Honda Unicorn 129 mpg/Star Twin Thunder Star 1200 TDI 94 mpg

[GasSavers_Bobert]

Thought I post these two motorcycles which get some pretty impressive gas mileage. First is the Honda Unicorn which is rated 55kmpl or 129 mpg. I believe this bike was developed for the Indian market, so it's not available in the U.S. unfortunately. I guess there are always ways to get anything though. Grey market maybe? There is a review here:

http://www.indiabike.com/infobank/unicorn/index.htm

They achieved a top speed of 70mph. I believe the original specs only say 62mph, so could be used on the highway (though not much passing ability).




Also stumbled upon this bike called the Star Twin Thunder Star 1200 TDI. Yes it's a diesel motorcycle which is available in the Netherlands. I'm guessing it is a production model now(?), as it was a prototype not too long ago. It's listed as 2,5 liters on 100 km or 94 mpg.



There is a brochure available here in English: http://www.startwin.com/pagina/bikes...understar.htm#

[GasSavers_Ryland]

I have to wonder what speed that 129mpg was achieved at, I know some bikes get their mileage figures at 35mph, it seems a bit heavy at 277lb and just slightly more power then my cb125 that puts out 12.5 peek horse power, but I like the improvements to the ignition system, and exhaust system, and I would love to have alloy wheels on my Honda instead of steel rims.

[GasSavers_SD26]

CBR125R is available in Canada.
http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/photo...da-CBR125R.htm

I have reason to believe that it might be available in the US in 2009. Can't say for sure, and it might only be for racing even though it is a street bike in other parts of the world.

[djenyc]

Hey, I was researching motorcycle fuel efficiency and also came up on Honda Unicorn - 125mpg is really good.

Any idea on when something like this will be available in the US?

I currently have 2001 Suzuki Katana, had it for a few years, but going to sell it due to dismal fuel economy - the best I got out of it was 41mpg with just me riding it all highway. With 2 people and gear it drops to 30 mpg which is retarded, so I don't even drive it any more.

I got a 94 Honda Civic VX a few months ago and now getting 45-50mpg all day long just riding around town, and 55-65mpg on highway. I want to get back on a bike, but it's got to get 100mpg and be able to go on highway.

So what are our choices for fuel efficient motorcycles?

I saw reports that Yamaha TW200 can get 80-95MPG with higher gearing, but looks like it's hard to get one used for a decent price - the ones I saw for sale were in 2-3K range (even older ones from the 80S-90s) - that's more than I what paid for my cars. Looks like the only other option is Kawasaki Ninja 250 which is good for may be 70MPG - they are cheap, but I'd really like to get better fuel efficiency.

They got really nice bikes in India - here some specs I've looked up:

Honda Unicorn - Top speed 113kph/70.1mph; Fuel economy 51.1kpl/120mpg Overall, 52.7kpl/124mpg Highway, 49.9kpl/117mpg City
Baja Pulsar 150 DTS - Top speed 108kph/67mph; Fuel economy: 49.4kpl/116mpg Overall, 51.5kpl/121mpg Highway, 47.3kpl/111mpg City
Hero Honda Achiever - Top speed 109kph/67.7mph; Fuel economy: 53.3kpl/125mpg (overall)

So this are street/highway legal bikes 65-70mph and 110-125 MPG - they list for 50-55K rupees, so ~$1200 for a new bike. With peak oil and US economy tanking we really need something like that here right now. Has anybody looked in to importing them to US?

Thanks
Ross

[ShadowWorks]

Why are there not more Diesel motor bikes?

[GasSavers_SD26]

Originally Posted by ShadowWorks

Why are there not more Diesel motor bikes?

Weight, cost, demand.

Hard enough to get diesel cars in the US.

[GasSavers_SD26]

Originally Posted by djenyc

I currently have 2001 Suzuki Katana, had it for a few years, but going to sell it due to dismal fuel economy - the best I got out of it was 41mpg with just me riding it all highway. With 2 people and gear it drops to 30 mpg which is retarded, so I don't even drive it any more.

Well, you chose a Suzuki Katana. Not sure which displacement model you have, but the Katana is a sport bike. Yes, it can be used for commuting and other cycling purposes, but the engine was sourced from the early GSXR series bikes. The 600 Katana was the race bike of choice in the 600 class even in the late 80's.

A V6 Ford Mustang is probably a good analogy. Ford has some stuff above it in their performance line. It isn't designed to be an econobox.

[dosco]

Hopefully some of the smaller bikes will be making it stateside soon.

I spent some time in Italy in 1994, the amount of small bikes in the 125 to 250 cc class was amazing. Cagiva, Aprilia, etc. Anything in or above the 600 cc was a rarity. Of course, those smaller guys were 2-strokes... ... ...

[djenyc]

Originally Posted by SD26

Well, you chose a Suzuki Katana. Not sure which displacement model you have, but the Katana is a sport bike. Yes, it can be used for commuting and other cycling purposes, but the engine was sourced from the early GSXR series bikes. The 600 Katana was the race bike of choice in the 600 class even in the late 80's.

A V6 Ford Mustang is probably a good analogy. Ford has some stuff above it in their performance line. It isn't designed to be an econobox.

SD26, I have an '01 Katana 600 - nobody in the right mind would buy it for a sports bike. In the 80's they had a 1200 Katana that was for the track, but that time has come an gone. So, I knew it was slooooow when I bought it in '03, but that was fine as I just wanted a nice touring bike that I could ride on 8 hour trips - back in the days of cheap gas it was a great ride.

But bike manufacturers really gotta focus on the fuel economy, as that is the only thing that what will help them sell IMHO. Right now they are still on performance and features - I saw reports on the new '08 Kawasaki Ninja 250 and with adding 6'th gear and other changes it's getting lower MPG than '07 model. What is up with that?

[GasSavers_Randy]

I thought the Ninja 250's always had a 6 speed box?

I think the biggest mpg gain is from tuning for mileage. I don't think there's a single bike in the US where it was in the top 10 design goals. Diesel vs gas isn't anywhere near as important.