Fuel strip problem??

[Steve Kolenda]

dirtrider,

 

By any chance is there a function on the GS911 that would accomplish this?

[dirtrider]

Afternoon Steve

 

As far as I know not yet, there is some speculation it will appear at some point in the future.

[SoulBait]

Well Dirtrider did the TPS and no change. The bike feels like it wants to stall when you get on the throttle hard in any gear. It hesitates and sputters then takes off. How could I have messed this up by a simple tune up?

I'm guessing i need to take it in and hook up to the computer at my dealer any other suggestions?

[dirtrider]

Afternoon SoulBait

 

Really difficult to tell what you have going on there.

 

Unless you got a load of bad gasoline about the time you did the service it could be service related. (or took the gas tank off and tipped it enough to stir up some water sitting in the lower wing)

 

You might have a valve too tight or, have a TB out of sync.

 

My guess would be –IF- you are sure everything is OK as far as valves and TB balance then look at the possibility of an oil fouled lower spark plug or a damaged stick coil (maybe a wire connector problem or coil issue)

 

If nothing stands out try a jumper on the fuel pump by-passing the FPC (fuel pump controller). I worked on a 1200 hexhead a while back that had low upper end power and was lethargic with surging in the mid range, everything mechanical and ignition wise checked out OK. So, on a hunch I put my FPC jumper on it just to eliminate the FPC and low & behold it ran great. New FPC put it back to normal operation.

 

 

What (ALL) did you have apart for the service? Maybe that will point us somewhere.

[SoulBait]

dr,

Thanks for the attempt. This is really frustrating. First thought was bad Fuel so I drained and got new no change, Checked Valve adjustments good, checked plugs even changed from the NonOME to OEM plugs JIC. Rechecked the sync, checked fuel pump nada. This thing is so computer reliant that's the only thing I can't check. Will look at coli and wire connector. Next week got to travel for business this weekend.

[terryofperry]

Just got back with my fourth fuel strip replacement. 3rd one lasted 3 weeks and went completely belly up. We'll see how long this one lasts. Very happy with the dealer.

 

Ride safely out there.

 

Terry

[SoulBait]

Dirt rider thanks for all the help. Here is the skinny.

Well finally was able to get in to the dealer.

Haven't picked up the Bike yet but they said much to my surprise (and relief) that the rough running and dogging out was just software and they replaced fuel strip as well well see how long this one last!

[dJames]

Good thing the lemon law does not work for BMW motorcycles, they would go bankrupt for making such shoddy parts/machines. How hard can it be to make a proper fuel gauge, cars have them, other motorcycles have them and they work forever...

You would think it would be embarrassing for the company.

Dennis

[Jerry Duke]

Fingers crossed, my third strip is almost 1 year old and working fine.

I paid $170 for the part and was billed $212.50 for labor.

[I812]

I am feeling lucky as I have only gone through one, so far.....Fingers crossed, wood knocked.

[w2ge]

Not to hijack, but I believe that this "problem" should NEVER be out of warranty... that is BMW should be held responsible for any fuel strip failure. I'm really not surprised that this hasn't been addressed... I'll tell you this.. at this stage of the game and I was out of warranty and was asked to pay for a fuel strip repair... Class action lawsuit would be FLYING... Lawyers salivate over this kind of stuff.

[dirtrider]

I am feeling lucky as I have only gone through one, so far.....Fingers crossed, wood knocked.

 

Morning I812

 

Not sure if you are lucky or not (time will tell). If you never fail another one then yes you are lucky.

On the other hand if yours fails once outside of the warranty period you might have been luckier if you failed one right before your warranty ended then failed another one within 2 years of that failure. Those devils are expensive on your dime.

 

[dirtrider]

Not to hijack, but I believe that this "problem" should NEVER be out of warranty... that is BMW should be held responsible for any fuel strip failure. I'm really not surprised that this hasn't been addressed... I'll tell you this.. at this stage of the game and I was out of warranty and was asked to pay for a fuel strip repair... Class action lawsuit would be FLYING... Lawyers salivate over this kind of stuff.

 

Morning Phil

 

It won’t happen. Just not enough money involved in it for lawyers to salivate over. Now if a few people were killed because of it then that’s a different story.

 

No class action got off the ground with all the final drive failures in the 1100/1150’s or early 1200’s, or the trans spline failures in the 1150’s, and those were much more serious than just a PIA fuel gauge failure.

 

[IRPUK]

Mine died this morning, doing 'motorway speeds' and suddenly warning lights and out of fuel symbol - not cool. Four lanes doing 60-90mph, outside lane, and felt myself tense up.

