How Low Dare You Go?

This is a contest - of will, or maybe just plain stupidity - of how low you have run on gas (or are willing at some future date to run) - without actually running out of gas. For this to be a valid contest entry you need to be somewhere where running out of gas is going to cause you much angst and heartburn - it can't be around town where there are plenty of gas stations or somewhere where help is a few minutes away - it needs to be on a freeway, or in some desolate area - somewhere where you need to call on a tow truck or the mercy of.a Good Samaritan passing by - otherwise you may never get home. When I ride my SWing I often hate to stop for any reason - even gas - unless I am desperate. When that last bar starts flashing I say to myself - 'I have about 50 miles left' - but I then immediately start thinking about where to stop - and if I don't know there are a lot's of gas stations coming up, then I stop right then when I see my fist station - or maybe turn around and go back to the last station I saw, but if there are stations every 5 miles or so, then I plow on - but after about 30 miles (maybe 20 miles left in the tank), I invariably chicken out and stop for gas. I do this over and over - my biggest fill-up to-date has been about 3.75 gallons. When I fill it up I look into the tank and when it starts frothing and sloshing a bit then I back off on the flowrate - until the gas just creeps over the metal bar - at which time I assume my tank is full - and at about 4.23 gallons. I have never filled the tank to the top of the neck as I have always assumed that it would not hold that much more - and I would risk making a big mess.

So the question for you is How Low Dare You Go? Or, How Low Have You Gone? Either historical or you can post to this thread on some future adventure where you pushed the envelope! ENTER CONTEST AT YOUR OWN RISK - AND STAY IN THE SLOW LANE IF YOU ARE LOW ON GAS AS A PRECAUTION AS YOU SURELY DON'T WANT TO RUN OUT OF GAS WHILE IN ANY OF THE FAST LANES. Prize? Maybe bragging rights or ragging rights - as we don't want to encourage a potentially unsafe practice. Just curious - hope you are too!
Here is my subjective risk-taker scale (gallons and less):
3.00 - You don't have a risky bone in your body.
3.25 - You are just sprouting your first risky bone.
3.50 - You now know the definition of risk.
3.75 - You wish you were risky but your actually still pretty conservative.
4.00 - You are very very risky.
4.20 - You may need to seek some help.
4.23 - Clearly help is beyond you!

3.50 - 3.75 for me. I just do not like to push a bike.

The lowest I've gotten is 3.61 gallons after 178 miles .
My gas gauge was flashing like crazy as if I was running on fumes even
though there was half a gallon left.
Usually my fill ups are in the 2.5 to 2.6 gallon range.

Like Dennis B said, it's no fun to have a push a bike to a gas station.

3.602 on Sunday! Heading up a major grade of 6% at a high rate of speed and suddenly the gauge was flashing! Not knowing the Wing that well yet I felt I was in imminent danger of PUSHING it! Filled up in Camp Verde, AZ but could easily have made Cottonwood another 10 miles. This cost me 30 cents a gallon (sigh). Live and learn I guess...

GHM-PM wrote:

3.602 on Sunday! Heading up a major grade of 6% at a high rate of speed and suddenly the gauge was flashing! Not knowing the Wing that well yet I felt I was in imminent danger of PUSHING it! Filled up in Camp Verde, AZ but could easily have made Cottonwood another 10 miles. This cost me 30 cents a gallon (sigh). Live and learn I guess...

By my calculations, you spent a little over a dollar to fill up early. How much would you pay someone to push your scooter if you ran out? Bet it's more than a dollar. There's a difference between risky and stupid. :lol!:

From Memory of a few years ago:

My GPS also has a trip computer on it (Garmin Zumo 550).
After several tankfuls of gas I had figured out my average gas mileage.
I filled up at a gas station and reset my zumo gages.
This was the tail end of a long trip coming back to Miami from the Honda Hoot in Tennessee.
So I'm on a particular stage of the trip where its a long road down the center of the state, and I see my gage a bit low. I check my computer and see I only enough gas left for x miles.
So I search my GPS for the nearest gas station.
Nearest gas station is in front of me...15 miles outside my range!
Throwing caution to the wind, I decide to draft a semi.
My engine cut out as I was coasting into the gas station.

