Real life gas mileage in Colorado?

[rjinaz86323]

I recently purchased a 2018 Spyder F3 Limited. I am trying to plan a trip for a little later this year, that involves criss-crossing Colorado. So I need to know realistic gas mileage to plan my gas stops. What should I expect in the mountains with spirited, but no crazy fast, MPG riding one up.

Thx
Rick

[Stache]

Too many variables, riding style, load, etc. Fill your machine, set trip odometer to 0, ride till low fuel lite comes on. Check trip odometer, deduct ~10% as a ‘fudge factor’. That’ll be a reasonable expected distance between fuel stops.

Edited for spelling.

I recently purchased a 2018 Spyder F3 Limited. I am trying to plan a trip for a little later this year, that involves criss-crossing Colorado. So I need to know realistic gas mileage to plan my gas stops. What should I expect in the mountains with spirited, but no crazy fast, MPG riding one up.

Thx
Rick

[rjinaz86323]

Too many variables,

That's why I asked on the Colorado forum. I don't have any terrain that is even close to what I will ride in Colorado, so what I get here is of little meaning for there.

[Snoking1127]

I recently purchased a 2018 Spyder F3 Limited. I am trying to plan a trip for a little later this year, that involves criss-crossing Colorado. So I need to know realistic gas mileage to plan my gas stops. What should I expect in the mountains with spirited, but no crazy fast, MPG riding one up.

Thx
Rick

Have you had the software update where is computes DTE and displays it on the center left side of display in large numbers?

[rjinaz86323]

Not sure as I just picked it up 2 days ago, but I doubt the previous owner did. Do it show automatically or do I need to change a setting? Also since it is out of warranty, I assume there will be a charge for this update.

Thx
Rick

[2dogs]

Nice set of wheels, I really like the color. Until you learn your machine fill up at 1/4 of a tank. Don't press it trying to find where empty is. AAA RV road/towing assistance is a good investment if you really want to find empty.

[RayBJ]

I am a 'very spirited' rider on a 2020 RT base. I like acceleration & speed. I have not yet been able to reach 30 MPG in the 5000 miles I've logged both locally & multi-state runs.

[ARtraveler]

I have owned 7 spyders now. A total of 175,000 miles accumulated. Both flavors of engines. I still check mileage every other tankful or so. That's the old CPA in me.

The 998's (2 cylinder) consistently gave me around 30-32 mpg. The 1330's RT's (three cylinder) 39-40 mpg. The F3 (also 1330/3) give us 40-42 mpg.

As mentioned earlier, yours may vary depending on how you ride. The good thing, your F3 gas tank will take you mostly 225 to 250 miles. We NEVER have emptied a tank or had the fuel fill light come on. I set the trip meter to 0 at each fill up. We usually fill between 125-150 miles...half a tank showing on the gas gauge. In CO, you should not have any issues with gas more than 100 miles apart. Better to ride mostly full than mostly empty. Murphy's Law is out there waiting. Have a great trip.

[RayBJ]

The 1330's RT's (three cylinder) 39-40 mpg. The F3 (also 1330/3) give us 40-42 mpg.

As mentioned earlier, yours may vary depending on how you ride.

WOW! I must have a fuel leak or someone is syphoning gas while I'm rolling!

[ARtraveler]

WOW! I must have a fuel leak or someone is syphoning gas while I'm rolling!

My guess is you are not filling the tank all the way. Here is what we do: I fill the gas with the filler tube inside the tank until auto shutoff. Then pull it out and carefully decant more gas until it comes up to the metal circle. Stop, let it go down and refill to the ring a second time. Done. The gas gauge usually says I have 250 or slightly more miles to go before empty. Do it the same way each time, and set the trip meter to zero. This gives you an "approximate" number for calculating mpg. It's never going to be "right on" because there are to many variables. The best sweet spot for shifting (I have found), is 3300 to 3500 rpms. We usually don't use sixth gear until we hit 55 plus miles per hour.

[JayBros]

Don't worry about the dog bite on the leg when you could be dying from a bullet in the brain. Gas mileage is the dog bite; what you don't see could be the bullet in the brain. Two years ago my touring partner who has a '15 F3 and I did a 5,100+ mile tour of CO from Tar Heel land. With the exception of using interstates to get through Chattanooga and Memphis we were on U.S. highways and back roads plus maybe 20 miles on I-70 in CO. I averaged 38.7 mpg; don't know what my partner averaged because he doesn't track it, but only once on the whole trip did he tell me that he needed to gas up before me, and he still had plenty in his tank when he topped it off. Two gas rules; (1) always top off at the end of the day, and (2) when you get to half a tank begin thinking where you want to gas up. There are plenty of stations and you won't run out if you follow the rules. Rule #2 will also ease the strain on the bladder. When you get to the serious planning stage and want to avoid the brain bullet(s) PM me and I'll give you my guaranteed free money-back opinion(s) on what you should see.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

That's why I asked on the Colorado forum. I don't have any terrain that is even close to what I will ride in Colorado, so what I get here is of little meaning for there.

Not the case at all. Your experience in AZ will not be all that different in CO. The single greatest factor in determining MPG is speed. You'll be riding slower in the mountains so that is a positive. Higher altitudes give better mileage. Why, I don't really know. What you lose going up hill you'll regain going downhill. There will be some long stretches between gas stations. Anytime your gas gauge drops below 1/2 tank stop and fill up at the next stations, unless you know for certain there will be another on within 50 miles.

[RayBJ]

"Higher altitudes give better mileage. Why, I don't really know. "

Higher altitudes have less oxygen so the fuel mix is leaner than sea level. In the 'old' days, you would need to advance timing and lean fuel mixture a tad when going from lower altitudes to the high country. ECU is your friend!

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

"Higher altitudes give better mileage. Why, I don't really know. "

Higher altitudes have less oxygen so the fuel mix is leaner than sea level. In the 'old' days, you would need to advance timing and lean fuel mixture a tad when going from lower altitudes to the high country. ECU is your friend!

I think the best MPG I ever got with the 2013 RT I had was going over the Continental Divide on I-70 in CO.

[canamjhb]

Yes, higher altitude means better fuel economy at the expense of horsepower. The ECU automatically leans out your fuel usage to accommodate for less oxygen. You will be more than safe planning fuel stops every 200 miles. And taking a butt break in between fuel stops makes for a more pleasant trip. Almost all of Colorado is high in altitude (among other things). You will not be disappointed with your MPG. Enjoy..... Jim

[Snoking1127]

Dash display V20.80 and DTE in left display. I was at 10.05 when we bought it the end of Oct. They updated it to 18.xx something and the DTE showed up. I went back to try to get the hyper flash for rear LED turn signals and they must of updated it to 20.80 then.