30-04-12, 05:40 PM
My contribution to this debate may or may not be of interest, but here it is anyway.
This was on a 1999 bike and may have changed on the later models.
The fuel tap has a 40mm long stand pipe on it, which is sticking into the tank. Most of this stand pipe is mesh which provides some degree of course filtration. However the bottom 14mm has a plain surface which fuel does not flow through. The result of this is that there is 1.5 litres of fuel in the tank that you can't use. (That's with the bike stationary, so when riding and the fuel is sloshing about you will probably get a bit of it.)
On a test sample of one, a further 2.3 litres of fuel was required before a change was seen on the gauge.
On my 2001 model :-
5 litres of "usable" fuel shows just under 1/4 on the gauge.
10 litres shows just under 1/2 on the gauge.
15 litres shows off the scale.
This was on a 1999 bike and may have changed on the later models.
The fuel tap has a 40mm long stand pipe on it, which is sticking into the tank. Most of this stand pipe is mesh which provides some degree of course filtration. However the bottom 14mm has a plain surface which fuel does not flow through. The result of this is that there is 1.5 litres of fuel in the tank that you can't use. (That's with the bike stationary, so when riding and the fuel is sloshing about you will probably get a bit of it.)
On a test sample of one, a further 2.3 litres of fuel was required before a change was seen on the gauge.
On my 2001 model :-
5 litres of "usable" fuel shows just under 1/4 on the gauge.
10 litres shows just under 1/2 on the gauge.
15 litres shows off the scale.