larger replacement tank?
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If I fill up once a week I will run out of gas after 3 days just to go to work. If you add in fun trips on the weekends and weekday evenings I will need to fill up more often.
I realize there will be extra weight, gas weighs 6.15 pounds per US gallon at 68F/20C. Adding 1.6 gallons would then add just under 10 pounds plus the weight of the tank. There is likely to be a 5 pound or so difference, so a total of 15 pounds.
The center of gravity would be slightly higher because that 15 pounds would be above the center line.
This would also change stability in winds as every rocket scientist knows (it deals with center of pressure and center of gravity). It would not be unmanageable though, most of the time it would not be noticeable.
As for staying on the highway the nearest highway is about 30 miles from me, my commute is 35 miles each way. I get on at the closest point and get off right at where I work.
This part of California is different from the part you live in (I used to live in Studio City I am familiar with your part). This is the foothills of the sierra nevada mountains, it is all twisties, and very rural so almost no cars. The entire county only has 44,000 people, largest city 3500.
Increasing range by way of 1.6 gallons more fuel in the tank is the best viable option to reducing the number of times per week that I have to stop to get gas.
I realize there will be extra weight, gas weighs 6.15 pounds per US gallon at 68F/20C. Adding 1.6 gallons would then add just under 10 pounds plus the weight of the tank. There is likely to be a 5 pound or so difference, so a total of 15 pounds.
The center of gravity would be slightly higher because that 15 pounds would be above the center line.
This would also change stability in winds as every rocket scientist knows (it deals with center of pressure and center of gravity). It would not be unmanageable though, most of the time it would not be noticeable.
As for staying on the highway the nearest highway is about 30 miles from me, my commute is 35 miles each way. I get on at the closest point and get off right at where I work.
This part of California is different from the part you live in (I used to live in Studio City I am familiar with your part). This is the foothills of the sierra nevada mountains, it is all twisties, and very rural so almost no cars. The entire county only has 44,000 people, largest city 3500.
Increasing range by way of 1.6 gallons more fuel in the tank is the best viable option to reducing the number of times per week that I have to stop to get gas.
I am in agreement, just dont understand why they cant give more fuel capacity. I would like more fuel to stay on the highway when I go to Montana, or this last summer I meant to go to Illinois, then Montana and home. But the breaks are useful too.
Weight is not an issue for me, but it is for marketing (Honda), got to beat the ninja.
Sounds like a nice area to live in.
Weight is not an issue for me, but it is for marketing (Honda), got to beat the ninja.
Sounds like a nice area to live in.
Are you talking about a gas can or a bladder?
I know you can get rotopax and mount them on the rear (often on hard saddle bags or a trail rack) but that is not as visually pleasing as I would prefer.
As for bladders I am a bit apprehensive over those. They really should be in a much more controlled environment than the pillion area.
I saw photos of his bike, thanks for the reference but not quite what I want visually. What I really wanted was a replacement fuel tank not something that makes the bike look like it is something else entirely and a big box on the rear would do that.
Buy a rack and a topbox.. sorted you then have somewhere to store your fuel can and to plumb ya fuel line.. would'nt do it myself but each to there own.. Or other option. when you fill up take a can with ya..then you can top up at home to your hearts content..
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I carry a full 500ML fuel can (meant for multi-fuel camping stoves) in my pannier bag. That will give me about 20KM in the event I run out of gas. Never had to use it 'in anger', but its comforting to have.
If it is a plastic can you should add a road flare and duct tape to your bag. Tape road flare to can, light flare and toss. Tail gater be gone!
For me it is more about not having to stop so many times to get fuel. Ride more stop less and all that. There is a gas station immediately outside of work so getting to a station is not the issue it is the convenience factor of not having to stop as often.
The smallest cans I have seen here are 4 liter (marked 1 gallon which is about 3.8 liter but on the side they all seem to say 4 liters max). 500ml is not even a bottle of wine but it does make a nice pull of Beamish or Murphy's
Fab
If you really want too... you could always have someone fab a tank that would install under the honda seat cowl. Supposedly it's around 4L worth of space. Then just plumb a fuel line. It would completely eliminate the "storage" space, but you would have to decide which is more important. There would also be two tanks to refill when you stop. - Just a wild thought.
Good luck
If you really want too... you could always have someone fab a tank that would install under the honda seat cowl. Supposedly it's around 4L worth of space. Then just plumb a fuel line. It would completely eliminate the "storage" space, but you would have to decide which is more important. There would also be two tanks to refill when you stop. - Just a wild thought.
