2020 RTL: Does “Eco” mode actually work

[SCWSpyder]

Hi All! I can’t find the discipline to drive an entire tank in “Eco” mode ‘cause it feels like someone pulled one of the plug wires. Perhaps if I knew it could actually get another 25-30 miles of range I’d have necessary motivation. Or does it primarily work in city driving and not so much at steady freeway speeds?

[Lew L]

Hi SCW,

Most of us here on SL have found "Eco" mode to be" useless" ( but not ALL ) . A small percentage of us have modified our spiders for more performance.nojoke

Lew L

[ARtraveler]

The jury is out on ECO mode. I do not know if they have done any modifications of the systems for the 2020. You could be a beta tester here. :roflblack:

A few others, including me, have found that using ECO saves an additional 1 mpg or so.

I did faithfully run a full tank worth. That was 200 miles on my 2014. I obeyed the green shift up arrow and let it downshift on its own. I found it to be annoying at the least. :popcorn:

[LifeLongRider]

I use ECO mode 100% of the time. Fuel mileage is consistently around 39mpg using non-ethanol fuel. I find the power on ECO mode more than satisfactory for everyday driving. Everyone to their own.:spyder:

[SCWSpyder]

Wow, useless or 1 mpg. I’ll know for sure after a trip planned in April. But until then, maybe I’ll bite the bullet and see if a tankful does anything other than getting my doors blown off by Prius ‘ (Prius?) and the like.

[ARtraveler]

Wow, useless or 1 mpg. I’ll know for sure after a trip planned in April. But until then, maybe I’ll bite the bullet and see if a tankful does anything other than getting my doors blown off by Prius ‘ (Prius?) and the like.

There ya go. :bowdown:

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I use ECO mode 100% of the time. Fuel mileage is consistently around 39mpg using non-ethanol fuel. I find the power on ECO mode more than satisfactory for everyday driving. Everyone to their own.:spyder:

:agree:.... and it most of the time ….. downshifting to pass is a must …. if I'm heading onto my favorite " twisties " I delete ECO mode … Am I getting better gas mileage :dontknow: …. that's something that only a very dedicated drive on a test track with expensive instruments could tell us …… jmho …. Mike :ohyea:

[PinkRosePetal]

I can't speak for the 2020 but on previous Spyders ECO isn't really a mode it's just an indication of recommended change points for maximum economy. The automatic down change points will be the same as non-eco mode.

[SCWSpyder]

Thanx all for feedback ����!

[2dogs]

If you are froggy on the throttle and run over 3k RPM you will be consistently in the low 30's for MPG. If you use ECO and stay below 3K you will likely get 40+ MPG. Just exactly how much ECO mode contributes to MPG is small, but it does give you some. Probably outside forces like headwinds/tailwinds, twisty roads, temperatures, altitudes, 2up and the like will have more of an effect on your MPG than the ECO mode will have. If you ride conservatively everything will last longer, even the gas. Just be safe out there.

[Peter Aawen]

:agree: That said, selecting ECO mode does reduce the throttle input some - I don't recall exactly how much, but there is a BRP issued graph floating around here somewhere showing what that reduction/restriction is, but its nett effect is that with all other things being equal, at any given twist grip position you are unlikely to ever be achieving quite as much throttle with ECO mode selected as you are without - and even if you twist the grip HARD and use up all the throttle movement, the WOT setting that you actually achieve with ECO mode selected will be something less than it would be without ECO mode selected. :p

So at least theoretically, by selecting ECO mode THAT is probably going to have the most significant impact on your ryding.... with the Green Shift Indicator thing being the most visible. :dontknow: However, there's heaps of anecdotal evidence that the overall difference ECO mode makes for many is usually somewhere about 5/8ths of 2/5ths of FA! :shocked:

[ThreeWheels]

I think ECO mode just reminds you to shift at a more economical point, and not hot dog the motor.
Obviously, if you don't hot dog the motor, you'll get better gas mileage.
Watching that damn green arrow is, in my opinion, a hazard because it's distracting.

