really about to run dry and report back.

[ceekay]

from the manual......

Fuel tank capacity................................... 14.47 quart / 13.7* Litre
Low Fuel Warning.................................. 3.06 quart / 2.9* Litre
Dead Stock.............................................. 0.80 quart / 0.75* Litre

I think dead stock means fuel that is unusable so 14.47-.8=13.67 usable. (3.4 gal. US)

I didn't realize the INT fuel tank was so small. AT 40 mpg that is 136 miles to dry. I like to keep a safe fuel cushion. Riding the backroads you would not pass a fuel stop without topping up.  A  couple of my favorite rides have 50+ miles between fuel stations. a good reason to belong to some sort of dependable roadside assistance program.

[mwmosser]

This is the issue. It seems no one is actually getting the full 3.4 gallon capacity. More like 2.7. So that's in some cases <110 miles till E. I ride pretty conservatively but still fuel up at 125 to be safe.

[ATXConti650]

This is the first time I have had a moto with a fuel gauge. My memory for numbers is no bueno as I have mathematical CRS. Trying to remember what the mileage was when I last fueled up or remember the mileage I intended to fuel up again escaped me. Trying to do the math, looking down at the speedo while riding just made my brain scream in a sort of frustrated panic. My riding buddy uses a combination lock that he rolls the numbers around for his next fuel stop. I used a grease pencil, or China marker to write big numbers on the tank my next stop.

I tend to fuel up at 100 mile increments. I've just developed a habit of doing this and it's no issue. If on a road trip it was a way to stop and rest the butt. If on a daily commute it insured I would get to work or get home.

For me the gauge eliminates the need to write on the tank. Looking forward to a road trip though when it cools off. With the Continental I bet a 100 miles at a time is enough and a brief respite will be anticipated. 'Bout when the gauge shows a bar less than half a tank.

[NVDucati]

I am still having trouble reconciling the motorcycle running out of fuel and then only taking on 2.7 of the stated 3.6 gallon capacity. That doesn't make sense. I too have fueled up a while after the light is flashing as my norm and averaged 2.3 gallons at fill up averaging 130 miles between fill up. By 2.7 gallon capacity, I was running right up to empty. I thought I still had about a gallon left. Next time I'm filling up at my usual marker, I'm going to take a good long look inside the tank to see if I'm really about to run dry and report back.

I can't know, but any chance you live in a place that has those vapor-trap rubber accordion thingies? If so and you use it as designed ... it will shut off early.
If not ... that splash shield inside the filler hole of your tank will momentarily reach the top with the high volume, high speed gas pumps. Then the fuel recedes in a second or two. You can repeat slowly adding a little more fuel until you really do over fill it. With my RE, on the center stand or me straddling the bike upright, I can get sorta another 3 tenths of a US gallon in.

[Richard230]

I have ridden places in the Western U.S. where you could go 200 miles before seeing an open gas station.  A lot of gas stations in the western boondocks seemed to be abandoned, probably due to the expense of government pollution regulations and not enough business to pay for things like vapor recovery systems, double or triple wall fuel tanks and yearly government inspections to make sure you are toeing the line. 

Fortunately, both my 390 Duke and my RE Bullet 500 are good for 200 miles before they get down to their .8 gallon reserve. 

[NVDucati]

I have ridden places in the Western U.S. where you could go 200 miles before seeing an open gas station.  A lot of gas stations in the western boondocks seemed to be abandoned, probably due to the expense of government pollution regulations and not enough business to pay for things like vapor recovery systems, double or triple wall fuel tanks and yearly government inspections to make sure you are toeing the line. 

Or as cars went from 10mpg to 20, they just drove past that once perfectly located filling station.

[twocoolgliders]

I don't use the fuel gauge at all...I do it the old fashioned way, with the trip meter.

I seem to get a good 60 MPG......

Having a gauge which indicates "empty"  "Fill up now"  when you have 1/3 of your fuel remaining is useless..

I would want finer and finer accuracy as the tank goes low...but once the thing starts blinking....and you continue riding, then what do you have?  1/3 tank, 1/4 tank?  1/8 tank, 1/16th tank ?

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