After twice "testing" available fuel before engine-stop (12.5 liters for me) I asked my dealer for an answer other than "that's normal".
They checked with Ducati and answered that the outside shape is the same as the metal tanks, the walls are thicker and the fuel cell is similar shape. Conclusion is that the amount of fuel is actually less than the advertised/owner's manual "14 liter". Ducati just didn't bother changing this piece of information.
A bigger problem is that the "reserve" is only 1.5 liters - not the announced 3 liters. On more than a few occasions I have had to follow the trip counter to plan my trips. It can be too late to find a gas station after the "reserve" light comes on (about 30 km range). It's still a mystery to me why Ducati uses a "reserve" light sensor/trigger that signals with only 1.5 liters left when it should be easy enough to have it adjusted/rebuilt to 3 liters "reserve". Ducati's response, through my dealer, is off course "that's normal".
Filling my S2R up to the neck, I've put in 3.5 gal (US) before which is pretty close to 14 L. I don't know what model you have, but mine seems close. Fuel light comes on and I usually have about 40 miles until it starts coughing, which is about right for the claimed amount 0.8 gal which again is close to the claimed 3 L.
don't know why your resuls are different.. or mine?
Ever buy a Hard drive thats 320gb, but only get 290gb? Same story here.
The thing really does hold 14 liters. But lets take away 2 liters due to the size of the fuel pump. That leaves us with 12. Then lets take away the fuel that the fuel pump cant reach. thats another 1liter. so realistically you only have 11 liters.
or in US gals. its said to hold 3.8US gals. Realistically you can only fill up 3.000001 gals, unless you ride till your bike is dead. then its more like 3.19999 gals lol. that .2gals is just about 1 liter. So yea.
I dont know how Ducatizzz managed 3.5gal, but even when i was riding my biek to hte point where it shut of on me. i couldnt get paast 3.19 gals.
Quote from: He Man on August 21, 2008, 05:08:27 PM
I dont know how Ducatizzz managed 3.5gal, but even when i was riding my biek to hte point where it shut of on me. i couldnt get paast 3.19 gals.
It may have been like 3.4xxx but it was definitely more than 3.19 gal
I'm with He-Man. I have RAN OUT of gas and put in just over 3.2G and that's filling up to the hole in the neck...
hmmm i wonder if it would be possible to relocate the pump outside the tank?
I can live with 3.2 gallons / 12.5 liters / anything close - which is what I have. Just unprofessional by Ducati not to be clear about it.
What I don't like is that the warning light doesn't come on earlier. Shouldn't be too difficult? According to Ducatizzzz it can be correct at 3 liters on some bikes. (Mine is '07) That would allow me almost 40 miles, which would be more practical.
Quote from: stopintime on August 21, 2008, 05:31:16 PM
I can live with 3.2 gallons / 12.5 liters / anything close - which is what I have. Just unprofessional by Ducati not to be clear about it.
What I don't like is that the warning light doesn't come on earlier. Shouldn't be too difficult? According to Ducatizzzz it can be correct at 3 liters on some bikes. (Mine is '07) That would allow me almost 40 miles, which would be more practical.
seems you could fill it up all the way, then drain it to see what you get as a test, no?
Quote from: ducatizzzz on August 21, 2008, 05:32:47 PM
seems you could fill it up all the way, then drain it to see what you get as a test, no?
I did. (drained my tank to paint it) then filled it back up with 1 gallon (from those 1 gal water jugs) and rode 1/2 block to the gas station where i filled up ~2.35gals, and the bike would of spilled gas if i tipped it over on the sidestand.
First time I trusted the 3 liter / 40 miles plan [bang]
Second time I found a hill nearby with a gas station at the beginning of the climb. One day with an almost empty tank I just went up and down a few times until the bike stopped, rolled down and filled it (12.5 liters) to the overflow hole on the neck - with the bike on the sidestand, equals beginning of the neck when upright.
If you can put the advertised capacity into an s4rs tank from bone dry I'll drink the contents.
Quote from: Statler on August 21, 2008, 06:00:19 PM
If you can put the advertised capacity into an s4rs tank from bone dry I'll drink the contents.
