Voge fuel tank capacities, reserve and minimum octane

Three figures determine the distance between refuelling stops: the capacity of the tank, the point at which the motorcycle begins to warn, and the fuel grade permitted. All three appear in the owner manual, in three separate chapters.

The capacities

Model	Tank (L)	Reserve (L)	Min. octane
DS800X Rally	24	-	-
525ACX	19	3.0	-
650DSX	18	3.0	95
DS625X	17.6	2.0	-
DS525X	17.6 or 17.2	2.0	92
500DS	17.2	2.0	95
500R	17.2	-	92
525R	17	2.0	-
DS900X	17	-	-
300R	15	-	90
SR3	14	-	-
SR4 Max	13 or 12.8	-	-
300 Rally	11 or 15	-	-
125R	10	-	-
SR1 ADV	9	-	-
SR1	8	-	-
SR16	7.8	-	-
FR150	5.8	-	-
SR450X	18	-	-
300DS	16	-	-
525RR	17	-	-
250RR	13	-	-
250 Rally	11	-	-

A dash indicates that the manual does not print that figure for that model.

The reserve is not a separate tank

On a carburettor motorcycle a reserve tap held back a physically separate quantity. None of these models has such an arrangement. The reserve figure is the level at which the gauge falls to its final bar and the low fuel warning illuminates; the fuel remains in the same tank throughout.

On the 525ACX and 650DSX that point is 3 litres, and on the DS525X, DS625X, 525R and 500DS it is 2 litres. The SR4 Max manual expresses it differently, warning when less than 3 litres remain.

Two litres is a short distance. On a DS625X, at the consumption figure printed in its own manual, it corresponds to a little over 40 km, and that assumes the pump can draw all of it, which on a cambered or inclined road it cannot.

The fuel grade each model requires

Where the manual states a minimum octane rating it appears in the table above. The pattern is worth noting:

• The 650DSX and 500DS require 95 RON or higher and specify unleaded E5.
• The DS525X and 500R require 92 RON or higher.
• The 300R accepts above 90.

Filling with a higher octane rating than specified confers no benefit. Octane is a measure of resistance to detonation rather than energy content, and an engine calibrated for 92 does not produce more power on 98. The reverse causes harm: below the specified rating the knock sensor retards ignition timing to protect the engine, with a corresponding loss of power and economy.

Where the table shows a dash the manual does not state a figure. 95 satisfies every requirement printed anywhere in the range.

Three figures the manuals dispute

DS525X, 17.6 or 17.2 litres. The French edition prints 17.6 and the Spanish edition of the same motorcycle prints 17.2. Nothing elsewhere in either book resolves the difference.

SR4 Max, 13 or 12.8 litres. The English manual gives 13 and the French 12.8. This is most likely a rounding difference.

300 Rally, 11 or 15 litres. The English manual prints 11 litres on its technical characteristics page and the Portuguese edition of the same manual prints 15. Four litres on a small motorcycle is not a rounding difference, and neither document establishes which is correct. Filling the tank once from empty settles it for a given machine.

Calculating range

The manuals print a consumption figure alongside the tank capacity. The two together give the figure owners generally want, provided the calculation is treated with care, since the consumption value is a homologation test result rather than a guarantee:

• DS900X: 17 L at 5.3 L/100 km, approximately 320 km.
• 650DSX: 18 L at 4.4 L/100 km, approximately 400 km.
• 300R: 15 L at 3.4 L/100 km, approximately 440 km.

Road use is more demanding than the test cycle. Loaded, into a headwind or ridden hard, a figure 15 to 25 per cent worse is realistic, and the reserve warning is better treated as the end of the tank than as the beginning of a margin.

Related pages

Engine oil quantities and grades, together with coolant capacity, are set out in engine oil grades and capacities. Individual model data is on the model pages.