Dan

Iv'e had 217 miles on a tank. It took 4.1 gallon. I try not to get that low. I usually get gas when I get between 160 - 190 miles on a tank. If I stay close to home. If I'm out on a long rides I usually try to stop every 1 1/2 hr. to stretch and that's a good time to also get gas.

I cheat. I have 4 MSR fuel bottles I carry with me so if I run out, I still have enough to get to a fill-up point. In the colder months, forget it. Water vapor inside the tank increases when the tank is not full with high humidity. That increases the risk of water (from condensation) in the gas getting into the fuel lines and freezing. So - warm weather, carry extra in a fuel bottle or real can. Cold weather - fill up often to prevent fuel-line freeze-up.

Reminder - typical plastic gas cans allow air flow and will cause gas to oxidize reducing its effectiveness. Air-tight containers don't have that problem. Oxidized gasoline turns a more reddish color.

KB

Biking, I'm cautious and don't push the limit as far as the amount of fuel goes.

Car, Always top up when the on board computer tells me I have about 50 miles left.

Aviation! Another story! Engine stopped in the hover! (No go juice)

Regardless of what I am riding I always fill when the tank gets below the half way mark. Walking/pushing=sucks.

Sometimes/places if takes that half tank to find station, there are times when I have had to use my camp stove gas to keep moving. But have done well on the running out thing----once in over 1.5 million miles----Hokkaido Japan, top of long hill, small Kawasaki, small tank-----coasted in to station. But was worried.

I did 227 miles and the longest 15 minutes before reaching the gas station.Very stressful . It was a good thing that the weather was good and I was doing the speed limit or I would have run out of gas.I still had 2.5 litters left in the tank. My 750 Shadow was good for only 120 miles. Love my Swing.

Did 3.3. Now that's on a new Shadow 750 (tank's 3.7 but they do get great mileage, got 53mpg on that tank, usually avg 56)

Yesterday coming out of Yosemite National Park on the east side, I turned right on US 395. Should have turned left into Lee Vining and fueled up. Turned down the only station between Lee Vining and Bishop because they wanted 4.939 per gallon! Then HAD to make Bishop, CA... 212.3 miles on that tank; 3.654 gallons for an overall average of 58.1!!! But only paid 3.959 so did OK. Guess i shouldn't have worried.

A little nervous though, lol.

When those little bars start flashing, I'm pulling over. I seldom take the bike out of town, so it's never more than 5 or 6 miles before I run into the next gas station. As a matter or fact I put the bike up last night with only two bars left on the gauge, when I leave out this morning, my first stop will be at the Wally World (Walmart) to top off the tank on my way to my first appointment.

Flashing bars mean stop.

I have noticed that my last bar starts flashing religiously at 180 miles... Anyone else notice this? Indicates that perhaps the gauge is programmed for a mileage figure not an actual fuel amount left in tank.

Just an observation.

Wen my gage start to flash,and i gas up I take 12 litters of gas, leaving 4 litter of gas in the tank,about 1 gallon US.and 60 miles to go before empty.

My flashing bar means I have just under a 1/4 of a tank, almost a gallon.

I normaly do not stop for gas untill I have traveled over 200 miles, I have been 215 miles on one tank.

I wish the bar flashed when I had a quart left instead, or maybe they could make the bar stop flashing at 1 quart, then You would Really need to get gas.

Harry

Think about it Harry. If it started blinking at a quart, and you didn't notice until a pint and the station was over a cup away (into a headwind) and .......... Maybe that's why they have the large storage area; for your walking shoes.

"Hi Yo" wrote:

Think about it Harry. If it started blinking at a quart, and you didn't notice until a pint and the station was over a cup away (into a headwind) and .......... Maybe that's why they have the large storage area; for your walking shoes.

My fuel guage has 8 bars, how many bars does your guage have ?

at a quart you have about 10 miles untill empty.



Harry

Personally, the lowest I usually let it get is two bars .
Life is full of aggravation enough without worrying about how far it is
to the next gas station and do I have enough gas to get there.

Well, hit the lowest ever been in cage w/out running out. Low fuel warning does NOT come on.

Pumped 25.401 gallons on a 26 gallon tank. Good thing I gassed up before heading to school tomorrow, Ford WOULD have meant Found On Road Dead.