My wife and I did a small trip this past week up to the Ouachita NF in SE Oklahoma. This was the first trip with the Acerbis tank fitted on her bike (I recently switched it from my klx to hers when i sold mine). Anyhow, during the trip we started smelling gas every time we stopped. Eventually we found the spot it was leaking from. It is the right side of the tank, where the metal insert (for the mounting bolt) meets the plastic.





We did a field repair that night at camp with some JB Weld, and it seemed to had worked for the remainder of the trip.






Now that it is back home and in the garage, I noticed it is leaking again, so I have removed the JB Weld Patch and am now seeking options on what would be the best way to repair this. Maybe I wasn't able to get the surface clean enough when I did the field repair? Maybe some sort of silicone gasket maker sealant? Anybody else ever had any issues with their poly tanks?


Jordan

 

Have you tried contacting Acerbis? Advice straight from the horse's mouth might be best.

 

Yep, had the same thing with mine back in '09 I also talked to Acerbis and Just Gas Tanks. The tank was out of warranty, and they mentioned plastic welding and such, but nothing definitive. Your deal looks just like mine at one of the molded-in nuts on the inside of the tank.

I studied mine for awhile and could tell that nut was still solidly imbedded in the plastic, but it takes just the tiniest gap to let fuel leech out...and it was hardly any fuel at all...but like you noted, smelly. If your tank is still under warranty, get 'em to warranty it...though it may happen again.

I fashioned a fuel-resistant, neoprene pad at that point that is bigger than the rubber bumper pad that is the OEM contact point between the frame and that point on the tank. I reconfigured my spacer and bolt setup in a way that securely mates the neoprene pad to that nut, and I haven't had an issue since. I've dropped the bike on that side, left, and on the right side that is still OEM with no leaks or issue since this modification. It also doesn't make the tank any harder to remove or install. I think you'll find that nut is still solidly mounted in the plastic, but some small fuel leeching is still occuring. This fixed mine.

 

Thanks for the advice, I went ahead and emailed justgastanks.com. I bought the tank back in August, but I am not sure what the warranty duration is.

TNC - Yep, the nut is secure in the plastic. Visually it looks identical to the other side, just weeps. However, I believe my leak may be slightly worse. It is enough to form a drip every 30 seconds or so. Thanks for the info on the fix you used. May come in handy.


jordan

 

the only option for this kind of plastic is welding. If you dont know how to do that go to the nearest spot where they sell kayaks or canue. They usually can do this kind of job.

 

Just wanted to update the tread with the results...

Since my tank was less than a year old, Acerbis replaced the tank free of charge. It took a while, due to the back order, but non the less, I got a new tanks for the bike!

Jordan

 

Good to hear. JGT is a good outfit to deal with. My 3.7 tank is several years old now, and it's been about 2 years since I did my neoprene mod mentioned earlier on this thread. Mine doesn't leak anymore even after numerous crashes and tipovers. As the guy at JGT suggested, this isn't a crack or break in the tank. It's a clearance issue inside the cavity that captures the brass nut for the mount. My neoprene gasket or probably other efforts like the OP did seem to seal the nut with no issue.

 

Hope they have this issue addressed on the new tanks, but if not, good to know and watch out for.

 

It looks like the steel insert goes completely through the wall of the tank, a bad design, as sooner or later its bound to loosen up and start leaking.
I'm having second thoughts about buying a plastic tank.
Craig

 

Probably much ado about nothing. I've had OEM and aftermarket plastic tanks since the early 70's...a few of them Acerbis. Racing enduros for decades and just play riding, I've bashed and crashed all of them. This particular Acerbis is the only plastic tank I've ever had that had any leak or seepage issue, and it was fixable. There are many more serious and likely problems to worry about on your bike than plastic tanks.