Camhead GSA fuel tank removal - gas leakage

Every winter I strip down the GSA, get a year's worth of crud out of every nook and cranny, inspect all the wiring, then clean and wax as I put it all back together. It keeps me sane in the winter months of snow, ice and temps straddling zero.

I had a significant gas leak today, though, and since I heat the shop with a wood stove I had a few tense moments. The two electrical connections and the fuel line on the left side (facing forward) disconnected as they have always done. But when I pulled the fuel connection on the right side gas dribbled out of the female connector (the tank side) and wouldn't stop. In the ten seconds it took me to catch the problem and plug the line back in I had a three foot diameter puddle of gas on the floor. I mopped it up with rags and tossed them outside in the snow to get them away from the flames. Right now all the doors are open and I'm letting things air out in the 2F temps.

Did I space and do something wrong..?

Pete

Have pulled a few GSA tanks, including mine and haven't had that happen. The right tank side fitting was leaking that much?
Full tank?
They list that as the auxillary fuel pump, but thought it was more of a vacuum from the main pump pulling fuel.

I am certainly glad you are not reporting a much worse story! Rarely have to use a shop heater here, but when the Kerosene one does , I try to remind myself very often about the fact there is a hot flame nearby

Steve - yes, just the right side. The left disconnected with just a couple drops from the male end, as usual. But on the right it was coming from the female end of the connector and just kept coming. With night temps as low as 30 below I keep all tanks filled. Might siphon off a quart and see if that makes a difference.

Thanks,
Pete

Got it! The very tip of the plastic male piece broke off and is stuck in the female fitting. That allows the gas to flow out. Drained a gallon from the tank and ordered metal replacements from BeemerBoneyard

Well, that would do it!

Be real careful screwing the female side into the plate, snug is good if you haven't done one before.

Those broken plastic tips on the male aren't at all rare. When I was new to BMWs I was warned about those things by a dealership mechanic who had seen several crack or break in normal handling.
Plastics are not age stable especially when exposed to strong solvents. At least the male sides should have been metal originally.

henzilla said:

Well, that would do it!

Be real careful screwing the female side into the plate, snug is good if you haven't done one before.

Click to expand...

Oh yes. The notion of screwing a tapered pipe thread fitting into a piece of plastic is a purely bad idea. It is the perfect location for straight thread and small O ring. Tapered threads wedge outward and - oops - we split the top of the fuel tank. Dang. How could that have happened? Oh well, we'll redesign with a metal ring around the location of the fitting so things won't split.

Much to my amusement,or not, KTM uses the same supplier it seems. Time will tell on how those last.

The OEM male probes I purchased for 1150's had metal units on the straight style currently, the 90 degree style still were plastic like on Wedge K's and most current R models. All the female seem to still be plastic. Even my certified tech buds have issues with them...so not a training issue.

I carry a spare set of BBY's and some good used OEM style when traveling and have handed off or replaced for folks out on the road a few times. Leaking fuel not a good find out on the road...or in the shop!

PGlaves said:

Oh yes. The notion of screwing a tapered pipe thread fitting into a piece of plastic is a purely bad idea. It is the perfect location for straight thread and small O ring. Tapered threads wedge outward and - oops - we split the top of the fuel tank. Dang. How could that have happened? Oh well, we'll redesign with a metal ring around the location of the fitting so things won't split.

Click to expand...

Yeah, and there is that stellar choice of use.
Folks( BMWNA mostly) thought the metal replacement was cracking the flange...only made it worse for a few folks who tightened a bit much unless combined with the aftermarket reinforcement ring until the home office came around.

After several leaks and repairs at work, they finally replaced the male hose bib into a female plastic connector with a female hose bib and male plastic. No more leaks

Rod