Economical motorway commuter...

[T0MMY]

I have the depressing need to commute 80 miles a day for my new job, all on motorways

I currently have a ZX6R that is mainly used as a trackbike and a CB-1 that has no weather protection so I need to get a mile muncher that will be comfortable at 80mph and hopefully give me 70mpg+.

My first thought was a GPZ500S but someone told me SV650s can get decent MPG ridden sensibly. Any other options? I don't want to spend much over a grand and a half and it needs to have a fairing.
____________________
ZX6R + CBR600RR

[rtho782]

70mpg is a push for something like an SV650...

The new CBR250 might do it?

[temeluchus]

bmw k75, kawasaki gt550 with fly screen, yammy diversion
____________________
Some shite cruiser. Now with guns and FREEDOM!

[P.addy]

I got 40mpg...45 at best on my SV.

Yamaha Diversion 6, old 1994 one or something?

What about something ghetto like a GS500? Chuck a screen on the CB1?

[Howling TerrorOutOfOffice]

Looking on Fuelly.com the FZ6 does high 50s and is quite fun to ride.
____________________
Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[stonesie]

I've got an average of 62 mpg and a peak of 68.something on my K6 SV650S, then again, comeing back from blackpool it got down to about 45 on the motorways playing catch-up with a Falco and a Hyabusa, good fun


A SV650 with a DB screen and well mannered rider should chug along at nearly legal speeds at well above 60 mpg.


My friends 250 ninja does better mpg than mine but it is 33bhp Vs my 72, and will top 100, but long range commuting so near the limit of what it can do might not be good for either the bike or rider.

[temeluchus]

gt550, k75 and the divvy (i had a 94 and a 98) all did mid 50s mpg on the motorway.
____________________
Some shite cruiser. Now with guns and FREEDOM!

[stonesie]

Have a nose round fuelly.com See what people are getting from various bikes

[c-m]

[Serendipity]

I say get something with a comfortable, but sporty way about it.

The performance characteristics of the bike can have a marked effect on the MPG due to the rider pushing harder on a slower bike. I’ve been doing a 60 mile motorway round trip for a few months and mostly using a CB500. The CB is flawless in the city, but while it’s fast enough on the motorway it feels like a lot of effort to keep up with traffic on the faster sections. If I keep the CB’s engine below 6k rpm on the motorway (75-80mph) it returns over 60 MPG, but it’s vibey and struggles to rapidly accelerate if you want to change lanes into a faster stream of traffic. Hence I tend to go faster all the time, wasting petrol and increasing the speed I square off my tyres.

However, over the last few weeks I’ve started using my ancient CBR600F. The motorway stretches are now a joy. Comfortable and less vibrations. Want to go faster? 70mph to mumble mph in a heart lifting flash. And the CBR filters better than the CB500 due to better mirror placing and isn’t much worse in town. And the surprise is that the CBR is still averaging 55 MPG despite being quicker on the motorway.

So I say go for an older sporty middleweight. Something that you would possibly label a sport tourer. Something like a late nineties CBR6 or a ZX6R… oh…

Also consider that 80 miles a day is nigh on 20,000 miles a year. You’ll be wanting something with easy servicing and common size wheels for a greater choice of tyres. Something old that won’t depreciate too much when you throw the miles on…
____________________
2016 CBF1000F - Commuter heaven | 1994 CBR600FR - Awaiting defibrillation

[iooi]

[G]

If I was going for ultra fuel economy along with actually making an effort to ride 'economically', I'd go for the GPZ500S from my previous research (also consider checking up on what suspension/brake mods are done by the racers ).

Someone on here mentioned 100mpg at 45mph - so that's c90 fuel economy and c90 speeds, if you could hack that (which I couldn't.)

Having been going up and down the country a lot recently on 4 wheels I have managed to generally slow myself down to try and save a bit of cash, but not sure how far I would manage to go on 2 wheels.

Interesting of the fuel economy from the FI SV - pretty sure I wasn't getting that on carbed ones, so wonder if the FI is a bit better.

[T0MMY]

I think the GPZ500 is my best option; I had the 400 grey import version once and it was great for long journeys and very economical. I do have a car but it's not built for cruising on motorways and struggles to get over 30mpg. I could get another one but I'd want to keep the old one for trackdays and weekends anyway and I hate owning two cars at once.
____________________
ZX6R + CBR600RR

[Rogerborg]

[T0MMY]

Had a bit of a think about it and actually it makes no sense to buy a cheap nail to run into the ground when I already have one! The ZX6R only cost me £800 and if I stick the original sprockets on, get a scottoiler and lose the track tyres it would probably be the best option. I can ride it into the ground then get a nicer trackbike next year (which I was considering doing anyway). It should be good for 55mpg at least and is more comfortable and has better weather protection than a GPZ500 at motorway speeds.

I'm just going to sell the CB-1 as much as I love it I never ride it these days.
____________________
ZX6R + CBR600RR

[sickpup]