BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

I topped off my tank on the way home last night and filled it maybe a little too much. I woke up this morning to a gasoline smell in the house and a pint or so on the garage floor. I moved the bike outside and determined the fuel was dripping from a rubber hose on the left side just under the cowling near the shift lever. I expect this hose is doing exactly what it's supposed to do. I placed a pan with kitty litter under the drip and siphoned off a pint or so from the filler cap. It kept dripping so I drained all of the fuel and let it set for a while. Then I poured half of the fuel back in and am monitoring for dripping. So far, so good - no drips. But the fuel gauge still reads full.
What is the process to follow to get it to read close to correct? I hope it doesn't involve major surgery or a trip the the repair shop.
I learn so many lessons by screwing up I ought to have my degree by now!

Hi Bruce.
Most of us have a hard-earned degree in cocking things up....I've got a doctorate in it!  :alas:

The gauge takes a while to register the actual content - ie when I fill mine from, say, half a tank to full, it takes a while for the gauge to change its reading....I'm perhaps half a mile down the road before it alters. Or have you been for a ride out and it's not moving from full at all?
Pete

I think the tube that the fuel came out of is the overfull tube from near the fuel filler cap.
One suggestion is: - Fuel station tanks are underground so the fuel is colder than the ambient temperature. If you top up "to the max" and only ride a few miles home, the fuel can then expanded as it warms up to the temperature in your garage. This can lead to a bit more fuel volume in the tank leading to the excess leaving via the overflow tube.This has happened to me a few times in the past, but I never learn and still top up fully!  :alas:

This is rather obvious, but if you park on the centerstand the fuel has a bit farther to go before it reaches the overflow.


Doctorate? Hah! *I* was nominated for a Nobel Prize in f*ups. Lost out in the end to some damn politician...


Cheers,


Peter