Good luck
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A couple points not addressed in this thread are... Larger fuel tanks for street legal bikes are virtually non existent in the aftermarket, even for carbureted bikes, let alone motorcycles equipped with EFI. A larger tank poses a problem on any motorcycle, in that the additional weight when full is located high on the bike, thereby raising the center of gravity, or mass, which then will affect the handling of the bike. On any modern bike the size and location of the fuel tank is an integral part of the design process, and is a key consideration with regard to vehicle handling dynamics. That said, countless older, carb equipped street bikes have had larger fuel tanks retrofitted, as it can be relatively easy to do as long as the bigger tank fits between the steering head and seat, and doesn't interfere with the forks. Fuel tanks on carbureted bikes generally all have a fuel petcock, or shutoff valve, so the connection between fuel tank and carb is simple... "Plug and play". This is where the big difference comes in with regard to bikes equipped with EFI. The EFI system requires a fuel pump, which is located in the fuel tank, to operate. An EFI fuel system is a "closed loop" system... fuel that is pumped to the throttle body/injector, which is not "used" by the injector to feed the engine, is returned to the fuel tank. Carbureted bikes rely on gravity to feed fuel to the carb.
Going back to the CBR250R, lets say that we are going to redesign the fuel tank, which we could (as long as cost is no object). The only areas to practically increase the capacity is to make the new tank wider, which will affect ergonomics, or make it taller, affecting CG. Obviously honda has already made the tank to sit as low as possible in the frame.
In the end we would not be able to increase capacity to any large degree, regardless of how well funded our project is. This is, in a nutshell, why no aftermarket company would undertake such an endeavor... production cost would be very high. Would you pay $300.00 (likely much more), for a new fuel tank that realistically may only be 1/2 a gallon larger? Didn't think so. Large tanks are made for off road bikes, some as large as 4 to 6 gallons. They are plastic, and are not cheap. Street legal motorcycles sold new in the United States are required to have fuel tanks made of steel, off road bikes do not have to meet that requirement.
If you did come up with an auxiliary tank for the passenger seat area, or hang it off the back of the bike as shown in the previous post, how would you practically integrate it into the closed EFI system? As someone who has a degree in Mechanical Engineering, I can't think of any way to do it. Not with just a few feet of fuel line anyway, and certainly not without a large pile of cash.
Of all the previous posts on this thread, the idea of carrying a couple 500ml fuel bottles, which can be had for about $12 at REI is the best, lowest cost solution I can think of.
Going back to the CBR250R, lets say that we are going to redesign the fuel tank, which we could (as long as cost is no object). The only areas to practically increase the capacity is to make the new tank wider, which will affect ergonomics, or make it taller, affecting CG. Obviously honda has already made the tank to sit as low as possible in the frame.
In the end we would not be able to increase capacity to any large degree, regardless of how well funded our project is. This is, in a nutshell, why no aftermarket company would undertake such an endeavor... production cost would be very high. Would you pay $300.00 (likely much more), for a new fuel tank that realistically may only be 1/2 a gallon larger? Didn't think so. Large tanks are made for off road bikes, some as large as 4 to 6 gallons. They are plastic, and are not cheap. Street legal motorcycles sold new in the United States are required to have fuel tanks made of steel, off road bikes do not have to meet that requirement.
If you did come up with an auxiliary tank for the passenger seat area, or hang it off the back of the bike as shown in the previous post, how would you practically integrate it into the closed EFI system? As someone who has a degree in Mechanical Engineering, I can't think of any way to do it. Not with just a few feet of fuel line anyway, and certainly not without a large pile of cash.
Of all the previous posts on this thread, the idea of carrying a couple 500ml fuel bottles, which can be had for about $12 at REI is the best, lowest cost solution I can think of.
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Steel tanks have greater integrity, with regard to crash worthiness. Where a plastic tank could possibly split due to a hard impact, steel tanks will deform and absorb energy before reaching the point of rupturing. At least that's the theory. In practice a plastic tank will stand up to the off road environment better than a steel tank will. The requirement is part of DOT/EPA regulations that the manufacturers must comply to. For example, Honda XL model's going back to the late '70s had steel tanks, while the XR's of that era had plastic tanks. Same is true today... the XR650L has an OEM steel tank. If you buy an IMS 4.0 gallon tank for the XR, you would see "Not for Highway Use" molded into the plastic. On my XR650L, if I got stopped by a savvy cop who knew my tank was not legal for road use, he could impound the bike.
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Wouldnt it be easier to have bought a bike with a bigger tank in the first place. Sounds like what the CBR250 needs is an optional kleenex tray for all the newbs who cry and make up problems.
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madd-trapper, you my friend, should be working at Honda R&D designing useful accessories for all the motorcycles marketed to the first time buyer's. Or better yet start your own line of must have, shiny, anodized bling for CBR's.
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I have a new line of Vagisil cream that they can rub onto their bikes and themselves. Large economy spray version will be avaible too.
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