 

Went into the local dealer and was told the strip is dead ('duh!), £191 to replace including labour - but they will try to get a goodwill warranty out of BMW UK - he says they manage to get them about half the time. Job takes about 2.5 hours but if they cannot get BMW to cover it they will charge me for 1 hour only - not bad service really. Still a PITA though.

 

Only problem is that it will take a week before they can get me in so they are doing it next Friday and I get the bike back 10 hours before my next Iron Butt. At least I will be better off without the ever so irritating warning sign whilst travelling the highlands of Scotland.

[Missouri Bob]

At least I will be better off without the ever so irritating warning sign whilst travelling the highlands of Scotland.

 

Someone must know how to defeat the warning light. My fuel strip went out (while in warranty) last week. It was replaced two days ago, and seems to be working. Until it isn't.

 

Bob

[onedae]

I don't know if this is accurate but the service manager at my dealer says that all 2011 RT's and GS' no longer have the fuel strip. They all now have the traditional float set-up with a slight decrease in fuel capacity as a result.

[IRPUK]

The service manager at my dealer said the same yesterday - they are back to the float as it works... He is using that to back up a goodwill claim for my strip.

[OoPEZoO]

Hope they are smart enough to figure out a retro fit kit for all the bikes out there that are having issues with it.

[Jerry Duke]

+1

[dirtrider]

---Someone must know how to defeat the warning light. My fuel strip went out (while in warranty) last week. It was replaced two days ago, and seems to be working. Until it isn't.

 

 

Morning Bob

 

Shouldn’t be difficult to defeat the warning light. Of course the gauge will then not be accurate but if you are trying to defeat it it probably isn’t working correctly anyway.

 

While I haven’t ever done it -- based on my on-bike measurements of a working unit I would imagine a 2.2K resistor across the disconnected gauge sender wires going into the top of the fuel pump assembly should put the light out. Just make sure it is across the gauge wires & not the heater input wires.

 

[Missouri Bob]

Just make sure it is across the gauge wires & not the heater input wires.

 

D. R.,

 

Thanks for the information. How do I distinguish one pair of wires from the other?

 

Hope they are smart enough to figure out a retro fit kit for all the bikes out there that are having issues with it.

 

Call me cynical, but I don't expect that to happen.

 

Bob

[dirtrider]

Just make sure it is across the gauge wires & not the heater input wires.

 

D. R.,

 

Thanks for the information. How do I distinguish one pair of wires from the other?

 

 

Bob

 

Good question

 

The plug going into the fuel pump assembly has 4 terminals, you would need to put the resistor between terminal # 2 & terminal #3.

I don’t have my wire diagrams where I’m at here so I don’t have the wire colors for you.

 

 

 

[DiggerJim]

While I haven’t ever done it -- based on my on-bike measurements of a working unit I would imagine a 2.2K resistor across the disconnected gauge sender wires going into the top of the fuel pump assembly should put the light out. Just make sure it is across the gauge wires & not the heater input wires.

Seems like a little piece of black electrical tape would suffice easier & cheaper

[dirtrider]

 

 

 

 

Seems like a little piece of black electrical tape would suffice easier & cheaper

 

Evening Jim

 

That would definitely keep the yellow light from showing but that same yellow light is used to show other system failures that a rider might like to know about before the problem becomes a walk-home failure.

 

 

 

[Don_Eilenberger]

Hope they are smart enough to figure out a retro fit kit for all the bikes out there that are having issues with it.

 

Call me cynical, but I don't expect that to happen.

Bob

 

Looking at REALOem - doesn't look like it will be a retrofit sort of thing. I imagine the electronics in the cluster used to monitor it are completely different.

[dirtrider]

Morning Don

 

That question came up the other day when a group of us were spinning yarns at breakfast.

A quick call to the dealer where a friend of ours works confirmed that the fuel tank, instrument cluster, and ZFE seem to be the same between the pre 8/10 & post 8/10 1200RT’s. There were a few running changes in the parts but nothing that stood out as linking directly to the 8/10 change over date. There does seem to be a change in the fuel pressure regulator & fuel distribution lines starting at 8/10. We couldn’t determine if that was because of the fuel pump change or other reasons (if this is required to fit the new pump assembly then that would pretty well make an update to the float system extremely unrealistic)

 

The fuel level system can be calibrated so there is probably no reason the float setup wouldn’t work in the older 1200RT’s providing that BMW allowed the calibration to take place & there isn’t some other part of the system that we didn’t think to look up also being different.

 

Now on the practical side I sure can’t see BMW ever retrofitting that float system or working up a calibration to even allow that as something like that would cost BMW a large fortune as the entire fuel pump assembly as well as the FPC seems to be different. Big bucks for those parts & every BMW 1200RT owner out there with a failed fuel strip & even the ones without a failure would be hounding their BMW dealer to do the update to their bike.

 

My gut feeling here is about the best we can hope for is the possibly of a little more robust fuel strip in our future and maybe a different calibration that trades some accuracy for continued operation as the strip degrades.

 

Probably all we really need to get this properly fixed is 3 confirmed riders in the US here killed after being run over after their bike quit on the freeway because it ran out of gas with the gauge still showing fuel. Or 1 congressman having an issue with the fuel gauge a few times on his BMW 1200RT.

 

[terryofperry]

OK, had the fourth fuel strip replaced on May 27th. It has been very accurate until today. Riding down I-75 at 70mph it says 68 miles to go and that is correct. Then it starts counting up until 304 to go. I stopped to fill up, reset trip, reset mph, reset mpg. Started bike, showed full for 2 miles then low fuel warning and dreaded triangle. Stopped bike, turned it off and restarted to no avail.

 

This will be my fifth strip, my fifth vacation day wasted and over 3 hours one way to dealer.

 

I love the bike but I am beyond pissed for more than $20,000.

 

Terry

[SuperG]

I don't understand it, if BMW knows the current fuel strips are junk, why are they keep putting it in the bike?

 

Is this only a problem for the US bikes/fuel or The EUropeans have the same problem?

[RTs4me]

Yup, it happens in Europe too!

 

I'm in the UK and on my fourth strip!.........and I'm not alone!

[w2ge]

There are LEMON laws... That is just sickening.... I would be seeking some sort of recompense for all the time, days lost. I hate to be one crying for the lawyers... but sometimes you gotta do it. BMW has got to do something for you. Total BS

 

[DiggerJim]

I don't understand it, if BMW knows the current fuel strips are junk, why are they keep putting it in the bike?

Because it's not happening to all 1200s or even all in one country or geographical region that could point to specific fuel formulations (I believe there are 17 different gasoline formulations required by local & state laws across the country).

 

I'm on my 2nd fuel strip but I've got buddies with the same model yr & similar miles who haven't had one go out. Frustrating I know. What we need is for the folks with the GS-911 to give us a way to set it to failed mode so every two years shortly before the warranty on the replacement runs out, we can call & get a new one

[Dave_in_TX]

I have had five failures on my 2008 RT and two on my GS with no perminent fix in sight.

 

Jack

 

And my 07 RT with 122k still has the original (working) strip - could there be something else causing premature failure on some bikes?

 

BTW, I still have the original final drive too.

[RTJohn]

Funny you mentioned this. My 2010 RT goofed up on me once several months ago. I filled up and when I restarted it continued to show the tank was low. The yellow triangle even came on with a full tank! I stopped and turned it off. I restarted it and it was clear. I haven't had a problem since. Now you're making me worry.

[Missouri Bob]

My 2005 R1200ST never had a bit of trouble with its fuel strip. The rear u-joint was not so reliable.

 

Although most manufacturers seem to have accurate fuel gauges, Harley V-Rods have fuel gauge problems. The gauge on mine was extremely inaccurate. Not good on a bike that gets 35 mpg.

 

Bob

[Riverdawg]

Tried the 2.2k resistor across pin 2 & 3 hoping to get the yellow light to clear, no luck. Even tried several restarts and a quick run down the road, the fault would not clear. Wish it would have, don't care about the gauge, just hate the light and I'm on failed strip #3 after 6500 miles.

[DiggerJim]

don't care about the gauge, just hate the light and I'm on failed strip #3 after 6500 miles.

Time for the old spot of black electrical tape on the display fix If you can't see it, it's not on

[terryofperry]

The problem with tape on the yellow triangle is if another fault occurs you would not see it.

 

I'm in Georgia where the lemon laws do not apply to bikes and neither does the 3 strikes to fix it.

 

BMW can blame Ethanol all they want but problems are happening in the EU, Canada, South America, and Asia at the same rate according to the forums.

 

They will continue to replace them until the warranty is out and then it will be our dime. If it was not an issue BMW would not have gone back to the float on all new models. In 2013 all strips will be out of warranty so there is no desire to engineer a retrofit float kit which is what they should do.

 

I love the RT and I am not asking for an accurate gauge since I have the trip meter but just get rid of the fault triangle and flashing symbol.