It's like diet pills.
If you eat reasonable portions, exercise regularly, stay away from sweets and other carbohydrates AND take these pills, you'll lose weight.

[2dogs]

I think ECO mode just reminds you to shift at a more economical point, and not hot dog the motor.
Obviously, if you don't hot dog the motor, you'll get better gas mileage.
Watching that damn green arrow is, in my opinion, a hazard because it's distracting.

It's like diet pills.
If you eat reasonable portions, exercise regularly, stay away from sweets and other carbohydrates AND take these pills, you'll lose weight.

I shift by feel and by ear to heck with the arrow. By the way, ECO mode is the same as taking those pills. They both do very little for you. The rule is , no carbs after dark.

[bikerbillone]

Gads, just got my 2020, I need to look for the green arrow, I just shift by sound. I think I know when the rpm's are right for a shift, but maybe I should look for the green arrow.

[triplethreat]

I've owned almost 30 different motorcycles over my life and I can honestly say, I have NEVER bought one with concerns about mileage.......MPG! I ride motorcycles for Fun, not to see what kind of gas mileage I can squeeze out of it........so to each their own! I feel the same way about my Ford 350 Diesel Dually too. I bought it for a purpose, to tow my 44' Toy Hauler that has a GVWR of 20,000 lbs. The truck wasn't bought to see what kind of mileage I can squeeze out of it. So my thought on "Eco" mode or driving to get great mileage is basically nonexistent. I don't worry about it, I fill the bike or truck up when I need fuel and I just enjoy the vehicle for what it is. YMMV (pun intended)

[ARtraveler]

Gads, just got my 2020, I need to look for the green arrow, I just shift by sound. I think I know when the rpm's are right for a shift, but maybe I should look for the green arrow.

The green arrow only comes up if you are in ECO mode. Holding in the mode button for a couple seconds activates the ECO. A quick one second or so additional hit and it will go off. A green light will also activate. And your right...most of us shift by sound. I don't need no stinkin green arrow. :roflblack:

[ARtraveler]

I've owned almost 30 different motorcycles over my life and I can honestly say, I have NEVER bought one with concerns about mileage.......MPG! I ride motorcycles for Fun, not to see what kind of gas mileage I can squeeze out of it........so to each their own! I feel the same way about my Ford 350 Diesel Dually too. I bought it for a purpose, to tow my 44' Toy Hauler that has a GVWR of 20,000 lbs. The truck wasn't bought to see what kind of mileage I can squeeze out of it. So my thought on "Eco" mode or driving to get great mileage is basically nonexistent. I don't worry about it, I fill the bike or truck up when I need fuel and I just enjoy the vehicle for what it is. YMMV (pun intended)

You are right on. Most of us don't care about the gas mileage. It does make a good topic to discuss on the forum though. And it keeps coming back and back as new people come on line.

[bikerbillone]

Arkansas, roger that, screw the green arrow. ;)

[2dogs]

You are right on. Most of us don't care about the gas mileage. I does make a good topic to discuss on the forum though. And it keeps coming back and back as new people come on line.

All my rides prior too my spyder got 50+MPG. Cars are becoming more and more economical while motorcycles continue to get less MPG than previous models. Example; a kindly little elderly biker lady who lived across the street from me bought a 2012 RT. She was almost an icon in the community. Her comment to me on one occasion was that if she knew how bad it's fuel millage was she would have never bought it. Her reason for buying the bike was, besides needing more than two wheels at her age, she liked to ride and wanted to make small grocery runs and to commute to other errands. Her spyder got the same MPG as her car. Sad, but she's in assisted living now. Our riding club has on occasion gone to the assisted living home and have given elderly folks who can ride, a couple rides around the block. Some of them need help getting on, but once they're on they are good to go.

