Questions- new to me 48K mile 2008 R1200GSA with fuel smell

Hi,

I thought I would introduce myself with a picture and a question. I just purchased a 2008 R1200GSA from the BMW Motorcycle dealer in Manhattan, NY. I feel the price was below typical April values for a machine that has been well maintained and they showed me the maintenance history of this machine from day one. I am second owner. Even though they did not come out and confirm this, I believe they let it go for less than they might have asked because it has a history of fuel smells and leaks. As is right now, there is a strong fuel odor when walking around it. The fuel pressure regulator has been replaced already as well as the fuel level strip. There is a 2 year warranty on the fuel strip repair because it was just done. There is a 90 warranty on everything else. The regulator was replaced about a year ago. I asked about the fuel pump recall and they said this bike would be covered if its VIN fell within the range specified by BMW when they finally announce the terms of the recall. They did not guarantee that it would fall in this range. Its production date is 07/2008.

Bottom line is I bought it accepting some risk that further repairs will be needed. Here is my question. If there is a fairly strong fuel smell around the machine when it is not even running, should I assume that the fuel pump flange is bad and proceed to repair it before riding it? The dealer says it has no leaks, has been fully serviced and is ready to go. Is it possible that the fuel smell is residue from spillage during the fuel strip repair or is that just wishful thinking? I am having it delivered to my home in about a week and will know more then.

I like to DIY as much of my own repairs and maintenance as possible and I am looking forward to learning from you folks and contributing when I can.

Get the fuel pump warranty fix performed.

You either need to talk to someone at the dealer that is more knowledgeable or find better dealer. Details on the recall have been out for several weeks and the dealer should be able to easily verify your bike's eligibility for the flange recall work. Or, they know your bike has already had the newer pump installed without correcting the fuel leak and did not want to admit it. I'm amazed that they even put the bike on showroom floor with such an obvious problem. The initial recall letters even stated: "If you notice a fuel leak while the engine is operating or if you smell gasoline, carefully move away from traffic and pull over and park in a safe location as soon as possible. Do not continue to ride your motorcycle. Contact BMW Motorcycle Roadside Assistance at 1-877-680-2176 to have your motorcycle brought to the nearest authorized BMW dealer." (emphasis mine)

The build dates for the affected bikes are listed here.

The BMW Motorrad Customer Relations and Services Department is available Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., ET at 1-800-831-1117. They also should be able to check your VIN for eligibility, though they are famous for referring you back to your dealer.

lkraus said:

You either need to talk to someone at the dealer that is more knowledgeable or find better dealer. Details on the recall have been out for several weeks and the dealer should be able to easily verify your bike's eligibility for the flange recall work. Or, they know your bike has already had the newer pump installed without correcting the fuel leak and did not want to admit it. I'm amazed that they even put the bike on showroom floor with such an obvious problem. The initial recall letters even stated: "If you notice a fuel leak while the engine is operating or if you smell gasoline, carefully move away from traffic and pull over and park in a safe location as soon as possible. Do not continue to ride your motorcycle. Contact BMW Motorcycle Roadside Assistance at 1-877-680-2176 to have your motorcycle brought to the nearest authorized BMW dealer." (emphasis mine)

The build dates for the affected bikes are listed here.

The BMW Motorrad Customer Relations and Services Department is available Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., ET at 1-800-831-1117. They also should be able to check your VIN for eligibility, though they are famous for referring you back to your dealer.

Click to expand...

Thanks, that was very helpful. I just got off the phone with BMW NA and it is covered under the recall. Why the dealer was evasive about that is a puzzle. I suspect they had too much money into it prepping it for sale as they did a full service and replaced fuel strip under warranty when it was traded in. They also admitted it had a history of fuel leaks from the pressure regulator and showed me the repair records in the computer for that work. Given that they were somewhat honest with me, I wonder if BMW is one of those companies that does not reimburse dealerships for 100% of the labor involved in warranty work and expects the dealers to share in the financial burden. That may explain why the dealer sold the bike below probable market value just to get it out the door and did not do the fuel pump recall while they were already in there for the fuel strip.

Either way, it has had regular oil changes and valve adjustments and is cosmetically a 9 out of 10. As long as I get this sorted, I am happy with the purchase and have nothing bad to say about the dealer right now. Hopefully, they will not do anything to change my mind.

Update: I just got a call from BMW of Manhattan and they will fix it under the recall before I take delivery of the bike. I am satisfied with this response. I am one of the first to criticize dealers for misbehavior and incompetence when I see it but it looks like they will take care of this properly. I am sure they would have liked to see this delivered to me in NJ and make it another dealer's problem but they are stepping up to the plate now that I asked them to.

MDA
If the previous owner did not replace the OEM plastic quick disconnects with metal ones, I would order metal quick disconnects from BeemerBoneyard and ask the dealer to replace the OEM plastic ones when they do the fuel pump flang recall.
Offer to pay for the extra labor, which won't amount to much.
Here's the kit from BeemerBoneyard.
http://www.beemerboneyard.com/cpcqkdisconr12a.html

Lee said:

MDA
If the previous owner did not replace the OEM plastic quick disconnects with metal ones, I would order metal quick disconnects from BeemerBoneyard and ask the dealer to replace the OEM plastic ones when they do the fuel pump flang recall.
Offer to pay for the extra labor, which won't amount to much.
Here's the kit from BeemerBoneyard.
http://www.beemerboneyard.com/cpcqkdisconr12a.html

Click to expand...

I will ask. Thanks.