 

I have made up my mind to make them fix it if it takes a trip to the dealer every 6 weeks.

 

I want to make it very clear that I am extremely happy with my dealer and they are trying very hard but they replace a ton of these, some work, some don't. I guarantee you the ones that are having reliable strips are using the same fuel we are.

 

Terry

[Dundee387]

Weird thing is, since I posted the original message, my fuel strip problem resolved itself...

 

Sorry to hear you having such a hassle with it. Three hours to the dealer, man that sucks!

[DaveTheAffable]

..They will continue to replace them until the warranty is out and then it will be our dime. If it was not an issue BMW would not have gone back to the float on all new models. In 2013 all strips will be out of warranty so there is no desire to engineer a retrofit float kit which is what they should do... Terry

I'm part of the club too... The only good news is that there is 2 year warranty on all parts replaced, so with these going bad as often as they do, hopefully BMW will be replacing them forever.

[PDX Greg]

On my first big trip on my '09 RT, my fuel sensor went bonkers apparently overnight in Calgary with about 4000 miles on the clock. Put her to bed under cover at the hotel and all was fine, loaded up and before I got out of the parking lot the next morning, fuel and range had both dropped to zero on about half a tank remaining. I swung by the Calgary BMW franchise and got the "oh yeah, that's a common problem" from the service guys. Rode on my way and stopped as I had planned for a 6k service at Frank's near Burlington, VT and they installed new sensor. 4000 miles and a few weeks later it's still working. Props to Frank's for the good service and taking care of my fuel sensor on short notice. After reading the posts of repeated problems, will have my fingers crossed as soon as i cross the warranty expiration threshhold. 3 years and 30,000 miles on my F800ST and no such problems.

[w2ge]

This thing has made me worry every time I fill up... I wait to see if the fuel gauge is gonna show a full tank... It usually shows a full tank with say a 1/4 mile, but I have had one time where it may have taken 30 minutes to register correctly!?

 

Is that sometimes and early sign? This is on a 2010 with almost 5K (will be over that today)

[I812]

This thing has made me worry every time I fill up... I wait to see if the fuel gauge is gonna show a full tank... It usually shows a full tank with say a 1/4 mile, but I have had one time where it may have taken 30 minutes to register correctly!?

 

Is that sometimes and early sign? This is on a 2010 with almost 5K (will be over that today)

Same here. Talk about anxiety....

[na1g]

How long would the marketing brains at BMW put up with this on a 535 automobile? Long before this they would have had the engineers locked in a room until the problem was fixed. Or demoted to the motorcycle division?

 

pete

(Hey, mine still works at 1,600 miles!)

[w2ge]

Or demoted to the motorcycle division?

 

Now that thar is FUNNY!

[blackyam]

This thing has made me worry every time I fill up... I wait to see if the fuel gauge is gonna show a full tank... It usually shows a full tank with say a 1/4 mile, but I have had one time where it may have taken 30 minutes to register correctly!?

 

The RID on my previous 2002 R1150RS almost always registered one or two bars shy of full, and only on very rare occasions full, after topping up. So far my 2010 R12RT's gauge appears to be behaving well, but so did the gauge on my previous RS earlier on.

 

On both my previous RS and now my RT I rely principally on the trip odometer. My only "complaint" about the RT is that I have to select the trip odo, whereas it was always presently visible on the RS.

 

---John.

[BeemerLover]

Interesting that I have the original float type fuel gauges in a 56 Buick and a 55 Olds. They work fine.

 

I don't know if this helps but I have always filled up before I put the bike in the garage. Never had a problem. I wonder if the strip dries out if the bike is left partially full.

 

 

[DaveinNCMn]

.... It usually shows a full tank with say a 1/4 mile, but I have had one time where it may have taken 30 minutes to register correctly!?

 

Is that sometimes and early sign? This is on a 2010 with almost 5K (will be over that today)

 

 

This same thing happened to me a couple of weeks ago.

 

The next day I had a service/recall appointment at my "local" dealer (2-1/2 hours away). They checked it out and could find nothing. Its been working fine since then...

 

 

 

[SoulBait]

Well thought I was set for at least a year. Had mine replaced in May on my dime OUCH! But on July 16 I was riding and saw it just drop like a stone. Had to go out of town for weeks and Just hopped on her last week and that darn yellow triangle is staring me in the face again. Called my BMW service guy and he said no surprise! No surprise?! I didn't even get through 2 Months!!! I know the part is warranty but they had better not even think of charging me for labor!!!!!!!!!!