Filling up with gas

[looksfast04]

Hey, I've only put about 100 miles on my bike, and all of those have been neighborhood miles. But tomorrow, I'll have insurance and I plan on taking a nice long ride, but first i figured i should top off the tank. My question is, how? Is it just like a car? do you just stick the nozzle in the tank and pump till it stops? Or do you have to watch inside of it to see when it's full? I'm such a noob, haha. Thanks for any help.

[Zarathustra]

yeah, just stick it in and fill it up.  it'll stop when it gets close to the top, just like a car.  all the same, after it stops you can generally get a lot more in, so then you just gotta do it yourself.   i usually fill all the way up to the neck of the tank.  have fun on your ride.

[Rema1000]

Unfortunately, no.  The tank is so shallow, that if you fully insert the nozzle, the pump will turn-off before the tank is half-full.  Instead, you need to hold the nozzle with just the end into the tank, and you need to watch the fuel level, or it can overflow and/or splash up at you.

What I do, is to put the bike on centerstand, then fill.  When the fuel level gets up to the filler neck, then I wait a few seconds, and it usually goes back down a half-inch, then repeat.  When the level no-longer drops down by itself after a few seconds, I grab the handlebars and turn them from side to side.  This rocks the fuel around, and releases some more air pockets.  Finally, when rocking the steering doesn't get the level below the filler neck, you're done.

You don't need to go to so much trouble if you just want to ride around for awhile.  But filling all the way is about the only way to get a decent guess at gas mileage.

You may not want to fill it all the way if parking in the sun; I've heard that you may need to leave some room for expansion.

One thing you don't want to do is fill it up while you sit on the bike... one mistake and you've got a lap full of gasoline

[looksfast04]

Wow, thanks for the fast replies!  This board seems to be really good about that, even though i've only asked 2 questions, haha. Thanks again.

[Kerry]

Just another opinion....

I always fill the tank while sitting on the bike.  As the tank fills I pull the nozzle further and further up until the end of it is maybe halfway down the filler neck.  When the fuel gets to the bottom of the filler neck I rock the bike from side to side by shifting my weight from one foot to the other.  Like Rema said, the bubbles come up and the fuel level goes down - at least half a dozen times.  Since the bike is level, I figure I get the most fuel possible in there.  

I haven't tried Rema's "turn the handlebars" trick.  I'll have to see what that does.

Whichever way you do it, try to do it the same way every time so your "miles per gallon" calculations will be consistent.

Oh, and if you have a magnetic tank bag that gets in the way, try this:


EDIT: Changed link from sisna.com to bbburma.net.

[mp183]

If you are new don't sit on it until you get the feel for how it works.  Watch the stupid little piece that locks the nozzle in the on position.  Make sure that it's not engaged or it will overfill if you are holding just the tip of the nozzle in the tank.

[scratch]

Pull up to the right-side of the pump.
Put the bike on the sidestand.
Turn the handlebars to full lock right to get them out of the way.
I grab one or two of the paper towels supplied by the gasstation, and use these to wrap around the nozzle to form a kind of splash shield; and to keep my hands clean (gas is bad for gloves).
If your state requires the flexible/collapsing hose over the nozzle, you will need to pull back said rubber boot (flexible/collapsing hose).
Insert the nozzle so it's just under the lower edge of the filler neck and fill it up. Do not let go of the hose. Keep holding it back (with the towels).
By having the bike on it's sidestand causes the right-side of the filler neck to be higher and allow air to escape the tank while filling. I usually just fill up to the lower left-side of the filler neck.
When withdrawing the nozzle, I slide the towels down to prevent any gas dripping on the paint (gas is bad for paint).

[perfdrug]

don't feel like a noob by asking this question. i've yet to fill a motorcycle either and was wondering the same thing. i was just going to wing it tho.

[gitarman]

hey scratch the paper towel thing is a good tip, gas does strip the clearcoat off of paint. Afterall you don't want to lose that bee-U-tee-full purple paint!  

[spotswood_suzuki]

I always sit on mine when I fill it.....but do remember to put your side stand down....wouldn't want to step off after filling it up and watch the bike go    :x  :guns:

Wayne