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Fuel / gas gauge inaccuracy

39K views 157 replies 56 participants last post by  GrogAV 
#1 ·
I have put 450 miles on my new 2012 CCT and I've noticed that the fuel / gas gauge is very inaccurate. I've actually watched the needle move while sitting at a stop light.

The first time the fuel light came on and the gauge showed bone dry I was only able to pump 3.8 gallons into the tank. The second time I was able to get 4 gallons. This bike has a 5.8 gallon fuel tank!

Has anyone else experienced this issue? I didn't see any other posts mentioning this.

Thanks,

Kyle
 
#126 ·
I have a foot into retirement and would love to move to where I can ride the year around, but pretty wife has sunk her roots here very deep. In order to ride the year around, some kind of transport for the bike is in order, so I can get past the rain, snow and cold to warmer climes in Southern CA, or?

Tell me more about that Pelican case - what model, etc.
 
#138 ·
Tell me more about that Pelican case - what model, etc.
Yes , I know it's off-topic...It's a Pelican 1440. I think I may try to get one size larger of this style though. It's the exact same width as the XC luggage rack but the rack is still an inch or two deeper than the case. It worked really well on the trip down from Nashville to Palatka, FL. With it strapped down with ratchet straps through the side handles, I can still open the top to get into it.
 
#136 ·
Was this trip in stop and go traffic, around town? Or was it cruising on the highway? Even with a lot of other variables kept constant (riding style, weather, road conditions, etc.) I can get a 10 mpg difference from doing short little rides around town on one tank, and doing some extended freeway cruising on another tank.

25mpg is low, but you're not telling us the whole story. :confused:
 
#128 ·
If its not your bike, it could be your riding style.
 
#129 ·
OR...you have a 2013 and it's not broke in yet. How many miles do you have on the bike...and yes, THIS WILL MAKE DIFFERENCE!!
 
#130 ·
That is pretty low gas mileage! I got in the low 40's during my 500 mile break in and then went to the upper 30's as I was starting to have more fun with the bike. Last couple of fill ups have been around 42mpg and I have 1600 miles on my XR.
 
#131 ·
The 106" engine is pretty tight when new. It'll take at least 1K miles and then some before it begins to loosen and deliver more power and mpg. During break-in, continually vary your speed and RPMs, with short bursts past 3500 rpm when in a lower gear. Keeping revs too low too long will never seat the rings. As soon as your bike left the assembly line, the throttle got twisted way down. It may still be tight, but it ain't no virgin.
 
#137 ·
Mixture of city some days, then freeway others. I have the option of either when going to work. It's about 15 miles round trip. Usually leave in the mornings around 8-8:30am and the temp varies right now from 30-40 degrees. And when I come home at around 7 it's around 50 or so out. Pretty consistent in my riding. Keep it around 2500-3000 rpm I don't really step on the gas unless necessary.
 
#139 ·
From what you're describing, you should not get lower than 33-35 mpg. Someone else had a similar issue, and posted about it about a year or two ago. Might be worth searching the forum for it - I don't remember what their resolution was.

I would suggest seeing your dealer (hopefully you have a competent mechanic).
 
#141 ·
#142 ·
I have 2700 miles on my 2012 XC. I have stock exhaust, motor, tires, etc... I am averaging between 42-43mpg in highway riding.
 
#144 ·
My practice is to reset the trip 1 and trip 2 at the fill up. When the fuel light comes on, I reset trip 2. I figure I have a good 50 miles left.
Well; I did that many times, but this one time recently I was at 30 miles and passed a gas station to go to another one about 12 more miles away. About 4 or 5 miles into that leg the bike started spuddering. I turned around to go back. On the way back; if I would get up to a higher speed it would start spuddering again. If I went around 40 to 45 it would move right alone with no spudder. I made it back to the station that I had passed earlier and put in 5.3 gallons.
I'm wondering if the last half gallon is even usable. Maybe the inlet for the fuel pump is facing sideways and not all the way on the bottom of the tank. Maybe someday I'll take a gallon of gas in a gas can with me on a ride and try and run out to see what it does.

Has anyone ever ran out of gas on their Victory?
 
