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My '08 Deluxe started leaking at the disconnect at the tank. As the second owner, I've made a point of using ethanol free fuel the past 2-3 years. But, I imagine maybe half of the fuel ran through it over it's 22k mile life has had stupid government mandated ethanol in it. Doing a search for part numbers (Ronnies) and how to fix the leak resulted in yet another "non-serviceable" part from the MoCo. Posts telling of a $40 sending unit requiring draining and pulling apart the tank at a minimum of 1.5 hours labor and a close to $200 bill!
Unacceptable! More searching resulted in quite a few threads going way deep in o-ring specs. But, it was determined that the standard oil drain bolt o-ring is a viable alternative. So, without draining or dismantling my tank, I was able to replace the o-ring (with HD part #11105) using a paper clip and a pair of needle nose pliers. 20 minutes total. This is how I did it;
1) disconnect fuel line
2) remove faulty o-ring with the paper clip
3) oil new o-ring and insert into sending unit with pinkie
4) push o-ring into place with needle nose pliers
5) reconnect fuel line
An old handlebar mounted mirror and one of those headband flashlight things made it super easy to see what I was doing.
The pic shows the faulty o-ring and if you look close enough, you can see similar problems with the tiny o-ring in the end of the fuel line. It makes me wonder how long the other rubber components in the fuel system will last before they start leaking as well. Might be time for me to buy all new parts (i.e. injectors)?
Because of your post I just made a map of all the ethanol free gas stations in my area. I didn't run ethanol in my 5 thousand dollar jet-skis because of the damage it does so I probably shouldn't run it in my 20 thousand dollar bike.
Thanks for the reminder!!
Since you are the 2nd owner of an 8 year old motorcycle, it is hard to accept that ethanol is the reason for the failure. There is no telling how many times the o-ring has been subjected to a disconnect / reconnect abuse before you owned it.
Since you are the 2nd owner of an 8 year old motorcycle, it is hard to accept that ethanol is the reason for the failure. There is no telling how many times the o-ring has been subjected to a disconnect / reconnect abuse before you owned it.
Is connecting and reconnecting that part a regular recurring thing on fuel injected bikes?
Thankfully in Wisconsin, you can almost always find ethanol free premium. I run it in all my small engines and my bike and my boats.
Thankfully, one station near me is now selling 87 octane ethanol free. I'm going to use that in my small engines.
My quick connect had to be replaced at 23k, 10 years old. I owned it since it was 8 years old/2k miles, so I'm pretty sure it had never been disconnected, and probably was from prior ethanol exposure.
Agreed, it was quite possibly from use. I pull my tank at least once a year for mods/maintainance/cleaning. It doesn't last forever, as well as it gets vibration stresses.
FWIW, I have never ridden a fuel injected bike or a twin cam, or any bike built in this century, but I am planning on test riding a few new bikes in a few days to give my opinions and recommendations to a relative that wants to start riding again.
As a matter fact, now that I think about it, the newest bike I have ever ridden is my 95 Heritage Softail Classic.
I avoid ethanol in all three of my vehicles when I can, but that is not always possible.
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Stupid ethanol!!!
