A few new rider questions after my first 260km

[Gupp]

Hello all,

I got my first bike ever, a 2006 FZ6 ABS (6200km used) on the road for the first time this weekend, its still rather cold here in Norway so Ive only had a few shorter outings.

Anyway, first off, Id like to thank all the members here for a great forum. Ive learned so much lurking here for the odd week now!

So, on to my n00b questions.

a - is there a fixed value or % that I could deduct from the air intake temp to get the ambient temp with a warm engine? It would not have to be 100% correct at all temps ofcourse. From lurking here and my few trips out I would guess you can take off about 4-5 celsius?

b - fuel gauge. Ive seen several comments on this not beeing accurate. Im wondering in what way. Is it like my cellphone battery, where is slowly goes down to one line left, but that last line lasts for a loooong time? The reason I ask is that I had one line left today, filled it up, but only had room for 12 liters of fuel. Granted I did not top the tank I think, but still, I was expecting to fill about 15-16l.

c - Engine cruising rpm. I have not really explored the higher rev range yet, I think a little more experience before I unleash the power above 8k is in order, but for cruising revs, it seems to be very comfortable around 4500, is that inline with what the rest of you do? Or do you prefer higher/lower revs?

d - as a part of my purchase, I got the dealer to add a Yamaha touring windscreen, the slightly higher that stock one, with a little lip at the top to give the airflow a little more height. However, he was quite firm about saying it added some turbulance infront of the bike and could lead to some instability. I stayed with the stock screen, leaving the touring screen as an option later. Has anyone experienced turbulence/instability with that screen?

Thanks for reading, and as I said before, thanks for a fine forum with a great attitude!

 

[The Pheasant]

I'm fairly new to the FZ6 but here goes:

A: no idea; I have never bothered to use it although I guess it could be useful if you are wondering whether there might be ice around.
B:It's slightly confusing, but when you have one bar left on the gauge, you really have two 'cos when there are about 3l left the single bar starts 'winking'. At the same time the odometer swaps mode and starts to count the miles or km since the bar started winking to give you an idea how far you can go before you run dry. I have gone 15 miles beyond the start of the winking mode and then put about 17l into the tank, so you can probably go 50 miles/80km once the winking starts.
C:I find the motor is happy cruising in whatever revs suit the road speed you choose even down to 3000rpm in top gear. When it comes to acceleration or fast riding it's a different matter of course; more revs give better response especially above 7000.
D: I have the stock screen but as a general rule a lip at the top of a screen will generate turbulence and noise. Not sure about handling instability.

Hope this helps.

 

[Botch]

I use the touring windscreen during the winter, and no windscreen during the summer, can't really feel a stability difference at all.

 

[lonesoldier84]

I like to cruise in the power band when in the city in case I need to pick up 10-20kph really quickly. That usually puts me just over 8k rpm iirc. Havent ridden in like 5 months.....damned winter. But outside the city I will usually bump it up a gear to conserve fuel.

As for fuel, when it starts flashing you have about 50-60 km left. That is ball park and I'm not entirely sure how correct it is as again, its been 5 months since ive ridden. When you have one tick left though usually good idea to fill up anyway, no sense making ur bike suffer. You will need to fill up sometime anyway.

 

[CHEMIKER]

:welcome: to the site and congratulations on your new bike!!

I think I'm generally above 4k rpm around town and above 5k rpm on the highway, but those aren't hard rules; just what it ends up being for me. Should be whatever you feel comfortable with.

 

[KensFz6]

:welcome:

A: I always leave it on coolant temp since the air temp seems irrelevent in relation to the engine. It would be nice to have a weather temp gauge instead but I don't think you could accurately get a result. But if you test it and figure out a way let us know :steve:

B: I can't really tell. To me, it seems like I'll be full for a long time then the next thing I know, I'm down to 1-2 bars so I go fill.

C: This is highly debated. Some people like to let the engine stay quiet between 3-5K RPMS and there are others who keep theirs up beyond 8-12k. I did some short highway runs for fun today and noted that I stayed around 8-10k until I matched pace with traffic ahead and behind then shifted up to be at 6k to cruise. If I'm riding around without earplugs in, I keep the revs lower.

D: The windscreen only generates turbulance at your head or chest depending on how tall you and the screen are. I just have the stock screen, and the only instability I worry about is cross wind.

 

[sfcali86]

yea its around 4500 rpm same for me for cruise once u hit the 6000 man the bike cruises better oh and faster!!

 

[bluenova]

a - I have wondered myself but to be honest it's always on engine temp mode as that is what's important.

b - Mine stay's on all bars for ages then quickly goes down. Annoying, but you get used to it. I tend to fuel up based on mileage anyway.

c - You are spot on with 4500 cruising rpm's as this is the most economical region, below 3000 and you are lugging which needs more fuel. Obviously at motorway speeds it'll be around 7/8000 in 6th gear, but not much you can do about that . (Don't forget to keep it below 6000 until you hit have done your first 1000 km, then after the oil change you can open her up).

d - No idea, my bike is naked.

 

[Gupp]

Thanks a bunch for all the replies. I realise the temperature thing really isnt important, but I was just curious. It still seems to me there is 4-5 celsius difference, atleast now when its so cold outside here.

And yeah, the fuel gauge seems to drop from full to one bar really fast, but atleast now I know I can still travel a good way on one bar left, nothing to start panicking about.

Ive now had time for a few more rides and I really do love this machine. I cant wait for the temperature to go up a little bit so I can go for some longer trips and bring the wife along too. Not to mention to start exploring the 8k rpm + range. From a few acceleration "tests" it seems to me there is lot happening there.

Anyway, I attached a pic from yesterdays 250km tour.

Thanks again! :thumbup: