Anyone experience a gas leak???

T-Weeder Guy

0
Joined
Apr 4, 2013
Messages
27
Location
Fergus Falls, MN
Bike
2010 Red NT700v
My 2010 NT has been stored in an unheated shed (in Minnesota) for the past 2+ months. I go out there often, and yesterday I found a small puddle of gas on the floor beneath the bike. The temps have been in the minus -20's here off and on, but the gas shouldn't have had any problems with the temps. I store it with about ? of a tank of non-ethanol premium with Stabil added to it. I've never had a problem in years past. It's too cold right now to delve into it too far. I can see gas drip, very slowly (about 1-drop every 20 seconds) on the right side, over the area of the center stand.
If anyone has any ideas where to start looking once the temps warm up a bit I'd appreciate it.

I don't know if a gas line sprung a leak or some other component may be suspect. Any and all ideas are welcome!!!
 
Probably dripping from the quick disconnect ether on the tank side or the fuel rail side. The O ring seals most likely have shrunk with the extreme cold. Lift the tank and check those points first. Then check the fuel pump / fuel sending unit gasket. Again extreme cold will shrink those gaskets.
 
Had that happen to mine a few years ago (Jan 2011). The folks on the UK forum never figured it out either. And never happened again. But, never had that low a temp avg again either (highs in 20's, lows near or below 0F).

I never figured it out since it only happened that one time.
 
Possibly due to the cold and some (contraction) pressure from fluctuation due to widely temperature swings and a semi functional vent. Does the leak continue? or Did it stop?

The quick disconnects that Chuck referred to may leak if not properly seated. And Honda says to replace the green clips each time they are disconnected, but I don't know of anyone who actually does that including Honda dealers. My local shop doesn't even stock them.

Let us know if you find the leak source.
 
Thanks Chuckskirst...I'll have to do a little research to find out where those O ring seals and gaskets are exactly. Unless it's easy to explain. I did do a valve check on my NT the year before last, but I didn't remove the gas tank, just propped it up out of the way. I did have to remove the throttle body as I recall, but didn't disconnect any fuel lines in the process.
It is still dripping. I may try moving it to my garage, which is heated to about 45 degrees and see if the leaking stops also.
 
Thanks for the reply junglejim! It is still leaking. If I can get it into a warmer location I may see if the leak stops and if not, start digging around to see if I can spot the source of the leak. You mention maybe a semi-functional vent...where is that vent located and is it something I should look into?
 
T-Weeder Guy said:
Thanks for the reply junglejim! It is still leaking. If I can get it into a warmer location I may see if the leak stops and if not, start digging around to see if I can spot the source of the leak. You mention maybe a semi-functional vent...where is that vent located and is it something I should look into?
Click to expand...

Well if it is s till leaking it isn't a clogged vent building pressure and forcing gas past a weak o-ring. It is a genuine leak. Most folks un-couple the fuel line to get good access for a valve adjust. There are some plastic clips that hold those quick connects together. They are green if I remember right. They don't cost much and you might have to order them. I'd order some to have on hand before taking it apart. That way you won't have to wait for parts. I guess you just have to find out what is leaking. Maybe you just have too much gravity.
 
If your battery is still installed you may want to turn the ignition switch on (no need to start it) to start the fuel pump and pressurize the fuel line up to the throttle bodies. Since you can see the 1 drip/20 seconds, see if the drip rate changes with the fuel line pressurized. If the drip rate stays the same, it probably is not the fuel line. Also, you may get lucky in that pressurizing the fuel line may expand a fuel line fitting that could be dripping and seat it tighter & stop dripping. If your drip rate gets faster, it clearly would be the fuel line, so then you would know where to look when you do lift the tank.

Respect the gas leaks and fumes. Be safe. You may want to roll the bike outside to pressurize the fuel line in case gas leak gets worse fast.

What ever you do don't video record it. A video will only increase your odds of a hilarious fire. See youtube. All of those mishaps are video recorded.
 
Well, the temps here in Minnesota have warmed into the low 20's, and the leak has either stopped or slowed dramatically. As "dnktng" suggested, I turned on the ignition to charge the fuel pump and and pressurize the fuel lines to see if that caused the dripping to resume, but it didn't.

I took the opportunity to move the bike into my attached garage that is heated to about 44 degrees. I left it there all day with some cardboard under it to see if there was any more dripping, and there was not!
I didn't go to the trouble of raising the gas tank, so I was unable to determine the source of the leak. I'm hoping, like "charlie b" experienced, that it was a one time occurrence and it won't happen again. I started the bike and let it run for about 10-minutes and still no dripping.
It must have been going on for a while though, as my tank is showing a bit under a ? a tank, down from a little over ? full when I stored it.

I'll update the post if it starts up again. Thanks for the responses and ideas!
 
[..It must have been going on for a while though, as my tank is showing a bit under a ? a tank, down from a little over ? full when I stored it...]

I'd seriously doubt that it leaked that much fuel because if it did, you'd have a pond under the bike! And in cold temps, there isn't much evaporation of fuel on the ground making any fuel leak seem worse.

I've found that checking my fuel gauge before pulling into the garage after a ride and what the gauge reads initially when I restart it to go on another ride, results in a less than true reading. After I've been riding for a few minutes, everything seems to stabilize and the reading is then much closer to what it was when I put the bike away.

Did you take both readings with the bike in the same state - either on the sidestand or centerstand - but not both?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom