Fuel pump leak on 07 S4RS

[AZDUC]

Called the dealer and spoke with a mechanic and he said it could be a fuel line ($100-200 w/parts) or the fuel pump (1hr labor and $1200 for the pump assembly). I lifted the tank and can see fuel leaking from where the pump wires enter the fuel pump plate on the bottom of the tank. From the microfiche it looks like that's part of an assembly and cost $1200 . Has anyone here dealt with that? can it be repaired with some type of sealer? Or am I forced to buy the assembly?

Thanks
AZDUC

[Raux]

Woah... First off where is the leak. Dry it off . put powder on it. Find the leak.

[Raux]

Second ebay is your friend.

[Raux]

That whole assembly is not too hard to work on yourself just take good pics. Get all new seals...cheap... New fuel filter...cheap... And take your time

[Raux]

Theres an assembly on ebay right now for 140

[Speeddog]

If the wiring passthru is leaking, you can buy Ducati part# 51020032A for ~$140.

[AZDUC]

Woah... First off where is the leak. Dry it off . put powder on it. Find the leak.

The leak is coming from where the FP wires pass through the flange.
I'm going to call Cal Cyclewrx in the morning and talk to them about their replacement wires.
May order the used assembly off ebay.
Will talk to the mechanic at the dealer about just replacing the wires.

Saw on a thread (searched while using the Ducati wiring part #) that someone bought the wire kiy and used industrial JB weld epoxy to seal it with.

AZDUC

[Raux]

Seriously the dealer shouldnt charge much if u dont want to do it. It would take about same amount of time as changing fuel filter.

[AZDUC]

Looks like the part number supplied here and the Ca cycleowrks part are for the metal tank Monsters. Mine is an S4rs w/a plastic tanks and oval shaped f/P flange. I'm thinking maybe I'll pull it apart, chip out the old epoxy, clean it very well with carb or electrical contact cleaner and re-epoxy it. For a little time and some JB Weld I have nothing to loose, but a $1200 repair bill FARK!!!

AZDUC

[skurvy]

I just did this fix a couple weeks ago on my 06 S2R. Started with the moto stalling intermittently. Mechanic said next time it stalls take the key out and key back on but do not start. If no fuel pump whirring sound, it's not priming. Looked up all the old threads here and saw it was usually the red wire under the factory epoxy in the wiring harness. I figure even if I mess up taking out the old unit and trying to fix it, I'll be the one installing in the new $1200 part so might as well try. Sucks I just filled the tank right before it happened. Anyway here's my fix:

1. Took out the factory unit and disassembled as described in the other threads.


2. Close up of the internal side of the wiring harness. You can see how the factory epoxy has disintegrated. Took the multimeter to test the 4 wires through the harness while wiggling the wires. No surprise, the RED wire to the fuel pump is the weak link.


3. The only difference with using the new wiring harness 51020032A, it does not have the extra ground wire for the fuel level sensor/connection to the fuel filter mounting tab. So the shop where I bought the new harness backed out the factory ground at the fuel pump connector, and made a new connection at the fuel pump plug. Here is a pic of the removed factory ground wire:


4. Here you can see the old harness on the left and the new harness on the right with the extra ground wire connected to the new fuel pump plug:


5. Everything back together with a new fuel filter.


6. Here's a close up of the extra ground wire they added to the fuel pump plug. The female connector must not have been a 100% direct match or maybe they had too much wire where they crimped the new connector. It was a super tight fit but it's not backing out at this point.


I know I could have tried the JB Weld fix on the old harness but I didn't really trust my soldering skills and I didn't get a reply when asking about which JB Weld to use (if it even makes a difference http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?PHPSESSID=6s436ka7kqv5ogm7h5s8dvnko6&topic=70789.msg1323074#msg1323074)

So all in all I spent $140 on the new harness, $20 for the shop to add the extra ground, $67 for the new fuel filter and o-ring for the flange. So far it's started up every time with no problems, I've run 2 full tanks through and the fuel light comes on at about 130 miles. I know I could've gone with a cheaper fuel filter but with this being the first time I've ever attempted a fuel related fix, I was trying to keep all the variables to a minimum.

If it wasn't for all the help and information on this site, I'm sure I would've had a $1200 fix on my hands. The only used assemblies I found on eBay at the time were $450-$500. Even going with a used part, how can you tell how much longer that will last? The factory one lasted me 59,000 miles. Even though I have no ethanol free gas near me, and I've gone through the headache of the swelling plastic tanks, I hope this new wiring harness lasts just as long.

[Speeddog]

Ducati part# 51020032A works on the plastic tank Monsters.
----------------------------------------
EDIT: the round flange style.
Does not work for oval flange.
----------------------------------------

I've done several.

[AZDUC]

So I took the tank off, pulled the fuel pump assembly, removed the mush that was formerly epoxy and cleaned it real well with carb cleaner and then brakekleen. I let it sit for a couple of days, used JB Weld and gooped it up pretty good, let it sit for a couple of days to set and reassembled the bike. So far it's been holding fuel with no sign of a leak. It cost me nothing but time (had the JB Weld). So far I'm stoked and the wallet hasn't been lightened significantly

Thanks for everyone's suggestions and especially Speeddog for doing additional research on alternative fixes.

AZDUC

[SpikeC]

 

[itsamonster]

Brilliant to have this info should it eventually happen to mine. 

[AZDUC]

3 Month update....still holding fuel with no leak I have only used ethanol free fuel though.....I'm nervous to try anything else. Is anyone who has done this fix used ethanol fuel? Does it break down JB Weld?

AZDUC