Actual Fuel Capacity of a 2013 ST?

[MrSchaefer]

Took the Spyder for a run this weekend and had a not-so-great experience with the fuel gauge. In the middle of the night in 45 degree weather the gauge went from 3 bars to 1 and fuel light in the span of about 10 miles.

I rerouted to the nearest gas station which was another 12 miles.. praying the whole way..

Got there and filled up putting just 4 gallons in. Online suggests this thing has a 6.6 gallon tank.

So either the online specs are wrong, or that light came on with almost 3 gallons remaining or approx half a tank.

Which is it? I’m tempted to grab a notebook and a small gas can and run her empty..

 

[Peter Aawen]

Don't run it to empty!! :gaah: Well, not unless you really like damaging the injector system & starting down the path of some fairly expensive repairs anyway!! :lecturef_smilie:

Sure, you might get away with running it to empty once or maybe even a few times; but since the injector system, inc the injectors & the fuel pump, etc all use the 'remaining fuel' left in the tank as both lubricant and coolant for their important 'moving/operational' bits, running the tank to empty means that you WILL be causing some (altho admittedly, possibly microscopic) damage, and that damage is cumulative and irreversible!! :shocked: So just try your best to NEVER run the tank to empty!! nojoke


All the GS/RS/RSS/ST's and the RT's up to and including the 2013's do have a 6.6 gallon tank, but really only about 6 gallons at best is safely usable unless you want to kick off that previously mentioned damage; so from the factory, fuel gauge and the low fuel warning light are set to allow you plenty of time to re-fuel before things get too iffy.... but they are notoriously innaccurate and not really all that reliable!! I've had the low fuel light come on after less than 18 miles from a very full re-fill; and at other times it hasn't come on until after I've been getting seriously concerned about using too much gas/getting too close to empty - and sometimes it's taken a smidge over 6 gallons to refill!! :sour:

So it's best NOT to rely on the gas gauge &/or the low fuel warning light!! Use them as helpful indicators if you must, but you will be MUCH better off to simply reset a trip meter every time you re-fill and progressively work out how far you can safely travel on your worst ever average mpg, then refill before that - you know, just like we all hadta do on just about every other bike we owned, back before they ever had fuel gauges!!

Oh, and the 2014 & on RT's & F3's all have a larger tank and a slightly more accurate & reliable gas gauge.... but in my experience, the low fuel warning lights can still be juuust a little erratic in when they come on/how much is left in the tank; so it's probably STILL a smart idea to reset that trip meter on them too!

:cheers:

 

[JayBros]

Read your operator's guide, especially pg. 143-147, and you will find all the specifications of your Spyder. If you don't have one you can download it at this link: http://www.operatorsguides.brp.com/Index.aspx?lang=e&s1=d64c4863-c46c-4e64-836d-8b0e502d5086&brands=roadster&type=oghttp://. Just drill down to your year and model and save a copy on your computer.

 

[Possible]

Just a comment/question about the fuel capacity. I was down to 1 bar, the fuel light was on, but I could only easily put 4.765 gallons
in the tank. I could see it looked like room for more fuel, but it was kind of spitting back out the filler so I quit. Is it a slow process getting
all 6.6 gallons in there? I mean do I have to slowly fill the tank once I reach a certain point, to prevent splash back?

TIA

Howard and Peggy

 

[Snowbelt Spyder]

Hey Mr. Schaefer. So, this is the first time you've run it down that far I take it. That's OK. You have the same tank and sending unit that an RT has, so I think I can speak to this.

My experience has been that, when the low fuel light comes on, I could put in 4.5 gallons. Maybe more if I tried to pack it. The last couple of bars do go fairly quickly but then slows down after that. You probably already have found out that the filler neck of the tank plays better with some nozzles than with others. There's a knack to filling these tanks. Don't stick the nozzle all the way down. It will trip off sooner. And it will start to splash back when you get close to the top. But, all tanks do that to some degree, anyway. Just ease in the last half gallon. So, maybe you could have taken more than 4 gallons, maybe not. Yeah, there's probably 6 gallons usable in the tank, so big picture, you had at least 1.5 gallons left when the light came on, maybe more. You know your milage. So, you had well over 30 miles left you could go. So, that light coming on gives you plenty of range.

Don't run it dry. But if you want, run it down to the low fuel light a few times and check that it consistently takes about the same amount to refill. That will give you your reference to work with and know how much is left. As Peter mentioned, most of us have adopted the practice of using the trip odometer to gauge distance between fuel stops. Start looking for gas between 120 and 130 miles, and you'll still have range to go yet. Note how many miles when the light comes on. Reset the trip odometer at each fill up. It becomes a habit. The gas gauge is just one of your tools.

And BTW - if you are going to be going on safari with it and you feel that the last half gallon is going to be critical, consider instead, taking fuel with you. There are many options on the market of small containers that will fit in the storage locations on the Spyder.

 

[MrSchaefer]

I appreciate all the feedback - I typically refill when it gets to the bottom fourth of the gauge and have seen it drop off faster below 3 bars but never to that degree. I’m usually averaging about 31mpg if the trip odo is accurate.. but my driving is rarely distance runs like this one and there had been some sporty bits mixed in so I had no real feel for how thirsty it had been.

The run it dry experiment was more tongue-in-cheek than it read above.. hah

Interestingly, trip was at 142 miles when I filled.. and I put just a hair over 4 gallons in to take the tank to the level I always stop at (familiar with the overfill issue) .. that means that I was averaging 35 mpg.. somehow.. on that leg of the trip?

The whole evening had me questioning a lot of things - maybe the bike REALLY likes back road scratching and cruise control at 75mph in 45 degree weather?? Hah.. more than it’s rider at least.

 

[ARtraveler]

The 998 tank was good for about 5.8 gallons.

I run it to almost empty...ONE TIME. :roflblack:

Got 184 miles and took 5.4 gallons to refill. Needle on gauge was below empty.

Someone else asked the same question.

https://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/showthread.php?135535-2020RT-remaining-gas-in-tank

See post #4

:yes:

 

[Bfromla]

About 6g don’t push topping off :the purge valve will screw up & co$t you.:lecturef_smilie:
Trip meters are your friend reset for every tank depending on driving styles Should get Least 100+ miles per tank. Shifting at wrong RPMS will greatly effect that. Unfortunately ethanol will too finding E Free helps, right air pressure in tires/clean air filteropcorn: when down to last peg/ fuel light come on , supposed to have reserve after that least peg, good maybe 20 miles. opcorn:
https://www.pure-gas.org/
Also handy use fuelly :
https://www.fuelly.com/

 

[Haze]

6 gal and a little more for tank capacity on my 2013 STS.
Usually average 31-33 mpg. I always use the trip odometer rather than trust the gas gauge.
Longest ride on a single tank was 180 miles and that was white knuckle while looking for a gas station.

 

[2dogs]

The fuel tank capacity of a spyder is a closely guarded secret. No one really knows. Ha. To save a long dissertation here's what I've discovered over time and what I do when refueling. After the nozzle automatically shuts off I stuff (dribble) one more gallon in. No more than that or you'll have a mess on your hands. That should give you a comfortable 220-mile range. Don't press it much beyond than that because of many variables you may not notice can influence your MPG. By the way, these new fuel nozzles that are being installed on the new gas pumps will not allow topping off your gas tank anymore like we used to do. (This is for the 1330's)