has your bike almost felt like it was going to stall out on you?

I was going to work this morning and the low fuel light came back on like it did the night before just as I was getting in for the night.
I knew it was getting pretty low so I pulled into the gas station, swiped the credit card, lifted the handle and when I went to open the fuel door,
Oh crap! I didn't have my key on me! Damn! hahah
Hung up the pump handle, cancelled the transaction and proceeded to work hoping my friend had his bike keys on him, which he did! WHEW!

Ok so after work I proceeded back to the gas station and twice on my way there I thought the bike was going to stall out. Guess I was sucking in air or something on my turns and stop and goes in traffic.
The bike took 5.3 gallons so I guess I only had like .7/gal in there'
This is normal right? I mean to maybe suck some air and the engine almost stalling? Just don't remember that happening before in the past year that I've owned it.

Pete

 

Not to be a smart *** here but I hope you learned not to ever let your fuel level get that low again. I've been driving/riding for 27 years and never once have I ran out of gas. Glad you made it before you ran completely out.

 

Don't Trust the Harley "Dummy" lite for low fuel........when it comes on it really means......."should have already gassed up"! Get to know your bike and use your mileage to gauge when you are going to have to gas up, Old school scooters never had guages or lights anyhow.

 

This may be a dumb question, dont you have a 5 gal tank?

 

Hockey i think you just hit the nail on the head here the ops bike is listed as a 2005 ultra that was a 5 gallon tank so sounds to me like you are very lucky that you made it to the gas station at all. Sounds like you were running on fumes. So ya iam sure your bike was about to stall out and die.

 

Be careful not to run too low on fuel. With an electric fuel pump, gas it the tank helps cool the pump. Running low on fuel will shorten the pumps life. just My 2cents

 

My gas gauge is an "indicator" that is as accurate as the weather man.......

"40% chance of being empty today followed by a 90% chance tomorrow"!

 

You can open the gas cap lid with a small screwdriver or knife. When I had a 5 gal tank I usually would fill up at 150 miles on an Ultra with an indicator light. Once I forgot, looked down at my odometer reading 180. An exit was right there so I pulled in and got gas. My 5 gal tank took 5.3 gals of gas.

 

When I fill up my bikes, I reset the trip meter to zero.
On the Ultra I start looking for a gas station at 150, on the Sporty, 100.
Hasn't let me down yet.
I have a Zumo and also reset it to zero when I fill up.
Between the trip meter on the bike and on the Zumo, I have peace of mind.

 

My first bike was a RKC. I got my license and finished my Harley school the first weekend I had it and the wife was out of town. You know what I was up to… not looking for a quicky… well okay I was, but I was riding there… lol, kidding ladies.

Anyways, there I was facing death all around me, satellites scanning my junk and I was on the open road having the time of my life cursing crusing around town, up and down the freeways, feeling, might I add, and looking good. J So, I decide to take my bike down a curvy road in my area of town called Otay Lakes. It is about twelve mines one way, with a bunch of let and right 30 MPH turns. On the weekend all the sports bikes race up and down the road. I figured, “Should be all clear, it a Friday.”

Off I road, wind blowing through my hair… well helmet, but there I was. Up and down I road, having a great time. I decided to head down to the end of the road one more time then head home. Id been riding for nearly four hours and I was getting tired.

I get to the end, turn around and look down and there she was, looking me dead in the face…. That blinking light saying, “Hey dumb ***, forget something???” yap… four hours of riding, forgot to gas up. Twelve miles in the middle of no where, no cell phone, because I didn't want my wife to call me and mess with my ride time, no water, no tools, nothing. Just me and an empty road that hardly anyone that rides on during the week, but the drug and human smugglers… empty feeling. Thanks god the only common sense I had was to make sure I had Gilligan with me, my little buddy (Glock 22).

So I'm thinking I'm just going to ride nice and easy and get as close as I can to a gas station. Mile one down, mile two clicked by… I was thinking, “Well, I wonder just how far I can go on a gas light??? Maybe I can pull this one off….” I knew the area well, grew up in the area. I knew where the closet gas station was… miles clicked by… I'm think, “SH@t, I’ve got this… you the man…” then the first sputter, “Oh ****!” Sun was setting, three miles from the am pm. Maybe I'm not going to make it. The second, then the third sputter… then a red traffic light and the motor stopped. I hit the starter, it fired up, I ran the red and tore off to the next light, I slowed and saw no one coming, violating everything I had ever been tight in Harley riding school, ran that light, sputter five and six, then silence… I pulled in the clutch and coasted to the next light… 2.3 miles from the gas station…. Yap 2.3 miles… do I leave my brand new RKC along side the road and go get gas and come back… H.E. double hockey sticks no! Took me nearly an hour and a half to push that 800 pound shinny brand new RK into the gas station.

Sweat pouring down me, soaked through and through, legs trembling with fatigue… ding ding, I roll over the pressure sensors. The am pm lady walks out and asks me if I was okay. I rest my beautiful RK on the jiffy stand, bent over and took a deep breath. I asked, “Did I look cool pushing my Harley into the station?” She laughed and answered, “ah, no.” So I kicked my leg over my baby and mounted her and took in a deep breath. I summoned all my strength and sat up straight and asked, “What about now?” “Yes now you look very cool. Do you need a drink?” “Yes that and about 5 gallons of gas please.”

Moral of the story, I will never run out of gas again for as long as I live. With a six gallon tank now, at 165 miles, I'm pulling off I don't care what is going on!

And that’s my 2 cents… with that boys and girls; I'm going to bed.