1200GS: The Faulty Fuel Strip Thread

Does an early 2005 R1200 GS have floats or fuel strips? My gauge reads completely full until about ½ tank, then all of a sudden, the bars jump from reading full to reading ½ tank. The bars seem accurate the rest of the way to empty.

With the help of this thread and five Peruvian Soles, my fuel gauge works!

I disassembled a small cigarette piezo lighter and found it to fit quite nicely into a 2-pole SAE connector. I added some pins to the ends of the wires and shocked the fuel strip as others have instructed. Thank you all!

(And by "works" I mean it incorrectly reads the fuel level like new!)

Hey guys,

Pics are gone......Can somebody please tell me where the connector is located? 2 middle pins leading to the strip with a full tank of gas right? And other info/pics would be appreciated. Just bought a 2009 GSA with the blinking yellow fuel light.

Thanks,
Bill

Bill, consider taking it to a BMW dealer for free replacement. BMW Santiago replaced mine, no charge. Service bulletin 16.002.14(017) component specific warranty level extension for 12 years and unlimited mileage.



If you still wish to try the repair yourself, the connector has four pins. The two you need to "spark" are the two inside pins.

Thanks Brian,

Waiting 3 days for dealer to get back to me on this. If it can be fixed doing the "zap" figure its worth a try. This strip that's in the bike now was replaced less than a year ago.

Where is the connector located?

At the top of the tank, left side. It's best if you loosen and move the left side panel to access the plug. Look for the cable that enters the tank aft of the fuel lines and fuel pump. It's a wrapped cable with plastic plug that pulls straight out.

Also, it's best if you can find or make an insulated connector to fit into the plug receptacle. Otherwise you risk the terminals sparking outside the resistive circuit and not arcing (repairing) it. Good stuff in this thread.

Mine is dead again too, and the closest dealer isn't very handy.

Has anyone found out for sure if the fuel strip has been improved?

Not improved. Abandoned. Others have said the new bikes use float sensors.

One of mine (the second one) lasted only about 3 weeks. there is no rhyme or reason as to when they go out. First one lasted a few years and the 3rd one has as well (so far, at least).

And yes, BMW switched to a float sometime during the 2010 production year.

For those of us who don't live near a dealer it's just not practical to have the strip changed everytime it dies. Free or not. For all of us it's a waste of time.



BTW, I had my fuel pump replaced under extended warranty with this spoof in place. The dealer not only performed the service but the mechanics wanted to know how I got this to work.

Hi there, I tried the piezo application several times with two different piezos. In my case the problem is, that the strips always show that the tank is empty. During the first ride after the application the fuel strips react and rise to the middle. But after that (second ride) same result: constantly EMPTY again. Anybody ideas? What if I would change the sensor with another (defect) one. Would the piezo application recalibrate a new sensor? If so, does anybody have any instructions (maybe with pics) for the replcement? Thanks in advance...

You need a new strip. I would just use it without recal, and that can only be done with GS911 or dealer computer.

I had mine replaced 4 weeks ago. It is now bad.

As I wrote above, my second one lasted about 3 weeks. The bad part was I didn't learn my lesson about using a trip odometer to know when to fill up. I was in rush hour traffic on the highway when I ran out of gas! Not a pleasant experience at all!

Another plug for the spoof circuit by TX James. Every time I get on my bike it puts a smile on my face. Full tank, always! I wouldn't trust one of those strips for anything
and would end up driving of my odometer and my Zumo anyway so why not look at a full tank? With no flashing light too.

It took me just a little while to fab and install, James needs an award or something.

Hi, I've just come across this thread, I am very interested with the above instructions, however, I am unable to see the images, is there any chance they can be reloaded, cheers

BMW should give current owners of Hexheads with fuel strips vouchers for $2k off a new bike when traded in.

Just tried the zap repair and it did not work, very disappointing as the warranty extension is not available in Aussie land. So only fix is to pay for a new one and hope that works. At least i will have a warranty on the new one.

bearintheair, hope this works for you.