Really Dumb Questions

[revxus]

I just bought my first motorcycle, a 2006 Honda Rebel (black), and I love it! Now here are my first, really dumb questions since I am a beginner at this driving class...

1. Where is the gas gauge? How will I tell when my bike needs more gas?

2. I was told about the gas lever's ON/OFF/RESERVE positions, but what are they used for?

3. Are the front lights automatically on at all times of the day? Is there a switch to turn them off like in a car?

[Ninja Geoff]

I just bought my first motorcycle, a 2006 Honda Rebel (black), and I love it! Now here are my first, really dumb questions since I am a beginner at this driving class...

1. Where is the gas gauge? How will I tell when my bike needs more gas?

2. I was told about the gas lever's ON/OFF/RESERVE positions, but what are they used for?

3. Are the front lights automatically on at all times of the day? Is there a switch to turn them off like in a car?

1) i think the rebel is sans gas gague. check it every few miles until you get used to the MPG and how big the tank is. I know i can go 200 miles tops on a tank, so every 180 i fill up. Though i do have a "gas low" light.

2) On lets fuel flow normally to the carburator. Off, kills the flow of fuel (storage, transporting it, etc.). Reserve is for when you run out of fuel. The On position only uses MOST of the tank. Reserve is about half a gallon of fuel sitting in the bottom of the tank that the hose for the ON position can't reach. NEVER ride the bike on reserve unless you have to. Don't want to be caught REALLY dead in the water.

3) yes, the low beam is ALWAYS on. The highbeam is controlled by a switch, most likely on the LEFT handlebar.

and these aren't dumb questions, it's all stuff you don't normally have to think about in a car, that's all. Questions most any new biker has, and hey, it IS the New Bikers Forum, ask away!

[BigChickenStrips]

he answered all your questions corretly, but i disagree on a point of oppinion.

when you start your bike the fuel petcock should be in the "on" position. go ride for 200ish miles until you run out of fuel (assuming you had a full tank). when you hear the motor sputtering and it feels like its going to die, reach down (you dont have to stop as long as you know which way your turning the lever without looking) and switch to the reserve position and after abotu 2 seconds you should feel the engine go strong again. now you should have about 20+ miles to find a gas station. MAKE SURE TO TURN THE FUEL THNIG BACK TO "ON" OR NEXT TIME YOU RUN OUT OF GAS YOU'LL BE WALKING HOME.

theres nothing wrong with not "running dry" the tank between fillups, but i liek the extended range and becasue im usually ridign in town i know theres always a gas station close.

most people with no gas gauges (myself included) use the "trip-o-meter" to measure how far they went since filling up. just reset it when you fill up and soon you'll know excatly how far an average tank of gas will get you. (it makes me cry to drive my truck because $11 in gas gets me as far on the bike as $40 in the truck)

[9000white]

when you start your bike the fuel petcock should be in the "on" position. go ride for 200ish miles until you run out of fuel (assuming you had a full tank). when you hear the motor sputtering and it feels like its going to die, reach down (you dont have to stop as long as you know which way your turning the lever without looking) and switch to the reserve position and after abotu 2 seconds you should feel the engine go strong again. now you should have about 20+ miles to find a gas station. MAKE SURE TO TURN THE FUEL THNIG BACK TO "ON" OR NEXT TIME YOU RUN OUT OF GAS YOU'LL BE WALKING HOME.

yeah...be sure you let it run out before switching to reserve so the car behind you can run over you while you wait for the engine to run again.
Bad advice.

[Meanie]

when you start your bike the fuel petcock should be in the "on" position. go ride for 200ish miles until you run out of fuel (assuming you had a full tank). when you hear the motor sputtering and it feels like its going to die, reach down (you dont have to stop as long as you know which way your turning the lever without looking) and switch to the reserve position and after abotu 2 seconds you should feel the engine go strong again. now you should have about 20+ miles to find a gas station. MAKE SURE TO TURN THE FUEL THNIG BACK TO "ON" OR NEXT TIME YOU RUN OUT OF GAS YOU'LL BE WALKING HOME.

yeah...be sure you let it run out before switching to reserve so the car behind you can run over you while you wait for the engine to run again.
Bad advice.

How is this bad advice? How will he know when he starts running out in the "on" position unless he maintains a log of mileage? There is nothing wrong with turning the petcock to reserve while still riding. Even a semi skilled rider can accomplish this without skipping a beat. The bike is still rolling. Unless the rider applies the brakes, your statement of being run over is way off base.

[Andrew]

Revxus, even most cars these days come with day time running lights. There may be a knob to turn them off, but daytime or not, it's always safer to ride with lights on. You actually get an insurance discout on cars if they have lights that stay on all the time.

Now with a bike, it's even more important to be noticed. Anything that increases the chances that cars see you is important. Some people even recommend riding with the high beam on during daylight hours.

There's always(or almost always) a method to the madness.

[sharpmagna]

Yeah you should definitely know where the fuel petcock is on a bike and how to turn it to On or Reserve while riding. This could save your life on the road. Instead of having to pull off to the side of the road, you can just flip it to reserve and continue riding. If you are on a 3 lane highway and in the middle lane, you may not have the time to merge over into the shoulder so you can turn your fuel valve to reserve. You may run out of juice before you can safely coast to the shoulder and I wouldn't want to be stuck in the middle of the road while cars are zipping at 70MPH to the sides of you.

Also I think the laws are written that the bike must have the headlights on during the day. I know in VA it is written that way.

[bok]

no gas gauge on a lot of cruisers, most of us end up using our trip meter to judge when to fill up. rebel should get about 65mpg and has i think a 2.5 gallon tank so every 130miles or so would be your fill ups. probably 100miles would be a good bet.

the petcock question should have been answered in your MSF course. if you haven't taken one, please do so. some folks also recommend running into that reserve fuel every once in a while since that is where most of the sediment and water accumulates so it's better to run a small bit through every once in a while instead of a lot of it when you really need that reserve.

in most cases that front light should stay on all the time by design.

[Scott58]

I fill my Rebel up every 120 miles or so. Take a look at your owners manual, it explains the petcock positions. Also pick up a service manual. All kinds of good information in there. I spend more time on the highway then in town and get about 80mpg. In town you should get around 70mpg. Set your tripometer to zero at every fillup.

[supv26]

All good answers.........no question is a dumb question in my book, it could save your life. Never feel ashamed to ask a question, there are a lot of experienced people out there who have been there done that so to speak.

Anyway, about the reserve, my opinion----- I feel everyone that has a bike with a carb should try running it to the reserve a time or two just to get an idea of how the bike and you will react. I have done it on every bike I have owned, even ATV's. My latest is the 1100 and the 1st time I hit the reserve my wife and I were on it. We were just coming into town going about 45 MPH and it lost power. I reached down and twisted the petcock and it picked right back up. I might have slowed down 5mph but that was it.