Improving Your Motorcycle’s Fuel Economy

Riding your motorcycle is a great way to get where you want to go in a more exciting way. Motorcycles are also much more fuel efficient than your average passenger car or truck is, so they’re the ideal solution when you want to save money on fuel.

However, you may notice with time that you’re not really getting everything you can out of a tank of gas and that your fuel economy has worsened. There are, of course, a number of reasons why this might be happening and it’s worth your time to investigate them because it’ll end up saving you money!

Cross Country Cycle, with locations in Metuchen and Hasbrouck Heights, is your New Jersey motorcycle dealer. We’ve provided our top tips for improving your motorcycle’s fuel economy below so you can get the most out of every gallon of gas you buy!

Keep Track Of The Numbers

A great way to figure out whether you’re getting the most miles per gallon is to track your mileage. A small notebook or even an app could help you do this. Write down how many miles you get per tank of gas each time you fill up, so you can see whether this number takes a sudden dip. With adjustments to your riding style and some maintenance, you may see your mileage improve significantly, but it’s going to be hard to tell if you aren’t tracking it!

Perform Engine Maintenance

Having regular maintenance performed on your bike is a great way to keep it in peak condition, which improves fuel economy. If you’ve got an engine running on sludgy oil or you haven’t addressed strange sounds or poor start-ups, then you may be ending up at the gas station more often than you’d like. Make sure you’re doing tune-ups at home and that you’re taking your bike into the mechanic on a regular basis for scheduled maintenance like oil changes. If you do need some repairs on your bike, contact the Cross Country Cycle service department so we can get you into our shop!

Reduce Weight

If you’re carrying around a lot of cargo that you don’t intend to use, then you’re wasting gas! Excess weight on your bike means that the engine has to use up more fuel to propel your motorcycle forward. Go through your storage compartments and remove everything that you aren’t going to use on that particular trip. Sometimes we forget things from previous journeys that could contribute to excess poundage, so get in the habit of emptying out your storage compartments after each ride to divest yourself of things that are just weighing you down.

Check Tire Pressure

Fuel efficiency is also heavily affected by the condition of your tires. Because the wheels keep contact with the ground and hold the weight of you and your motorcycle, they take a real beating and you may not even realize that they’re low pressure or worn if you aren’t looking. Check your tires with a tire pressure gauge before each ride to ensure they’re aired up to the manufacturer’s recommended psi levels. While you’re down there, make sure there aren’t any worn spots or embedded objects that could be causing a slow leak. You should only ever ride on good tires!

Visit one of our dealerships in Metuchen or Hasbrouck Heights today to check out our selection of new and used motorcycles for sale. We offer delivery and pick-up options as well as a thriving service department! If your motorcycle parts need to be replaced, you’ll want to give us a call or search our website for what you need. Cross Country Cycle welcomes all our customers in the states of New Jersey and New York.