I've got a gas leak!!! Need help with parts now...

raiderfan94536 · 10-13-2008, 11:36 PM

Okay, so the idiot that I bought the bike from is the stupidest mother....anyway; somehow the bolt that hold the left hand side side-fairing got lodged into the tank, I was taking it off to get to eventually get to the cluster bulbs because it went out, and gas started pouring out. After I cyphened the fuel out I took a look and the actual gas tank that holds the fuel and it's cracked so, I need a new one, but my problem is that I can only find the gas tank cover not the tank that holds the fuel. Can anybody find a link that will lead me to the price of a 2002 Ninja 250R fuel tank? Thank you...

Gimpdiggity · 10-14-2008, 12:07 AM

Ebay dude. That'll be the cheapest.

But, is it actually cracked??? Or did that screw just go into the tank???

If the screw just went into the tank, it's best to just go to your local hardware store and get some "gas tank sealant and glue." It's a liquid that seals up small holes on portable gas tanks...but you know what??? It can seal up a small hole on a Ninja 250's gas tank perfectly.

How do I know?? Because my Ninja was the same way. I pulled that bolt out of the upper part of the side fairing and gas started flowing all over. Apparently the guy that sold me my bike had also done the same thing.

I took that gas tank sealant and just globbed it all over the hole, then put the screw right back into the hole. I then covered the hole thing with a bunch more of the goop, and I've never had any issues with it again!!!

The fairing is solid without that bolt, too. So don't worry at all about that.

***EDIT***

If you decide to do this, put the screw back into the tank WITHOUT putting the screw through the fairing. Otherwise you'll have to break the fairing to get it off if you ever want to get it off again.

raiderfan94536 · 10-14-2008, 12:38 AM

hmmm, I had thought that it was cracked, but if you had the same problem then maybe it is a hole...well then while I have the gas out i guess i should fix the cluster bulb before I put the gas back in.

***EDIT***

Oh and I need to get this done before I fix the rest of the bike...I need to re-jet the thing, get my carbs cleaned etc...it idles either at 5k or 500 and at every stop dies, nothing in between. I wanted something to work on, but I had no clue that it would be like this...haha

Gimpdiggity · 10-14-2008, 12:58 AM

Well, if it's been sitting for a while a good carb cleaning and tuning might be all it needs.

Don't go re-jetting it without first just cleaning the carbs out really good. The stock jetting is adequate and should be fine. It's probably just gummed up pretty bad.

raiderfan94536 · 10-14-2008, 01:32 AM

would the gumming up cause the 5k idle or 500 idle speed? Because, honestly, i'm in the negatives when it comes to experience with motorbikes.

Gimpdiggity · 10-14-2008, 01:36 AM

Yah, it could.

Cleaning the carbs when something like that is happening is a great start. That, and getting some new spark plugs.

It's also the cheapest thing you can do...because a can of carb clean is like $3 at Autozone or whatever and the labor is free. Check around on the internet for some how to's on cleaning the carbs. They might not be EXACTLY the same, but they will be so close that you will know what you're doing by reading a few of them.

raiderfan94536 · 10-14-2008, 01:41 AM

Yeah, I've found a website that tells one step by step how to clean the carbs (as in taking them off and cleaning) and I've also found carb cleaner, but my FZ6 friend keeps telling me not to ride it and get it to a professional....I don't know what to do, but first i need to get the tank fixed.

Gimpdiggity · 10-14-2008, 01:47 AM

It's up to you, of course, but doing your own maintenance is a GREAT way to learn about fixing and working on bikes.

Tell your FZ6 friend to come over, buy a case of beer, and spend an afternoon cleaning and reinstalling those carbs. You both will probably learn something, and you just might get the bike fixed.

raiderfan94536 · 10-14-2008, 01:49 AM

haha, we're both underage...I figured I should try carb cleaner, then if i have the same problem take it in, but i'm still thinking about it...I just want to get it running again

raiderfan94536 · 10-29-2008, 11:48 PM

Okay just a little up date. I found out that the person before me had crashed the bike and drove a bolt into the gas tank, now that I have that all fixed. I put the gas back in it to see if it leaks and it doesn't. So then I was going to get out the carbs, but its under the gas tank so I put some carb cleaner into the tank and when the gas tank is empty I'll actually clean them; but in the mean time I have found some more things that are wrong with my bike: my tail light doesn't work, I just bought some blinkers so maybe that's why the tail light isn't working, I don't have a license plate light (not sure what I need to do to fix that [besides the light]), and the bike overheats (it goes over the half way mark, really close to the red, but that may be because I have to keep the idle on so the bike doesn't die). And I need a cluster bulb, more retainers that hold the fairings on, and the little stay thing that holds the brake lamps in place. That's pretty much what I'm facing now, so lots of things to do on my bike.