I really think its all about the type of riding you do and I don't mean how hard you get on it. I haven't done much in town riding with my Ultra, but when I had my road star (which despite what all the cork sniffers say is quite similar to an HD) if I did a lot of in town and short trips, my mileage would be around 38. When I was out on the open doing 30+ miles of country roads, I could easily be close to 50 mpg. I ride pretty easily in both situations, but stop and go and traffic really eat up the fuel mileage imho.

 

The only people who ever got the 52 mpg mentioned in the sales brochures were the Harley engineers and the EPA bozos who tested them. They must have been on crack that day.
The rest of us mere mortals get 37-42 mpg.

 

i knew that the mpg dropped on my 08 sg, when i installed the pcv, it's still running, fat, for lack of better terms. but i went from just over 40 down to about 32-35. but it's the smiles per mile factor that i enjoy more than the mpg's.

 

Maybe I should start smoking crack to get that kind of mileage.

 

Since I made my last post here, I made a 4 day ride with friends up through the Arkansas Ozarks. We stuck with every twisty road we could find, running a very mild pace with speeds maxing between 50 and 55. I had two tanks that ran in the mid 45's on that trip. Once we were back on the open road and running 65 to 70, it dropped back into the upper 30's again. The heavier touring bikes, like the Ultra's aren't likely to see anything close to 50 mpg except under extreme circumstances. I once got 49.9 mpg out of a GL1500 Goldwing, cruising 70 mph north to south in Kansas and Oklahoma. Turns out we had a 30+ mph tail wind that tank. I do think that my Ultra is getting better as the miles add up. As far as I can tell, trips that I used to see 36 to 37 mpg on I'm now seem to be seeing 38 to 39. I can't be 100% sure how much the recent weather conditions (winds and such) are having to do with that. All I know is the numbers I'm coming up with seem to be inching upwards and they can do that as long as they want!

I'd imagine that a Road King, ridden conservatively in advantagious conditions might approach 50 mpg without too much trouble. Unfortunately, Harley doesn't say "which" touring model is likely to do that. They just lump the whole family line into the average. That usually leaves Ultra owners feeling a little jipped!

Ride Safe,
Steve R.

 

I've put about 9,000 miles on my '03 RKC this year, and consistently get 46-48 MPG. This past week my dad and I put on 2,000 miles and both got right around 48 MPG. He drives a '02 Heritage Softail Classic.

I'm 6'1", 210 lbs. Bike is pretty much stock. I accelerate fast and do about 10 over the posted speed limit most of the time.

 

I see some of you scoff at 50 mpg. I go anywhere from 35 mpg if running 85 mph to today I got 49mpg+, 218 miles on 4.4 gallons from Santa Fe New Mexico to AngelFire through Red River with a detour to the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. Ran mostly 40-60 Mph with elevations up to 9800 feet at Bobcat Pass. From AngelFire to Albuquerque got 39, with the last 150 miles at 80-85 MPH. I usually average around 43, I always make sure to top it off the same.

 

That is not right. Call FuelMoto an tell them your situation. They will make up a map for your bike to get better gas milage. Did you get your PCV from Fuel Moto?

 

the mileage figures harley comes up with are unrealistic in the real world, i believe. i can expect a high of just over forty mpg, and lows in the mid thirties, average. my right hand controls the fuel mileage, as does headwinds, etc.

 

Those numbers are close to what I get when riding at those speeds at high elevations.