Large petrol tanks

[badou24]

Do you rally need a 35 ltr tank on a motorbike ?
1 yes if your going around the world.
2 or you could just buy 2 plastic cans and use them when needed
3 but for most of us a normal tank is just fine aprox 15/ 20 ltr depending on your miles per gallon !.............

[Grant Johnson]

Need - no, Nice to have - yes, Expensive - yes, Worth the price - probably not, as they're usually ridiculously expensive. You can always get something to carry fuel in temporarily. In fact at a couple of places where it's a long ways to the next fuel, locals sit at the side of the road with Coke bottles full of fuel.
My own experience with a 40 litre tank was that it was a nice to have, a real luxury not to have to think about fuel - but you could also get lazy.... We only NEEDED it once, in Nicaragua, when it was a three day wait to get a permit to get in the 3 day line to get the fuel. We ended up riding right through to Costa Rica, and literally coasted into the first gas station and stopped nicely at the pumps, bone dry.

[mark manley]

I would say it is more about range and a minimum of 200 miles/320kms is enough in most parts of the world now with another 50miles/80km needed in a few other places.
Bikes are more economical now and those large tanks were needed on airhead BMWs which only did 50 mpg on a good day but some modern medium sized bikes can do 80 mpg.

[Snakeboy]

As mentioned above - its about range, not about how many liters you get into the tank. On a Honda CT 125 Hunter Cub for example with a 1,4 US gallon tank/5,3 liter you will get a range of approx 350 kms. So no need for a 35 liter tank on that bike....

There are several things to consider when it comes to fuel capacity and range:

1. Where are you going to ride? What range do you need? In remote areas where gas stations are scarce, and sometimes even out of fuel? Try to do some research ahead.....

2. What range do you have? Remember that in some countries in the poorer parts of the world fuel sometimes is of lower quality than in the developed parts of the world. For example in Bolivia the fuel is (said to be) 85 octane RON. Which is approx 80 octane AKI as is the north american standards. In Indonesia the standard fuel is 88 octane RON, approx 82 octane AKI. And less octane number - the higher fuel consumption on modern EFI bikes at least. Carburated bikes might be different.

3. I wouldnt had gone anywhere without a fuel range of at least 300 kms!
A fuel range of 400 kms would actually be a minimum fuel range imo for a decent overland bike.
500 km fuel range - now were talkin.
600 km range and above - luxury!

4. As Grant mentioned above - the oversized tanks that are offered are often very highly priced. So that must also be taken into consideration.

5. I rode around the world with two 3,5 liter jerrycans attached to the rear of the side panniers. What a PITA! I have lost count over how many times I needed to reinforce the attachments of those jerrycans, and I lost a couple of those jerrycans too along the road! And that was with designated cans, designated mounts, designated straps etc etc. I wonder how it would work if one used something more amateurish stuff to carry outside gas in?
Imo fuel should be carried in the main gas tank. Carrying fuel outside the tank takes up space for other items such as water, spare parts, clothes, tools etc etc.
And as in my case - outside carried fuel cans tends to fall off. Maybe those rotopax cans work, but they still take up space for other potential stuff you would like to carry.

[Wheelie]

Originally Posted by mark manley

I would say it is more about range and a minimum of 200 miles/320kms is enough in most parts of the world now with another 50miles/80km needed in a few other places.

I agree with this 100% but would like to add that when you go to places where those extra 80km just maybe might be required, that you get in the habit of topping up your main tank often (30-50%). The fuel availability of the last 1000 km may be a poor predictor of fuel availability for the next 100km.

[cyclopathic]

Originally Posted by mark manley

I would say it is more about range and a minimum of 200 miles/320kms is enough in most parts of the world now with another 50miles/80km needed in a few other places.

Bikes are more economical now and those large tanks were needed on airhead BMWs which only did 50 mpg on a good day but some modern medium sized bikes can do 80 mpg.

That's a fair assessment.. there isn't that many places where you need 250mi+ range. Still IMO 701LR got it right. For one, even if gas available there could be issues with quality, and on some remote vistas you not only need fuel to get there, but also need to carry extra to be able to turn back at any point.

[Jay_Benson]

Originally Posted by Grant Johnson

We ended up riding right through to Costa Rica, and literally coasted into the first gas station and stopped nicely at the pumps, bone dry.

That was really lucky as Susan would have been so hacked off having to push you sat on the bike to the next fuel station.

[AnTyx]

Originally Posted by Grant Johnson

We only NEEDED it once, in Nicaragua, when it was a three day wait to get a permit to get in the 3 day line to get the fuel. We ended up riding right through to Costa Rica, and literally coasted into the first gas station and stopped nicely at the pumps, bone dry.

But imagine what a great story you would have to tell if you'd been stuck in Nicaragua with no fuel!

