i kept smelling gas today and i figured i overfilled the tank (again!). trying to keep the fill up to 3 to 3.2 gallons. i get home and i still smell gas and i'm looking around on the ground; i see no gas pooled on the ground (like i usually do when i overfill). i look up her skirts a little further and on the left side of the bike where it looks like the gas tank meets the 'rear fender well' its all wet. i scientifically take a sample (rubbed my finger in it) and then send it to the laboratory for testing (sniff sniff) and sure enough, it is go-juice. just great! even better, its dripping on the swing arm, directly onto the brake lines. doesn't gas tend to break down some plastics (the braided lines are covered in in a clear plastic)? i'm no chemist but i seem to remember gas and styrofoam make a great combination...just wondering how some plastics will hold up. i did a search here and it seems that the f800gs are suffering from gas tank cracks although i didn't find a solid mention to a recognized BMW recall. i see people talking about getting their tanks replaced. i'm calling the dealer on tuesday to bring it in and have them eyeball it. mine is a ("orange-is-faster-than-white") 2010 f800gs picked out of stock on memorial day weekend. not really thrilled about this latest development, obviously.
no question. TOW it to the dealer ASAP. If you don't know how to siphon your gas carefully, then don't. This is probably an isolated incident and not related to the other issue.
i want back and looked again at the bike after reading a post about the gas tank re-design and some panniers not fitting as well. i do have jesse's on the bike. the right side bracket underneath (you can see it in the first, second, third and last picture just over the tire) makes contact with the corner of the gas tank however it isn't tight or showing any wear from rubbing. i attempted to move both the tank and the jesse's looking for signs of stress; the tank moves a little bit (not much; less than 1/16" of an inch); i suspect this is by design and mounting. the jesse's are rubbing on the gas ring (as described in another post) which is cosmetic and not structural (i believe). this just sucks.
I agree, we had both of ours replaced on F650 GS's (same tank as yours) and our trusted dealer mechanic we have known for years says "the tank is actually dual layered so chances of leakage is slim." In your case you have something else going on. The cracks we had you could see on the outside just below the paint below the gas fill.
pulled the panniers off. it gets even better; i have the cosmetic cracks too! go me! the next thing i'm crackin' is a beer because i'm obviously not going anywhere on two wheels at this point.
Today I had to have warranty work done on my bike. I can see the beginng of cracks on boths sides of my tank. I showed it to my dealer and he said 2010's have not been having the problem. I said well mine sure looks like it is starting. He said they will take a look at it when I come in for my next service. And of course then I will have to bring it back again when they do the swap out. Maybe if the cracks start getting bigger I will call them and have them order the tank and then I will go up. But they have replaced my air filter twice now. Didn't know I had a problem, few weeks ago they replaced it, and they replaced it again today. I asked why again and was told because it was still in the computer as needing the update so they did it again. I had the gear indicator switch replaced today. My indicator, only in 4th gear and maybe once a week would go out then come back on indicating a different gear. Good luck with your fuel tank and I hope the dealer can get one quick for your.
Jeezes you guys are getting absolutely hosed @ the dealers. Take a clue from us KTM owners and do it all yourself..........
You are aware that "those guys" are generally getting the work done for free under warranty so I doubt that they feel "hosed".
Yes two weeks ago they replaced it, I didn't know at that time there was a recall. Then this past Saturday while getting a new gear shift indicator switch they installed another air filter. I told them they just did it a few weeks ago and they said it was still coming up. So did BMW update air filters again or was it a case of the system not up to date?
Just noticed an 8 inch crack along the top of mine as I was washing it today. Going in for my 600 mile service tomorrow. Just one more to add to the list of things to address.
Loph917, I would make doubly and triply sure the Jesse brackets are not pressing on the fuel tank anywhere, including up top. If they are, I would remove them before going in for warranty. I would also bend them so they don't touch or the next tank may crack as well. As to the air filter being replaced twice... Sounds like sloppy paper work at the dealer. BMW does not know a service buliten has been completed till the dealer reports having completed it. In any case the dealer should have checked their own records and caught this. Checking internal records is part of any thourough service, but oh well, no harm to you. Rest assured, BMW always notices when a dealer tries to claim something twice so your dealers out the labor and cost of one filter. Speaking of, it's not a general air filter recall, it's a "pull the filter and check if the production code matches the ones needing replacement" recall. So your dealer either didn't check the new filter they put in the first time, or didn't check if production code indicated replacement the second time. I hope your dealer is just trying to defraud BMW and not actually this sloppy lol. Regarding cracks in fuel tanks... If memory serves a new tank design was a running production change in 2/2010. Is anyone else here experiencing cracks on bikes after this production date??? I'm going to be surprised and annoyed if BMW got the second batch wrong as well. P.S. The fuel tank replacement is just a PUMA measure, not a recall, because to my knoweledge no tanks ever leaked, but rather had cracks form in the outer cosmetic covering.
Regarding cracks in fuel tanks... If memory serves a new tank design was a running production change in 2/2010. Is anyone else here experiencing cracks on bikes after this production date??? I'm going to be surprised and annoyed if BMW got the second batch wrong as well. P.S. The fuel tank replacement is just a PUMA measure, not a recall, because to my knoweledge no tanks ever leaked, but rather had cracks form in the outer cosmetic covering.[/quote] Joel, I posted this in another thread, but this week my replacement tank has started cracking, (I had it replaced last month.) Rob
I don't know what the actual production date on my bike is, but I just rolled it out of the dealership two weeks ago and the tank is cracked.
My mechanic told me today it is a "silent recall". If you have a crack and complain about it they will replace it. My new one is on its way. Cosmetic cracking only at this time.