[bikerbillone]

TwoDogs, your comment is so 'right on'. I've owned a Prius since 2003, and I know what some folks say about a Prius, but those folks don't drive a Prius for whatever reason, and I say, "to each his own", an that's fine So my point is the same as yours, my 2016 Pruis got 70 mpg with regular 87 octane fuel over the long haul of 60K miles, my 2020 RTL is getting 30 mpg at this time with TLC of the throttle. It totally boggles my mind that a motorcycle company cannot build a fuel efficient m/c. I'm not complaining because I new exactly what I was buying, just fortifying your point. So not starting a thread 'thing' and I will say no more about that.

[Pooch]

I was interested in the mpg number not because i was trying to save money on gas but because I am tired of being held hostage by a 30 mpg GW GL 1800 trike. I would like to have to quit watching that gas gauge so closely when it gets close to half...it drops like a lead weight when it reaches half and I start worrying about finding gas. I am in Texas and often travel remote stretches where gas is not readily available when the beast gets thirsty. A few more mpg would be nice.

[RowdyScamp]

Today I was experimenting with ECO mode on my way home from work. While going up a hill I switched between normal and ECO. There was a noticeable difference in power; RPM and speed dropped in ECO. I think I will stick to normal.

[SCWSpyder]

The concern for mileage isn’t for mileage per se, it’s for more range as mentioned by Pooch above. Well I found the miles to empty feature and I got it to reflect 250 miles last weekend! This was by virtue of riding up local Canyon Lake at the baton-death-march speeds averaging 25-35 for about 50 miles. And limiting an RT to 3000 rpm?! Who can do that? That’s 60 mph! When you drive I-17 from Flagstaff to Phoenix, you get run over at less than 75 (ok ok stay out of left lane, but still...).

[EdMat]

The concern for mileage isn’t for mileage per se, it’s for more range as mentioned by Pooch above. Well I found the miles to empty feature and I got it to reflect 250 miles last weekend! This was by virtue of riding up local Canyon Lake at the baton-death-march speeds averaging 25-35 for about 50 miles. And limiting an RT to 3000 rpm?! Who can do that? That’s 60 mph! When you drive I-17 from Flagstaff to Phoenix, you get run over at less than 75 (ok ok stay out of left lane, but still...).

But at 60 you won't get near 250 miles out of a tank just because of the air you have to move out of the way. I have ridden using both but have yet to decide. Could be my faulty right wrist. ;)

Tracking for over 5,000 miles my 2019 RTL has averaged 31.76 MPG and for the price watchers that's running me 9 cents per mile for premium. Highest mileage was 42.15 and that was a leisurely run on the Natchez Trace.

Speaking of moving air, not sure what the numbers are today but in the late 70's it took over 100 horsepower to move the air at freeway speeds in a big conventional truck. Can't remember the numbers for a cab over but they were higher.

[SCWSpyder]

Ed, Thanx! Your comment on air movement seems quite relevant as I’ve noticed the RT seems to react to wind, not sure if it’s headwind more so than cross wise? But it seems to being pushing a lot of wind. But my experience with two Luxo tourers (Ultra HD and ‘12 GW), the spyders’ wind management is the best I’ve found. But BRP’s saying this can do 252 miles on a tank seems “misleading” to me. But, as pointed out, that’s not why I bought it and 31+ mpg should allow a 200 mile range which is acceptable!

[ARtraveler]

RE: Mileage... I have no problems doing 200 miles. On my F3, its usually showing about 70 miles to go on that miles to empty gauge. I am thinking, but not trying, that the F3 with the 7 gallon tank, will do 250. We usually fill at the beginning of a days ride, so most of the time, we are refilling at the 125 - 150 mark.

We have not done any longer freeway rides yet...that is coming. Will get to test the limits a bit closer, but, both of us want to get off the bike and stretch at 100 - 125 miles in. Usually that is a rest room break at a gas station.

And to keep this on the subject matter, IMO, Eco Mode does not give enough EXTRA miles per tank to make any difference in lots of extra miles.