Never in a million years would I consider the Raider R150 Fi as a fuel-efficient motorcycle. That was until Suzuki Philippines (SPH) has convinced me otherwise.

In an economy run held last weekend, SPH took 76 Raider R150 Fi riders from Vermosa in Imus, Cavite to Terrazas de Punta Fuego in Nasugbu, Batangas.

Jeyffie Cimafranca clocked in the best fuel mileage of 128.2 km/l, putting a wide gap between him and second-placer Crispen Delosinas who achieved 93.5 km/l.  

Angelito Aparicio followed in third place, getting 87.7 km/l, while Renan Laviña and Joey Lambert Comia achieved 86.2 km/l and 83.3 km/l, respectively.

All top five finishers agreed that getting the best fuel mileage relies heavily on rider skill. Further, they shared that while maintaining a constant speed of 80 kph and free-wheeling on downhill roads helped greatly, it is also important that you ride a well-maintained motorcycle to achieve better fuel-efficiency.

An econo-bike with oomph

The Suzuki Raider R150 Fi is not something that you may call an “econo-bike." It is more like crotch-rocket, in fact.

It is propelled by a 147.3 cc liquid-cooled, fuel-injected, 4-valve single, which produces 13.6 kW and 13.8 Nm. All that grunt is packed in a compact 109-kilogram machine, enabling it to outrun other bikes with twice its displacement.

SPH shares that while the Raider R150 Fi is a performance-oriented sport underbone motorcycle, it is equipped with Suzuki Eco Performance (SEP) technology found in other Suzuki models like the Burgman Street, Avenis and Raider J Crossover. For Suzuki, this makes all the difference when it comes to finding the balance between performance and fuel-efficiency.

So, before you go screaming that these numbers are unrealistic, consider first that they were achieved by highly-skilled riders under certain riding parameters.

Now, what do you think is the average mileage regular folks like us can get on a Suzuki Raider R150 (Specs | News) Fi in day-to-day riding conditions?     

photos by Kit Pilla