BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Riding home last night with a half tank of fuel, the low fuel light came on and the gauge went empty, then to full for a while, and then back to empty. I assume my fuel strip has retired from active duty. The bike is under warranty with 10K miles, so I will get it fixed. It has always run on Chevron Supreme with Techron, so that blows the Techron helps theory.

My question: is there an risk to riding with an in-op fuel strip? Some claimed their bike shut down because the computer thought there was no fuel. Sounds wacky.

Thanks,
Scott

I have been riding for the last month with a bad fuel strip. I put a piece of black tape over the low fuel warning indicator so I do not have to look at it all the time. I use the trip odometer and get gas around 175 to 200 miles. The MPG still works so I know that I am OK with the milage. I will take the bike in later this fall and have the strip fixed for the SECOND TIME!!!!!

Roger L

My fuel strip crapped on me about a month ago, '08 with about 9200 or so at the time. It's not in warranty anymore either so to fix it would be on my dime. No black tape for me over the fuel light, I just ignore it. Fill up after about 200 miles and it's all good, getting about 52 MPG overall. That's damn good considering I don't baby it when riding.

roger l wrote:The MPG still works so I know that I am OK with the milage

How can the MPG work correctly when the bike no longer knows how much fuel you are consuming? Mine seems to work too but I have not reset it; if I did I don't see how it could figure out the MPG anymore as it now has no idea about my fuel consumption. I should try it though. But I would think it is just displaying the saved MPG number and no longer updating the average figure.

How hard is it to change the fuel strip yourself? The local BMW dealer told me it has to be calibrated with a special tool afterwards too. Of course.

BoxerSteve wrote:It's not in warranty anymore either so to fix it would be on my dime.

You might have to pay labor, but I'd bet your dealer could successfully petition Motorrad to replace the strip on good faith. The strip failures are widespread.

websterize wrote:You might have to pay labor, but I'd bet your dealer could successfully petition Motorrad to replace the strip on good faith. The strip failures are widespread.

That's an idea I hadn't thought of, thanks. I didn't buy the bike from them though, so they might not be too excited about doing it. I'll give them a call anyway.

How can the MPG work correctly when the bike no longer knows how much fuel you are consuming? Mine seems to work too but I have not reset it; if I did I don't see how it could figure out the MPG anymore as it now has no idea about my fuel consumption. I should try it though. But I would think it is just displaying the saved MPG number and no longer updating the average figure.

MPG works off of the fuel management software in the computer, not the strip. The computer knows how long the injector is open, and how many times per mile since it knows the distance traveled. That is all that is needed calculate MPG. That is why it can figure MPG in a few seconds. Distance to Empty, requires a fuel strip, and it does not work now.

Glad to hear I won't get stranded.

Thanks,
Scott

tinytrains wrote:

BoxerSteve wrote:How can the MPG work correctly when the bike no longer knows how much fuel you are consuming?

MPG works off of the fuel management software in the computer, not the strip. The computer knows how long the injector is open, and how many times per mile since it knows the distance traveled. That is all that is needed calculate MPG. That is why it can figure MPG in a few seconds. Distance to Empty, requires a fuel strip, and it does not work now.

I did not know that's how it worked, thanks! I should not have assumed it used the fuel strip to track how much fuel is being used. Pretty cool.

Too bad those fuel strips crap out so often. It was the first time I've had an MC with a fuel gauge. Was nice while it lasted, about 1 1 / 2 months!

I've had 2 R1200R's now. An '09 and an '11. The '09 never had a problem with the strip and it was very accurate. On my '11 It was liar from day 1. I'd get to 100mi and it still said full. I'd get to 150mi and it would calculate that I had 2/3 of a tank and 146mi remaining. LOL I ran out of fuel in the '11 while in MN with the trip odometer reading 200mi. It still said I had another 120 mi of fuel and 1/4 tank left and the yellow low warning light never came on. With my '09 I could consistently run 250mi with the trip odometer. The new fuel strip seems to be more accurate. Some time soon I'll strap a can of gas on it & run till its done and see how far it gets. I'm starting to suspect that the new DOHC engine in the '11 is actually less fuel efficient than the '09 engine.

I just filled up my 09 R12R today with 68 miles to empty and 48 mpg showing on the computer. My trip was showing exaactly 200 miles. I put in 4.1 gals.

So how many gals does the tank hold ? The BMW site says 4.75 "Useable" gals and also states 0.8 gals reserve. So is the total 4.75 or the sum of 4.75 + 0.8 ?

If it holds 4.75 + 0.8 then the miles to empty was very close. 48 mpg x [(4.75 + 0.8 ) - 4.1] = 69.6

If it holds only 4.75 then the miles to empty was reading a little more than twice. 48 x (4.75 -4.1) = 31.2

I have a 2007 with 30K. If a repair is made under warranty by a BMW shop, the repair is warrantied for two years from the time of the work. I am on my sixth fuel strip and have not paid a penny for repair costs.

GBag wrote: Some time soon I'll strap a can of gas on it & run till its done and see how far it gets.

Not such a good thing to do. The fuel pump is cooled by the gas going through it - people who run the tank dry tend to have premature pump failures.

My tank on a 2008 r1200r holds 5.75 gallon if you fill up to the rim and bike is on the sidestand.
Peter

When I ran out of fuel I was 5 mi from the nearest ramp. I opened the cap and swished the bike. I didn't hear anything but closed it & tried the starter anyway. It started? I took off right away and made it to the gas station. When finished filling. The reading on the pump said I had put in 5.714 gals.

My fuel strip just went south on Wednesday. The bike only has 1900 miles. I was on Highway 1 coming back from the Beemer Shop in Scotts Valley. I filled up before leaving, got on the road, was going along, then I saw the orange gas pump icon on the display. Damn!! I always reset my trip 1 after each fill-up, so I know I was ok with gas. I'm thinking of not even fixing it. Hell with it!