Its been a while since I have rode my 2008 R1200GSA; like 18 months or more. Last time I rode it I just got it out of the shop because of a bad fuel pump. Now it seems to be a problem again. Just had to put a new battery in, and now it doesn't start. I seem to recall that I should hear the fuel pump when I turn the ignition on - I don't hear it. Trying to figure out a quick and dirty way to determine if its the pump or immobilizer. I did a search but don't have time to investigate the many hundreds of threads. Any help would be appreciated.
I don't really recall. They didn't want to talk much about what they did. I have the pump all the way out now and I'm about to test it.
Just had my GS in for same problem. Service guy said sometimes briefly reversing polarity may unfreeze. Try at your own risk.
Tried that, banged on it too. I finally took it apart, found no problem, put it back together and it works. Problem now seems to the controller. How can I test it?
Thanks Jim. Seems the pump wasn't working, but then I got it working, but does not work when connected to the controller. Has anybody taken one apart to see if it can be fixed?
Not likely that the FPC can be repaired. They fail from water leakage and from overheating when the fins get corroded. Once they fail, it is usually a replacement that is needed, unless yours just has a loose connector wire.... Feel free to cut your open though.... Here's some reading for you: http://www.motorcycleinfo.co.uk/index.cfm?fa=contentGeneric.nvxszdkebklxuaer&pageId=233223#what
I remeber seeing a picture of someones controller, and the board was damaged beyond repair by heat and corrosion.
OK, read the link. It says the fuel system is a non return type. Is that true? There is a hose going to the right side of the tank and I assumed that was for return. If in fact it is non return, it says there is a pressure sensor for the controller. If that is true then that is another point of failure. Maybe its just the sensor that is failed. How can the sensor be tested? How can I test that the controller is getting all the proper signal and that it in fact the problem and not something else? By any chance does this bike have an OBDII port?
No it doesn't. It says that the guy was talking about non-return type fuel systems in an earlier comment. The '08 fuel system uses fuel distributor (part 13 53 7 704 074) and a 3.5 bar pressure regulator (part number 13 53 1 465 107). The fuel returns to the tank where it powers the Sucking Jet Pump which moves the fuel from the right lobe of the tank to the left lobe. No OBDII. If you want diagnostics you'll need the GS-911 (google it).
My issue precisely. Makes my stomach churn thinking about how seemingly delicate these fuel pumps are.
There is an inexpensive fuel pump controller bypass (basically a wire and connectors) that can be used to, well, bypass the FPC. Have you considered trying that since you now know the pump works by itself? If that works, then you can use it in emergencies, and buy a new FPC when you have the $$$.
OK, so I finally got around to buying a new pump and controller. As it turned out the old controller was OK. My bike doesn't run the fuel pump when the key is turned on. I bought a new pump on ebay for something like $40. I figured it couldn't be any worse than the factory pumps which have a history of failing. Everything is back together and seems to start fine now. The real surprise to this story is that when I pulled the pump out this time the filter seemed to be covered in a vasiline type goo. I looked in the tank and there was even more, allot more. Looked a bit like jelly fish. So I drained the tanks and ran the fuel through a paint strainer. THe strainer clogged almost instantly. Then I tried a pasta strainer and it filled up. The question is what is this goo? I suspect it have something to do with the bio fuel additive they are putting in fuels these days. How do we combat this? Ill add some pictures later.
Looks like the residue from ethanol. I scrape similar gunk out of my various carburetors on a routine basis.