You, of all people, should know better than to put something like that in writing [laugh]
Quote from: stopintime on August 21, 2008, 06:05:02 PM
You, of all people, should know better than to put something like that in writing [laugh]
hahahha. yup...I must be pretty confident on this one. ;D
Quote from: ducatizzzz on August 21, 2008, 05:28:18 PM
hmmm i wonder if it would be possible to relocate the pump outside the tank?
+1 if it handle being in gas it should be able to handle being outside the tank.
Quote from: Ducatiloo on August 21, 2008, 06:13:34 PM
+1 if it handle being in gas it should be able to handle being outside the tank.
weren't some of the older monsters with an external pump? or was that just the filter?
Quote from: Statler on August 21, 2008, 06:00:19 PM
If you can put the advertised capacity into an s4rs tank from bone dry I'll drink the contents.
hmmm, i heard of an s4rs tank filled to advertised capacity with urine.
Quote from: Ducatiloo on August 21, 2008, 06:13:34 PM
+1 if it handle being in gas it should be able to handle being outside the tank.
Sure, but on the current Monsters, where are you going to put the pump? Especially on the Testa motors...
Quote from: Statler on August 21, 2008, 06:00:19 PM
If you can put the advertised capacity into an s4rs tank from bone dry I'll drink the contents.
You realize you didn't specify it had to be a stock tank?
putting pods in makes for allot of room.
Quote from: NAKID on August 21, 2008, 07:17:10 PM
Sure, but on the current Monsters, where are you going to put the pump? Especially on the Testa motors...
dump the stock airbox, get rid of that weird foam padding under the tank..
or you can just remove the charcoal canister and put it there (rofl)
Carbie Monsters have external pump and filter.
Quote from: Statler on August 21, 2008, 06:00:19 PM
If you can put the advertised capacity into an s4rs tank from bone dry I'll drink the contents.
Okay deal.
I just need to go build a 9/8 scale tank.
Carbie monsters held 4 gallons. =D
Quote from: He Man on August 21, 2008, 09:12:09 PM
I just need to go build a 9/8 scale tank.
A reverse Smokey Yunick (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smokey_Yunick), neat!
The tank capacity thing does suck a fairly substantial amount of arse, now I'm used to it's fine. I guess they don't want to change the advertised figures for fear of even more people going "crikey, that's a small tank".
And, for stopintime, this is my last post while in the Nordic countries. :). At least for this trip - I've got to find some way to get back here!
Reserve for me is 40 km...then it dies...been there, done it.
I put 200 km on it before the reserve blinks and then refuel 11 litres
Quote from: He Man on August 21, 2008, 05:08:27 PM
Ever buy a Hard drive thats 320gb, but only get 290gb? Same story here.
The thing really does hold 14 liters. But lets take away 2 liters due to the size of the fuel pump. That leaves us with 12. Then lets take away the fuel that the fuel pump cant reach. thats another 1liter. so realistically you only have 11 liters.
or in US gals. its said to hold 3.8US gals. Realistically you can only fill up 3.000001 gals, unless you ride till your bike is dead. then its more like 3.19999 gals lol. that .2gals is just about 1 liter. So yea.
I dont know how Ducatizzz managed 3.5gal, but even when i was riding my biek to hte point where it shut of on me. i couldnt get paast 3.19 gals.
The volume of the pump and filter is 256cc thats 1/4 of a litre.
Quote from: Capo on August 22, 2008, 06:20:08 AM
The volume of the pump and filter is 256cc thats 1/4 of a litre.
I was gonna say... no way is the pump and filter the size of a 1/2 gallon jug.
If you've ditched the carbon canister, you can fill it to within 1/4" of the bottom of the filler opening.
The tank is just smaller than advertised.
All the tech specs should be taken with a grain of salt, for example; the dry weight being sans battery. [roll]
Try putting fuel in when the engine is cold and the fuel is below 40 degrees. Just make sure it doesn't overflow while you're riding and the engine heats up the fuel tank. Also, there's probably at least a litre in the fuel system when the engine is running and stopped. That may make up some of the difference. All I know is my stomach can hold more than 3 litres of beer before I go on reserve!
