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ethanol / expanding tanks

ob1ventura

ob1ventura

Active member
Joined
Mar 24, 2006
Location
moss beach
Moto(s)
'20 RSV4rr, '01 FXD, '07FXDC
It is of course well documented that ethanol has cause fuel tanks on Ducs, KTM, Aprilia, and HD to deform.

Considering an Aprilia rsv4rr or rf but don't want to deal w/ the tank issue.

After some searching I cannot find post 2014 bikes having the problem but I can't find that the issue is resolved either.

Are bikes and more specifically Aprilia still having the problem?

Tx ......
 
The issue is with the plastic tanks. It certainly happened on my Tuono. I don't know the answer to that.
 
i have a 2014 Tuono - no issue with expanding tank - I do add one of those anti-ethanol additives occasionally.
 
Thank you............

It appears as though it is still a potential issue. Smart move may then be to focus on the s1000rr and put up w/ the lazy eye front end.
 
Do t let an expanding tank stop you from owning an ape. It should be warranty for life if I'm not mistaken. At least that is what MV Agusta tells me.
 
Entoptic said:
Do t let an expanding tank stop you from owning an ape. It should be warranty for life if I'm not mistaken. At least that is what MV Agusta tells me.
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I found this to be true as it's emissions related and I had BAR back up my problems with Aprillia when I was dealing with it outside of warranty.

That being said, getting Aprillia to act was a painful endeavor and incredible test of patience. I went through this three times and each repair took excessively long. Last tank swap took 3+ months to give you an idea.
 
The replacement tank on my 2013 Ducati hasn't swelled at all. The first one was bloated after ~1.5 years.
 
Thanks for the help.

Guess one dosn't buy Italian to be hassle free but damn; prefer the Ape to the s1000rr.
 
My '97 Tiger has a plastic tank. The OEM tank is made by Acerbis and I haven't had any issue.
 
ob1ventura said:
Thanks and I would assume that if it hasn't screwed up by now you are golden.
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That's what I figure.

Does anyone know what materials Duc and others are using for their tanks? I'm pretty sure mine is made of nylon. Maybe that has something to do with it?
 
Abacinator said:
That's what I figure.

Does anyone know what materials Duc and others are using for their tanks? I'm pretty sure mine is made of nylon. Maybe that has something to do with it?
Click to expand...

fwiw.......... after researching the hell out of the issue yesterday opinions are all over the place. Some in fact blamed Acerbis. Others draw a distinction between painted and unpainted tanks. Most refered to after an internet search complain about tanks pre- 2010 more or less. Of course the Ape dealer looked at me :wtf and insisted that there have been absolutely no issues w/ the Ape tanks or otherwise and that the bikes are created by God him/her self.
 
It's not the ethanol that causes the deformation, swelling and stretching of the tanks, its the water the ethanol attracts. The plastic tanks are (or were from 2005 to 2010) made of PA6 polyamide plastic known as 'Polymide-6', a type of Nylon. They have a good resistance to alcohols but have a fairly high affinity to moisture. Ethanol fuels attract moisture which is then absorbed into the fuel tank. My '07 KTM suffers from this ever since the EPA upped the ethanol content from 5% to 10% in 2010. There are apparently no problems with 5% fuel, but 10% and higher cause the problem.
 
My 2006 Super Duke had an issue. I didn't notice swelling but did notice it elongate to the point where the large tank bolt did not line up anymore. It took large rachet straps to muscle the tank to the frame hole.

2012 Ducati SF tank? No issues at all.
 
HeatXfer said:
It's not the ethanol that causes the deformation, swelling and stretching of the tanks, its the water the ethanol attracts. The plastic tanks are (or were from 2005 to 2010) made of PA6 polyamide plastic known as 'Polymide-6', a type of Nylon. They have a good resistance to alcohols but have a fairly high affinity to moisture. Ethanol fuels attract moisture which is then absorbed into the fuel tank. My '07 KTM suffers from this ever since the EPA upped the ethanol content from 5% to 10% in 2010. There are apparently no problems with 5% fuel, but 10% and higher cause the problem.
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Thank you HeatXfer. So I then can assume that 10% ethanol significantly increases the moisture in the tank beyond that which is present due to condensation. May I also assume that the moisture is absorbed into the fuel as opposed to separating from the fuel and resting on the bottom of the tank as does the moisture from condensation?

Best case I would rather not buy into a situation in which I'm constantly wondering if / when I get to play phone tag w/ the factory for a new tank or have to take a fuel additive along when touring.

Some have claimed that if you ride often the fuel is cycled through and therefore eliminates the problem but I would question that wisdom due to the fact that the tank is never completely drain.
 
ob1ventura said:
It is of course well documented that ethanol has cause fuel tanks on Ducs, KTM, Aprilia, and HD to deform.
Click to expand...
I've never seen a single post anywhere about KTM tanks having issues with ethanol. Mine certainly hasn't had any problems after nine years of being filled with the stuff.

But my KTM tends to gum up the injectors or throttle body or something from ethanol, so that might be worse. The dealer told me to only put Chevron gas in it, so we'll see if that solves the particular issue for me.
 
dowlinginchico said:
My 2006 Super Duke had an issue. I didn't notice swelling but did notice it elongate to the point where the large tank bolt did not line up anymore. It took large rachet straps to muscle the tank to the frame hole.

2012 Ducati SF tank? No issues at all.
Click to expand...

This.
Quite a few have found that the tank swelled and they didn't know it until they went to bolt the tank back in place.
 
Both My Aprilia Futura and RSVR have swollen tanks. I have never tried to get it warrantied but I am guessing it is pretty hit and miss.
 
Abacinator said:
My '97 Tiger has a plastic tank. The OEM tank is made by Acerbis and I haven't had any issue.
Click to expand...

The tank on my 98 tiger swelled a bit, couldn't get the bolt holes to line up but wasn't really a problem otherwise.

The tank on my 2004 Multistrada has also swollen. Makes removal and installation a complete pain in the ass since it basically locks itself into the frame.
 
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