Hi Jon: I get 4.5 litres per 100km. Sorry don't know how that translates to MPG, but essentially I get about 230-250 km per tankful (including the reserve), depending on whether mostly city or highway riding. So that works out to 143-155 miles per tankful in your antique measuring system.

Hope that helps...

Larry Gagnon

A tank of gas lasts about as long as your Ass will stand riding without a break.... Nuff said.

I am riding a 2005 S40. You can see a pic of my bike in the pictures message thread. I seem to be getting about 100-110 per tank till I hit reserve. I have not yet decided it was time to measure the distance of my reserve. That would be something I hope I never have to find out.

I am 40, approx 200#'s and 5'8". I love the short trips. The longer ones seem to be a little hard on me with the current seat, but that has not stopped me from taking them.  It seems to have more than enough power to haul my butt with little or no effort. I typicaly do not travel at speeds over 60 so I am not the one to answer that type of question. I like the country rides on the twisting roads.

Funny about this and I refer you back to my   disclaimer  

On average, I never experience only 87 miles before reserve.  And even funnier is that my spouse and I fill up at the same time when riding, and invariably she goes on reserve first.  Funnier too is that my bike has the larger jet and more open exhaust.

But RPMs do have a lot to do with it, and where you tend to shift gears.  I tend to be one that lugs the engine in the gears more than others...and I think my spouse winds them a little tighter before shifting.

However, we were riding with some larger bikes once at some really spirited speeds through some very twisty mountain roads.  Great ride with me staying in 3rd and 4th gear most of the time (trying to keep up with a 1200 Bandit).  When we stopped for gas, my mileage was only 40 MPG.

So RPMs, on the Savage, do determine the mileage.  You'll average from 60 to 40 depending on your riding habits.

The exhaust/carb mods might make it more efficient !!

Clive W  

Birdmove wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:10:

I'm a bit smaller, about 5'9" 180#, and what counts for legroom is my denim's 32" inseam which is long in loafers but just right when wearing my boots.  The Savage fits me perfectly.  Ran to the Home Depot this morning -- a 35 mile round trip (the store is 3 miles away, took the long way home.)  Cruised at 75+ on the freeway with throttle to spare.

The big difference between the two bikes is style.  I prefer the laid back cruiser position to the scrunched over street racer position -- YMMV.

Another available Thumper is the Royal Enfield Bullet -- basically a 1955 motorcycle that is still being produced in India.

They are neat to look at though.  In my ignorance, a few years ago (in this instance, anyway), I saw an Enfield parked by the road and whipped my bike around to have a closer look.  I didn't know they were still made with the same 50's tooling so I thought that I was looking at a really great restoration.  Boy, was I surprised when the owner told me that his Enfield was the same year as my Savage.

I like looking at the external oil lines and the functional looking engine casing parts.  The "newer" models even have electric start now.