Not the full Border Run
Posted: Sun 02 Aug, 2009 5:13 pm
Well I made to Ballodonia Friday night, but used a full tank of fuel between Norseman and Balladonia.
When I stopped and got off the bike at Balladonia you could see the puddle of fuel and the residue of fuel all over the rearend.
So the plan of catching the group for the night was out the window and I now had to work out if the problem could be fixed or would it be the end of the border run for me this year.
I decide to get a room at the motel so I could have some where to work out of in the morning if need be and have a chance of getting warm as the trip from Noresman had been pretty cold.
The guy on duty in the raodhouse said he had some spare fuel hose if I needed any and he would leave it at the counter for me to get in the morning if I needed it.
Come moring the panels came off the the bike and you still could not get at anything.
So now to take off the fuel tank and air box. Well BMW decide to use a 6mm hex on the fuel tank and you guessed it, it wasnt in the tool kit.
Luckily some other bikers where there and they had the right hex key, so that got the fuel tank loose, however not enough to get at the main fuel injection line under the airbox.
So now the airbox, well BMW decide to use a Torx size that they dont give you in the tool kit, so back to the other bikers and luckily they also had the right size tool.
Now every things undone and we go to lift off the airbox, well its not moving easily and the fancy looking spring hose clamps are looking like they may take some putting back on.
Maybe this is not a simple roadside fix after all.
Ok so choices are BMW roadside assist or ride the bike as far as it will go and then call roadside assist. If I call BMW they start running their clock and I am working to their schedule. If I ride the bike I might get to Perth or I will be closer so the BMW options will be more open than taking who ever happens to do the Nullabour pickups.
Leaking fuel on a hot motor, not a good combination, however it made it to Balladonia, so why not if I am carefull will it not be OK to ride it back. The fuel gets blown back while you are riding, its only when you stop that the real problem occurs. The residual fuel on top of the motor drains off on the left side and down on to the fairing and then onto the ground with a little getting on the exhaust. I decide it was worth the risk so with bike back together and a hello goodbye to Bill I head for Norseman. I make it to Noresman with about the same fuel as before so the leak is not getting worse yet. The bike lets off some smoke but does nothing more when I stop. I had worked out if I do some weaving leans before I stop it helps to get ride of some of the fuel before stopping so reducing the chance of the fuel catching fire. So I fuel up and head for Coolgardie, same fuel burn so the leak is not getitng worse. At this stage the fuel burn is 16l for 180km on a 19l tank. More fuel and off to Southerncross, well about 60km's out the fuel situation has deteriorated so decide to fuel at Yelowdine. Then push on to Merredin. At Carrabin the fuel situation is not looking good so more fuel is put in the tank. So it looks like 150kms is a safe distance betwwen stops now. So this tank should get me to Tammin and then It will be The Lakes and home. So far things are going not to bad considering, a bit of smoke at each stop, not to bigger puddle of fuel on the ground and the fuel coming out as you ride along is not a constant stream but a film on the frame and a few drops in the air all be it a constant pattern.
Well now the traffic light loom as a problem as sitting at the lights with motor runing and fuel dripping is not an exciting prospect. So the plan is to pray for green lights and if a red comes along turn the bike off and then start it when the light goes green. Well the plan worked and the red lights occured twice and the smoke was not to bad. Home at last so quickly unload and have some tea and then when the bike has cooled enough on with a liberal application of Grease Off and a quick hose down to get rid of the fuel residue before it does any more damage to the paint work. The CT20 Wash and Wax works well as it looks like the damage to paint work is barely noticable.
So now to wait for the next Border Run.
When I stopped and got off the bike at Balladonia you could see the puddle of fuel and the residue of fuel all over the rearend.
So the plan of catching the group for the night was out the window and I now had to work out if the problem could be fixed or would it be the end of the border run for me this year.
I decide to get a room at the motel so I could have some where to work out of in the morning if need be and have a chance of getting warm as the trip from Noresman had been pretty cold.
The guy on duty in the raodhouse said he had some spare fuel hose if I needed any and he would leave it at the counter for me to get in the morning if I needed it.
Come moring the panels came off the the bike and you still could not get at anything.
So now to take off the fuel tank and air box. Well BMW decide to use a 6mm hex on the fuel tank and you guessed it, it wasnt in the tool kit.
Luckily some other bikers where there and they had the right hex key, so that got the fuel tank loose, however not enough to get at the main fuel injection line under the airbox.
So now the airbox, well BMW decide to use a Torx size that they dont give you in the tool kit, so back to the other bikers and luckily they also had the right size tool.
Now every things undone and we go to lift off the airbox, well its not moving easily and the fancy looking spring hose clamps are looking like they may take some putting back on.
Maybe this is not a simple roadside fix after all.
Ok so choices are BMW roadside assist or ride the bike as far as it will go and then call roadside assist. If I call BMW they start running their clock and I am working to their schedule. If I ride the bike I might get to Perth or I will be closer so the BMW options will be more open than taking who ever happens to do the Nullabour pickups.
Leaking fuel on a hot motor, not a good combination, however it made it to Balladonia, so why not if I am carefull will it not be OK to ride it back. The fuel gets blown back while you are riding, its only when you stop that the real problem occurs. The residual fuel on top of the motor drains off on the left side and down on to the fairing and then onto the ground with a little getting on the exhaust. I decide it was worth the risk so with bike back together and a hello goodbye to Bill I head for Norseman. I make it to Noresman with about the same fuel as before so the leak is not getting worse yet. The bike lets off some smoke but does nothing more when I stop. I had worked out if I do some weaving leans before I stop it helps to get ride of some of the fuel before stopping so reducing the chance of the fuel catching fire. So I fuel up and head for Coolgardie, same fuel burn so the leak is not getitng worse. At this stage the fuel burn is 16l for 180km on a 19l tank. More fuel and off to Southerncross, well about 60km's out the fuel situation has deteriorated so decide to fuel at Yelowdine. Then push on to Merredin. At Carrabin the fuel situation is not looking good so more fuel is put in the tank. So it looks like 150kms is a safe distance betwwen stops now. So this tank should get me to Tammin and then It will be The Lakes and home. So far things are going not to bad considering, a bit of smoke at each stop, not to bigger puddle of fuel on the ground and the fuel coming out as you ride along is not a constant stream but a film on the frame and a few drops in the air all be it a constant pattern.
Well now the traffic light loom as a problem as sitting at the lights with motor runing and fuel dripping is not an exciting prospect. So the plan is to pray for green lights and if a red comes along turn the bike off and then start it when the light goes green. Well the plan worked and the red lights occured twice and the smoke was not to bad. Home at last so quickly unload and have some tea and then when the bike has cooled enough on with a liberal application of Grease Off and a quick hose down to get rid of the fuel residue before it does any more damage to the paint work. The CT20 Wash and Wax works well as it looks like the damage to paint work is barely noticable.
So now to wait for the next Border Run.
