S4R metal fuel tank "leakage"

[Samir6992]

2004 SR4 steel fuel tank "weeping" area of rear mounting plates pivot. The welded doubled up plates seeping fuel due to poor weld on the second / top plate (the one that is the actual earred plate). Quite apparently one of the top welds damaged one of the lower plate's spot welds sufficiently to cause a small hole in tank's outer shell...resulting in a slow seeping of fuel ! Drips onto rear exhaust pipe of course producing noticeable smoking at warm up.
Check area of rear tank pivot plates for any leakage and fix pronto !
Fixes: clean area of all paint and assure dryness even under the doubled plates w/judicious use of compressed air. Good old J.B. Weld should work well on a minor seepage. If not, the tank needs to be drained, removed from bike, stripped of all internals, blasted clean, resealed and refinished. Not a project for the faint of heart !
BTW I used J.B. Weld on all outer surfaces and a dab on the failed spot weld in tank's interior ( not easy to reach). Don't push your luck, repair any / all tank leakages pronto! Samir 6992

[TwinTwister]

Hi Samir
Havent been on here for a while, so sorry for late reply. I too had same problem this year on my 2003 S4R. At first I thought it was an oil leak as I had recently dropped my bike but then found out it was petrol from the tanks hinge. I looked into putting sealant in but someone had already done this and getting the old stuff out would be tricky. In the end I took it to a radiator/tank welders and they welded or braised it for £80. Not sure where you are but I'm up in Merseyside if you want there details I can pass them on to you. All the best.

[Samir6992]

Twin Twister...long way from ur locale, but thanx the info'follow-up! BTW my use of "J.B. Weld" cold epoxy as a sealant is holding rather well w/no leakage / minor weeping. My choice to avoid heat application in any repair attempt was simply to avoid any further spot weld damage/failures. Merry Christmas and the Best for the new year ! Samir6992

[TwinTwister]

Glad to hear your tank is holding up well, I'm just hoping for a nice few days to go out on the bike before work starts again : (
Wishing you all the best for the New Year