Buddy 170i Fuel Reserve

Mocha Guy 70 · Post by **Mocha Guy 70** » Sun Sep 03, 2017 11:27 pm

Can anyone tell me approximately how much fuel is still in the tank when the needle gets to the red line? I'm getting ~100 miles from the top to the red line, and am hesitant to go further, especially if I'm not sure how far it is to the nearest gas station. If my Buddy actually gets 90mpg, as per the dealer, and a full tank is 1.66 gallons, as per the manual, I figure I should have another 50 miles or so, but I don't want to find out the hard way that I'm wrong. I can't run it out to test it because it's fuel injected.

Thanks!

Dooglas · Post by **Dooglas** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 12:43 am

We get about 125 miles or so on a full tank but ours is a 125 so I suppose our mileage is a little better. There is a portion of the volume of the tank that can't actually be used so you really can't plan your range based on the entire volume of the fuel tank. The gas gauge is not exactly a "precision instrument " either. If you really want to know where "bingo" is with your scooter, I'd suggest you bungee a small fuel container onto the back and ride it til it quits.

jrsjr · Post by **jrsjr** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 2:08 am

Dooglas wrote:If you really want to know where "bingo" is with your scooter, I'd suggest you bungee a small fuel container onto the back and ride it til it quits.

This is the tried and true way of finding bingo with a carbureted scooter like the Buddy 125, but I can't say I recommend it for a fuel-injected bike like the 170i. The problem is the fuel pump. The gasoline actually cools the fuel pump so running it out of gas also runs it out of coolant for the fuel pump. Folks do it all the time and get away with it, but it's generally not considered to be a good idea.

cummingsjc · Post by **cummingsjc** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 3:47 am

I'd recommend running it all the way to empty just once. I doubt it will ruin the fuel pump if you just do it one time but you obviously are assuming some risk by doing. Having said that, I ran my Piaggio MP3-500 down to empty for the same purpose one time and have had no issues with it. Also, the Hooligan (same engine as the Buddy 170) that I had for around a year was accidentally run empty about 2-3 times (the gas gage apparently was sticking when I first bought it and it got me several times) and it didn't seem to have any lasting issues. YMMV, however.

babblefish · Post by **babblefish** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 4:09 am

I shine a flashlight down my Buddy's fuel tank to see where the fuel level is when it gets to "empty" to see how much gas is still in there. I've also stuck a stick into the tank until it hit bottom then pulled it out to see the level - think dipstick. As far as how many miles from indicated empty, I have no idea...

Mocha Guy 70 · Post by **Mocha Guy 70** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 5:18 am

Wow - thanks everyone for the speedy replies!

I have an "old style" one-gallon gas can that fits under my seat which I can carry with me and use in case I run dry, but I'm reluctant to do it on purpose due to the fuel injection. I think I'll try going about 125 miles, then add the spare fuel and start looking for a gas station.

I stuck a bamboo skewer in the tank when it got to the red, and it showed about two inches, but I have no idea what the miles per inch is!

With the centrifugal (sp?) clutch, you can't exactly just coast to a stop, but if the fuel pump is electric, can I stop the engine quickly with the kill switch and slow to a stop without the pump overheating? Will the switch stop the fuel pump? Just thinking of possibilities here...

Thanks, everyone!

jrsjr · Post by **jrsjr** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 5:02 pm

Mocha Guy 70 wrote:With the centrifugal (sp?) clutch, you can't exactly just coast to a stop, but if the fuel pump is electric, can I stop the engine quickly with the kill switch and slow to a stop without the pump overheating? Will the switch stop the fuel pump?

Good Question! Unfortunately, the answer is NO! All the Kill Switch does is electrically ground the timing pulses to the ignition computer. When you hit the Kill Switch, the electrical system is still otherwise 100% on and running.

Mocha Guy 70 · Post by **Mocha Guy 70** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 5:55 pm

Well, doggone...

Thanks, jrsjr!

jrsjr · Post by **jrsjr** » Mon Sep 04, 2017 6:02 pm

Mocha Guy 70 wrote:Well, doggone...

Thanks, jrsjr!

Sorry! And don't worry overly about this. My experience is from the automotive world where sometimes replacing a fuel pump is a HUGE deal. But it's not a good practice no matter what and I just wanted to let you know. That was a good question about the Kill Switch, by the way.

Mocha Guy 70 · Post by **Mocha Guy 70** » Tue Sep 05, 2017 5:54 am

I'm always looking for loopholes!

skully93 · Post by **skully93** » Tue Sep 05, 2017 12:03 pm

I find unless I'm commuting, I generally need to take a break from riding the Buddy by the time fuel is a concern.

By the time I have 80+ miles of hard riding in, I want a stretch and some water anyway.

If I'm going 200 miles, I generally (but not always!) get on the motorcycle.

GregsBuddy · Post by **GregsBuddy** » Tue Sep 05, 2017 11:11 pm

I almost always ride my 170i until the arrow is lying on the empty pin. No problem. The most fuel I've poured in so far is 1.2 gallons. My manual notes that the tank is 1.5 gallons. FWIW, I use premium fuel and fill to the horizontal plate in the top of the tank. Happy scoot' at 7,100 miles. Plan a semi-major service at 9K with belt and valve adjustment along with the usual fluids and filter(s).

Mocha Guy 70 · Post by **Mocha Guy 70** » Wed Sep 06, 2017 2:11 am

What kind of distance do you get from full to the pin?

GregsBuddy · Post by **GregsBuddy** » Wed Sep 06, 2017 5:14 pm

MC,
When I watched that distance it was >100 miles.
I did a five tank average MPG test on my 170i at about 1,500 miles and got 105 MPG. I don't know if I'm still getting that mileage but probably a little less since I ride a little quicker now. 100 miles should be an easy distance and still have spare fuel.