[Tomkat]

I bought my 790 with the specific intention of riding through Siberia and the Stans, and my desktop research said there were stretches of over 400 kms with no fuel. The 790 is pretty economical and with a 20L tank will easily beat 400 kms (I think I did about 450 kms on one tankful in Italy in 2019). I don't really want to fall about with auxiliary tanks or huge top heavy monsters so the stock range should be adequate. That said with belt and braces in mind I will also be taking a 6.7 L Rotopax

[krtw]

As someone who is currently planning a RTW trip, the size of the gas tank is an important consideration for me. My goal is to have a min 500 KM range - not because there's not enough gas stations, but because of numerous mentioned accounts above. Anybody who's ridden distance has experienced that nagging insecurity of being in parts unknown and not knowing if you'll make it to the next gas station - and if there will be gas there. Then mentally doing the calculations to see how much further you've got before running out - and looking at the sky and seeing the weather locking in. Or waking up in a camp site far off the beaten track hoping that you make it to the next station....

Having to stop vs deciding to stop are two different things, and I want that flexibility. And we've all also experienced that gas station where we wished we coulda kept going....

[markharf]

One thing I haven't noticed being addressed above: topping off from external fuel tanks--whether coke bottles, plastic fuel cans with spouts, or bladders--is not always a simple thing. I learned this to my dismay on one of the very few occasions when my ~20 liter tank wasn't sufficient (a series of towns without fuel in Patagonia); decanting in 100+ kph winds left me, the bike, and the surrounding ground covered with gasoline even though I'd pulled in behind a building for shielding.

On another occasion (dusk combined with miscalculations driving over a remote 15,000 ft pass in the Andes) I ran out of gas at a low spot in the road. Of course I was carrying extra fuel, but the real problem was that I'd busted my clutch cable and didn't have a spare because I'd previously busted my spare. Getting the bike underway was quite a project in itself, but at least I didn't have to spend the night out in the cold.

On both occasions better planning would have saved me some trouble, but needing to plan better can be a real source of stress.

[badou24]

yes if your going round the world ......... big tank ........... but for 99% of us a standard tank is ok ?

[Grant Johnson]

Originally Posted by badou24

yes if your going round the world ......... big tank ........... but for 99% of us a standard tank is ok ?

Absolutely!! Even for RTW, it's highly debatable. You will only need it a couple of times, is it worth the price? Is the ease of not having to pay attention to your fuel worth the price? And remember, even with the big tank, you CAN run out because you forgot to fill up because you do it so seldom!!

[sushi2831]

Hello

Originally Posted by badou24

yes if your going round the world ......... big tank ........... but for 99% of us a standard tank is ok ?

Topics on RTW or other longer rides are the reason to look into this forum.

Originally Posted by Grant Johnson

You will only need it a couple of times, is it worth the price?

Yes, yes and yes

Originally Posted by Grant Johnson

... even with the big tank, you CAN run out because you forgot to fill up because you do it so seldom!!

With a fuel gauge I run only once out of gas, with the old bikes several times.
All within civilisation, just didn't think about going to the gasstation right away when I turned the lever to the reseve.

On my XT660Z I have 24l of gas if I really fill it up.
That gives me up to 500km with my average fuel consumbtion but I plan with less.
To me, that is the minimum every bike should have, not only travel bikes.

On my RTW I had additional jerry cans mounted with a tension set on the front of the panniers on the footpegs of the back seat.
Lost only one 5l jerry can, then secured them with additional rope.
I had in northamerika and mexico 2x5l, southamerika 2x2gal, Australia 1x5l + 2x10l water, asia-mongolia-russia none.

The longest route between gas stations was 550km in Bolivia, lagoon route. If I'm going on a route like this where I don't know if I can make it, I like to take more gas so I could turn if it gets to difficult for me.
Also if between point A and B is a difficult rivercrossing just before point B, I calculate the total distance with the turn back to point A.

In Bolivia it was nice to have those jerry cans when they told me at the gas station that they can't sell gas here to foreigners.

Argentina with dry gas stations...

In Chile on the carratera I was glad I had filled up the jerry cans, although not necessary from the distances, but when they had closed the area with road blocks, all the gas stations went dry.
I had enough gas to go to Coyhaique to wait there for the gas instead at some little gas station where they sold only biscuits.

Sadly today there are only very few bikes in europe (euroX regulations) with large gas tanks.
I will never understand why they made the new T7 with such a joke of 16l.


sushi


P.S.
Before you push your bike, check the gas bottle from your stove.

[BobnLesley]

Originally Posted by Grant Johnson

...ended up riding right through to Costa Rica, and literally coasted into the first gas station and stopped nicely at the pumps, bone dry.

Travelling from the UK to Australia using a standard-tanked R100 BMW we ran out of fuel just once - slap bang in the middle of the biggest railway level crossing I've ever seen, near the Hooghly railway staion in the middle of Calcutta!

We did carry a couple of 5 litre jerry-jugs, (later replaced with a couple of 5 litre wine bags) for the long runs but other than down the Stuart highway they were rarely filled. Oh, that reminds me: We ran out of fuel along there too, but SOP was that the petrol stove always got refilled after use and emptying that back into the tank was just enough to make the 2-3 miles remaining to the next roadhouse; as with you in CR, it spluttered as we turned onto the forecourt and a promptly engaged clutch allowed us to roll up to the pump.