#145 ·
Yup. Using almost the same logic- with the added knowledge that "when the fuel light illuminates and stays on- you have less than 1 gallon left"

I emphasize "less than" because that little detail in the manual escaped my attention. I was completely confident that I had plenty of range to get back up to Costco from where I was-

[someone make a "buzzer" sound]


I ended up spitting and sputtering down a hill- stopping in front of some guys house- who wouldn't take my money for a little over a gallon of fuel! He loved the bike- had an old Honda in the garage. I guess he knew my story wasn't a load of crap with the 30 day tags, etc..


Do not mess with that light! :ltr:

I am tempted to run it out completely just to get some idea, though. I will have an opportunity for this with a chase car as we caravan to OBX.. Not sure yet..
 
#146 ·
I do much the same as Orbiker, only when my light comes on, I make a mental note of what the ODO will read 40 miles from then and gas up prior to that.
 
#150 ·
Relying on the odometer is fine once you know ...

but until you know your range?
Yes, I had many bikes with no lights or gauges, just a fuel cock with a 'reserve' setting - and if you forget to switch it back to normal after you filled up, well - you know ....

Still, having a gauge, and not properly calibrating it is worse than I expect from a backyard job. I understand if you have a float and a mechanical/electric gauge it may be non linear, but you can vary the scale, markings.
Having some processing involved, there is really no excuse not to calibrate properly.
Ok, I feel better now!:crzy:
 
#151 ·
Will calibrating properly give me better fuel mileage and make my teeth whiter?
 
#152 ·
Definitely will make teeth whiter. Not sure about gas mileage. Definitely won't do sh!t for the gas gauge.

I guess old habits die hard, but Trip1 is strictly for Gas Fills. You could put a big piece of tape on the gas gauge on my bike, and I probably wouldn't even notice. Useless piece of equipment.
 
#153 ·
OK… I gotta comment on this.

First from a riders perspective: Thing reads full, don’t need gas. Thing reads less than full, probably need gas soon. Little light comes on, get your butt to the closest gas station. At 5.8 gallons and 35-43mpg a tank of gas will typically outlasts my butt. Fill up as needed.

From an engineers perspective: It is not that difficult to design a system that can acurately guage the amount of fuel in an oddly shaped tank. Voltage in from the sensor, go through some algorithm, voltage out to the gauge. It may take some additional engineering to come up with the right alogorithm and make the needed program change, but the results should be sufficently acurate using the existing hardware design. Small investment, increased customer perception of quality, nice payoff.

Personally I find the lack of accuracy an anoyance, but everyones acceptance of the inacuracy anoys me further. Why is the guage there if the customer is just going to put a piece of tape over it?
 
#155 ·
well put!

OK… I gotta comment on this.

First from a riders perspective: ....

From an engineers perspective: .....

Personally I find the lack of accuracy an anoyance, but everyones acceptance of the inacuracy anoys me further. Why is the guage there if the customer is just going to put a piece of tape over it?
Well, I am an engineer, and I forget sometimes that not everyone it,
cheers
 
#156 ·
i would love it if the gauge actually read correctly, but i have also never had a vehicle with an accurate gauge so for me its a matter of getting use to another poorly engineered gauge. i by the way am not an engineer, just a guy that has to fix their mistakes! haha


Sent from Motorcycle.com Free App
 
#158 ·
Almost 10000 miles on it now

I have had my XCT sense May 22, 2013 and like everyone on here I have had to deal with the gas gauge. I get about 45 to 51 mpg depending on how fast we ride. I get 165 to 175 before low fuel light comes on. My range also will flash low fuel warning but will go back to showing miles to go after a while. On first long ride with a group I did not trust the gauge and pulled into a gas station on way to Sprite Lake delaying the group I was with. Now I know just about how far I can go. I have put a hole in filler neck to speed up filling I can get about another half gal in. Some one from Victory posted on here last year why the gauge reads like it does it has to do with the shape of the inside of the tank. There is a lot of stuff in there most of it toward the bottom. Raylan of Vic Shop has a picture of the filter that needs cleaning on his face book, it's a little ways down the page. He says that Victory's built after 2009 filters or smaller. (picture of this also)
 
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