RTW fuel filter location?

[migrant]

Can someone share the fuel filter location...Not sure it even has one, doesn't appear on BMW parts fiche nor on the maintenance schedule checklist. I'm used to the oilhead version, seems like any fuel injection system should have one.

[Dave_in_TX]

I think it's inside the fuel tank.

[dirtrider]

5 hours ago, migrant said:

Can someone share the fuel filter location...Not sure it even has one, doesn't appear on BMW parts fiche nor on the maintenance schedule checklist. I'm used to the oilhead version, seems like any fuel injection system should have one.

 

Afternoon  migrant   

 

Unless it has changed in the last year or so there is no  "replaceable" fuel filter, the fuel pump assembly has (had anyhow) a non replaceable filter built added onto  the fuel pump assembly. (actually fitted as part of the pump assembly)

[migrant]

Yeah, I saw the suction screen for the pump listed on parts fiche. After all these years of protecting the injectors with a filter on the discharge side of the pump, now they deem it unnecessary?

[92Merc]

Yeah, a lot of cars have gone this same way as well.  So it's not new.  Just build it into the pump.

 

[dirtrider]

3 hours ago, migrant said:

Yeah, I saw the suction screen for the pump listed on parts fiche. After all these years of protecting the injectors with a filter on the discharge side of the pump, now they deem it unnecessary?

Afternoon migrant

 

It should still have a filter on the discharge side, it just isn't replaceable (well not according to the BMW manual or parts book anyhow).  

 

It does look like the filter might be removable with some work & the OEM filter  seems to be a Mahle  filter of some sort so it probably won't be too long before someone finds a Mahle source for them.

[migrant]

I have split opinions on this...the scheduled filter change on oilheads is, IIRC, every 32k miles, which I view as ultra-conservative. I've owned cars with over 100k without changing the filter (shame on me), but realize they continue to collect impurities and will eventually not support the flow requirement to keep the car running. So, part of me says "So what? Let it go, maybe it won't clog in my ownership." Another part says, "I don't want to pay for a fuel pump assembly after being stranded on the side of the road when it fails, all because BMW didn't engineer a replacement filter element and didn't include it on their maintenance schedule."

 

By the way, I'm happy with the bike despite the few issues that feed my grump old man syndrome.

[dirtrider]

1 hour ago, migrant said:

I have split opinions on this...the scheduled filter change on oilheads is, IIRC, every 32k miles, which I view as ultra-conservative. I've owned cars with over 100k without changing the filter (shame on me), but realize they continue to collect impurities and will eventually not support the flow requirement to keep the car running. So, part of me says "So what? Let it go, maybe it won't clog in my ownership." Another part says, "I don't want to pay for a fuel pump assembly after being stranded on the side of the road when it fails, all because BMW didn't engineer a replacement filter element and didn't include it on their maintenance schedule."

 

By the way, I'm happy with the bike despite the few issues that feed my grump old man syndrome.

 

Afternoon migrant

 

The thing is, if a rider uses clean top tier fuel then the filter will easily go the life of the motorcycle. If the rider dumps in contaminated fuel then even a new filter (including the pump intake sock) will quickly clog up.  

 

It would be nice if BMW designed in a replaceable fuel filter,  but due to BMW fuel pump assembly design that  would also require cutting off  (slitting) the high pressure plastic flexible hose  to get the filter in & out. (it can be done but you would need to have a new flexible hose & access to steaming hot water to install it)

 

I only know of one BMW 1200 owner that had to deal with an internal filter plugging, he remove the pump assembly, cut the high pressure flexible hose off, then back flushed the filter with a concentrated fuel system cleaner. He then rigged some sort of rubber hose between the pump outlet & filter inlet (not an easy task due to pump outlet & filter inlet being different sizes).

 

He then finished his trip, then when home, somehow found a flexable in-tank high pressure hose to replace the one that he had to cut off.

 

If you have a tank full of crud then the fuel tank will have to be removed & cleaned out inside anyhow so back-flushing the filter to continue on is not a lot of added work.

