1982 Nighthawk 450 questions

[mattwells]

I don't thing all is well with my Nighthawk. For some reason, when accelerating at (for instance) 6k RPM, I will be slowly moving up in speed and then something will kick in and I will double my acceleration (or so it feels like) without changing the RPM's. I am wondering if maybe one cylinder is firing, and then the other kicks in? Any other possibilities?

Also, I feel like I should be getting more than the 37 MPG I am getting. I ride on the lower end of the power spectrum most of the time, trying to conserve gas, but to no avail. What could be going on?

Matt

PS- I just got this bike (first bike) and am thinking about doing a Tune-up soon, and that may solve the problems, but I wanted to get opinions first.

[ZooTech]

Dunno what's wrong with it, but it's gettin' worse mileage than my 1600 so somethin's definitely up!

[BuzZz]

A tune-up would be a good place to start. Plugs, filters, oil, check the valves, and clean the carbs. I'm guessing a plug or the carbs.

[Itzamna]

My Nighthawk 750 never got more than 40 mpg so it's not really that bad. Hell, I'm lucky to get 30 mpg on my SV1000, but that's for some different reasons. I would agree with Buzz that you just need a general tune-up.