Quote from: Newcatista on August 22, 2008, 08:17:14 AM
Try putting fuel in when the engine is cold and the fuel is below 40 degrees. Just make sure it doesn't overflow while you're riding and the engine heats up the fuel tank. Also, there's probably at least a litre in the fuel system when the engine is running and stopped. That may make up some of the difference. All I know is my stomach can hold more than 3 litres of beer before I go on reserve!
Once the 'system' is full it remains so whether the engine is running or not. I recently stripped some injector bodies and was surprised at the amount of fuel in them considering that they had been sitting around for a while.
However there is a least a litre left in the tank below the level of the fuel pump inlet.
Quote from: Capo on August 22, 2008, 06:20:08 AM
The volume of the pump and filter is 256cc thats 1/4 of a litre.
What about the 2 plates its attatched to it and all those other tubes and kinks?
When i took mine out it was pretty damn big.
I have the older M1000 with the steel tank, supposedly of 15 litre capacity, but I ran out, luckily for me I was rolling down the drive. So, from completely empty to full, it took 13 litres. Glad I found out when I was home and not in the middle of nowhere.
Quote from: He Man on August 22, 2008, 08:46:24 AM
What about the 2 plates its attatched to it and all those other tubes and kinks?
When i took mine out it was pretty damn big.
Take it out again measure it then come back and tell us.
If you only consider the external size of the filter, pump and lones that would add up to a lot of gas. Fact is these components are full of fuel.
Does anyone have any idea why the "reserve" light comes on at about 1,5 liters (30 km) left instead of 3 liters? It shouldn't be related to the volume issue. Have you heard anyone replacing or adjusting it?
Quote from: Capo on August 22, 2008, 08:43:26 AM
However there is a least a litre left in the tank below the level of the fuel pump inlet.
That is what drives me crazy, if I have to haul around that gas I should be able to use it.
Quote from: stopintime on August 22, 2008, 02:03:23 PM
Does anyone have any idea why the "reserve" light comes on at about 1,5 liters (30 km) left instead of 3 liters? It shouldn't be related to the volume issue. Have you heard anyone replacing or adjusting it?
Because they screwed up? You should probably be glad the dang thing works. Usually they fail in the on mode, forcing you to live with a useless, bright yellow light. Your trip meter is your friend. Learn to use it an consider the low fuel light an "oh shit" light like the oil pressure warning light.
Replacing it probably won't help. They all seem to be off by the same amount. They are also expen$ive. The units are sealed and considered not serviceable, therefore theoretically not adjustable. I never had one to tried to take one apart though.
Quote from: howie on August 22, 2008, 07:46:11 PM
Because they screwed up? You should probably be glad the dang thing works. Usually they fail in the on mode, forcing you to live with a useless, bright yellow light. Your trip meter is your friend. Learn to use it an consider the low fuel light an "oh shit" light like the oil pressure warning light.
Replacing it probably won't help. They all seem to be off by the same amount. They are also expen$ive. The units are sealed and considered not serviceable, therefore theoretically not adjustable. I never had one to tried to take one apart though.
Howie,
"glad it works" [laugh] [laugh] [laugh] sounds good enough for me [thumbsup]
(congratulations on the upcoming 1k posts!)
Here is a fuel level sensor from a steel tank, the wires at the bottom of the pic are the connections for the fuel pump.
(http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm143/Tarugo996/P1000694.jpg)
Inside the tube is a float that rides on a center pin
(http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm143/Tarugo996/P1000697.jpg)
The float has a movement range of approx 16mm, and appears to influence the resistance of a coil contained within the tube, when measured the resistance of this coil decreases when the float is in the lower position. This probably means that a comparator circuit in the dash triggers the indicator lamp when the resistance of the circuit falls below a set value.
Therein lies a way to 'calibrate' the point at which the low fuel light comes on.
Those lights fail all the time anyways. Just get used to using the trip odometer, so the first time it fails, you won't find out the hard way (like I did).
I just use the trip meter too. Everytime I get really good mileage I think that my light has failed. [cheeky]
Quote from: someguy on August 23, 2008, 10:41:35 AM
Those lights fail all the time anyways. Just get used to using the trip odometer, so the first time it fails, you won't find out the hard way (like I did).
In 20+ years of riding, I've never had a fuel light go. I have a second-hand 1985 Alazzurra which still has a fully functional fuel warning light -- it has a manual reserve tap tho.
I guess I am lucky? ;D