 

On the 1200 liquid cooled bike the pump assembly uses an actual Mahle fuel filter of some sort (looks to be sort of replaceable with some ingenuity) but a rider would still have to find (& carry) a high pressure flexible hose to replace the one between the pump & filter. (would also need to find the proper filter of course)

 

In a way I don't blame BMW as over the years I have seen more problems on fuel injected vehicles (with fine filter screens in the fuel injectors) that occurred in/during replacing the filter than the very few  that would benefit from actually installing a new filter.  

 

As I mentioned above, (on the 1200 WC with Mahle filter)  it probably won't be too long before someone tears  their fuel pump assembly apart & finds a source for the  filter & flexible high pressure hose.  

 

There might also be the option of buying one of those fuel filters that go in the  tank filler opening (strains the fuel as it goes into the tank).

[alexp]

When I fill up my tank, my garage smells fuel for a day or so.  Is that normal?

[realshelby]

Fuel smell is commonly due to the fuel cap not fully seated. Try applying pressure to it...and see if it latches. A small amount of vaseline on the latch parts worked wonders on my RT when I first noticed this problem. If I smell fuel...I know the cap isn't latched. 

[alexp]

Thanks

[John]

I remember coming home on my honeymoon (on my then K100RT). Picked up a load of dud fuel at the final fuel stop, and the bike quit about 5km from the petrol station. Back then it was well known that the fuel filters on K-bikes could choke, and all my riding mates and I always carried a spare filter on trips.

 

Well, I spent 20 mins up to my elbow (at times) in petrol, changing the filter, largely by feel, and was on my way.

 

On the R1100's, somebody devised an external fuel filter conversion, as tank access was far more difficult than the K. I'm sure it's on BMWST somewhere.

 

There's enough room inside the fairing to mount a filter. I'm surprised nobody has found a means of doing it yet.

[dirtrider]

16 hours ago, John said:

I remember coming home on my honeymoon (on my then K100RT). Picked up a load of dud fuel at the final fuel stop, and the bike quit about 5km from the petrol station. Back then it was well known that the fuel filters on K-bikes could choke, and all my riding mates and I always carried a spare filter on trips.

 

Well, I spent 20 mins up to my elbow (at times) in petrol, changing the filter, largely by feel, and was on my way.

 

On the R1100's, somebody devised an external fuel filter conversion, as tank access was far more difficult than the K. I'm sure it's on BMWST somewhere.

 

There's enough room inside the fairing to mount a filter. I'm surprised nobody has found a means of doing it yet.

 

 

Morning John

 

Actually BMW did just that on the hexhead 1200 ST, for some reason they used an external filter on that particular 1200 bike (probably not enough room inside the tank but just a guess ).

 

The problem with just adding an external fuel filter to the wethead  is that it ALREADY has a non replaceable internal fuel filter so the internal filter would still plug up & choke off the fuel flow.  

 

Only good part is unlike the hexhead/camhead BMW's  that have the internal filter sealed inside the molded pump pass through the wethead does seem to have a removable filter that could either be replaced (if the correct filter could be found)  or possibly a by-pass made up & installed in place of the filter.  

 

There is still the in-tank fine mesh pump pick-up sock that would probably  plug up  if contaminated fuel was  added so just adding an external filter wouldn't solve that issue. 

[realshelby]

3 hours ago, dirtrider said:

 

 

 

The problem with just adding an external fuel filter to the wethead  is that it ALREADY has a non replaceable internal fuel filter so the internal filter would still plug up & choke off the fuel flow.  

 

 

The V Strom community has a LOT of members running around with a fix for this. Yes, the internal filter can become dirty enough to reduce fuel flow and hurt performance. Like BMW the filter is part of the pump assembly and not replaceable. So, we came up the "external fuel filter mod"! Using a certain NAPA filter rated for fuel injection pressures, proper fuel line and clamps, you put the filter inline outside of the tank. You remove the fuel pump and drill a bypass hole in the filter ( clean everything up of course ) so the filter no longer restricts flow.