How to clean the high pressure Fuel filter

Arsinol · May 20, 2013

Hi all,
This is my first post on this site. My buddy has a 03 SV650 and he told me to give it the once around so i took it for a ride. Instantly i noticed the wine of the fuel pump and then the power cutoff at around 7000rpm. So I guessed either the pump motor was busted or the fuel filters where clogged. so it really is up to the user 260$ fuel filter, mod the filter or clean it.

Stuff needed:
-Fuel hand pump
-container to put the old fuel that is in the gas tank in
-clean gas (Has to be clean as possible)
-rags (For cleanup and gas spills)
-metric allen key set, 10 mm socket with extension

Steps:
Removal of Tank
1.remove small black plastic covers from the sides of bike
2.remove seat
3.grab the fuel tank stand from under your passenger seat
4.unbolt the front of your tank and prop it with stand
5.unplug the wiring harness, fuel line and the two breather lines
6.unbolt the base of the tank and lift it off
7.empty tank (as complete as possible to get rid of the crap)

Disasembly of Fuel Pump
1. take heat shield off of the bottom of the tank
2. unbolt the fuel pump from the tank
3. wiggle the fuel pump out of the tank (it is a little tight)
4. place fuel pump on a nice clean area (and clean your hands damn it)
5. unbolt the three wires at the base of the fuel pump
6. unscrew the two spots on the sides and slide the fuel sensors off
7. now with a a fair tug pull the hole works away from the base.
8. now gape at all the crap that is in the base
9. pull off the screen filter piece at the base of the Pump assembly And clean it (compressed air works best but watch your eyes)
10. unclip the plastic holder from the base of the electric motor (there is two clips just lift both at the same time and pull up and don't break it)
11. pull the electric motor out
12. you should have a plastic thing with a black top on it that is your high pressure fuel filter, impeller and pressure release valve

The cleaning of the High Pressure Fuel pump (brought to you buy stupidity)
1. now take your hand fuel pump you bought and shove the push end of it into the hole at the bottom of the high pressure fuel assembly.
2. take the suck end of the hand fuel pump and put it in your nice clean gas
3. put the high pressure fuel assembly with the hose stuck in it in a container because its going to spray a bit. your going to have to hold the hose in place or figure a way to keep it in there
4. Pump until the nasties are all gone the fuel should be coming out the rubber lined hole
5. clean up the outside of the High Pressure Fuel filter pump assembly

Reassemble in reverse order (do a criss cross pattern when tightening up the fuel pump to the tank) and put Clean fuel back in the tank or filter your fuel you took out and put it in. Just make sure its clean or you might as well have not done this whole thing.

Start the bike up and go for a ride everything should be good. and now for some pictures. Oh and I am not at fault for any damage to yourself or your motorcycle by following these instructions and i would highly recommend getting the service manual for the bike (you can find some PDF copies floating around).

This is the crap that came out of just the High Pressure Fuel Pump filter

This is the setup

Thats the High Pressure Fuel Pump filter assembly and the fuel pushed trough it

Since this is my first post if there is anything wrong with it tell me and i will fix thanks guys

jeremySV650 · May 20, 2013

Thats a great first post. Nice to see a new member contribute something helpful. Welcome to SVR.

The only thing I would mention is to make sure that you don't smoke or play with fire anywhere near this procedure.

Sent from Motorcycle.com App

Rock Dodger · May 20, 2013

That's a LOT of dirt!

How many miles on the bike?

Did he repeatedly buy gas from a station with mud in the tanks?

I don't think that much dirt is typical, but you did a good job of figuring it out and fixing it.

RecoilRob · May 20, 2013

Welcome! Yes...the filter situation isn't the best on this bike.

Let's hope your flushing has done the deed. The filter inside is like 1/8 of a 3" tall and 4" diameter round filter..so it's just a tiny little wedge of paper. Pitiful...really. So getting that much grunge out of it just might have it pretty clean. Hoping also that the pump wasn't damaged by the restriction but it seems they die mostly from intake screen blockage rather than downstream problems as the actual fuel flow is so minimal it's used to working against a full head pressure.

If you find you DO need a pump...there are posts on here about cheap replacements available that work great. Now...what are you going to do to top your first post? Hmmmm....?..

bastion72 · May 21, 2013

Wow, perfect timing. I'm in the process of doing this. My wife's bike sat for 5 years and now the tank is pretty nasty.

Here's what I just pulled out of the tank:

Rock Dodger · May 21, 2013

Dat's nasty!!

bastion72 · May 21, 2013

This is what the inside of the tank looks like:

I have a project ahead of me. Don't stress me out just yet.

Rock Dodger · May 21, 2013

Check out POR15. It's supposed to clean out rust. Or check out youtube for how-to videos; there's a lot of them using all kinds of stuff to get rust out. Apple cider vinegar, electrolysis with baking soda, vibratory method with nuts and bolts; lots of ideas out there.

max384 · May 21, 2013

Arsinol · May 21, 2013

The bike has 31000 km on it and was just bought this season. Took it out for a four hour ride yesterday and had no problems runs as it should. The stuff left over looked like dirt or like a fine black fleck but the inside of the tank is spotless.

Probably going to have to do a chain and sprocket replacing but that's pretty standard.

To rock dodger
Rusted tanks are a pain. The coating method such as POR15 is probably your best bet. I used a similar product on a zx600 86 and it worked like a charm.

Thanks guys and have a good ride

foca · May 21, 2013

holy crap this is like one of those smoker's lungs advertisements.

bastion72 · May 21, 2013

I'm going to try the electrolysis method first, then go from there.

Domiken · May 21, 2013

Here you go:
http://www.svrider.com/forum/showthread.php?t=154997

Bruce C · May 21, 2013

bastion72

You might want to look at Rusteco rust-removing products. http://tinyurl.com/mzyth27

They are primarily a marine equipment rust & corrosion removal company. They got into gas tank cleaning and de-rusting as a side business and they became the go-to outfit for rusty vintage tanks on the West Coast. Unfortunately, at one time you had to hand-deliver your tank to their business in Long Beach, Ca.
Now I see that their rust removal products are available for your home use(don't know if they still do tanks on-site).

Check out their website and Google "Rusteco".

bastion72 · May 21, 2013

Thanks for the links and tips. Didn't mean to hijack the thread.

SRT2KEN · Jul 12, 2013

yes thank u - good writeup - very useful -- im debating over getting a new pump rebuild motor only aftermarket or buying a used OEM pump i-the whole thing.... diff betw $60 and $180 .....

RandyO · Jul 12, 2013

lotta work

wouldn't it be better to bypass the filter and install and external filter ? I just did on my V-strom, now I can just lift the tank and replace an inline NAPA 3310 $19 filter in a few minutes

http://www.vstrom.info/Smf/index.php/topic,6105.0.html

Arsinol · Aug 17, 2013

it's not too bad took all of a hour to clean it out. I probably don't have to do it for a while.......... the bike got crashed a month ago my buddy is all right. I would think as long as you get clean gas you shouldn't have to do this too much.

Bill & Ted · Jan 29, 2014

Was just wondering if you can use throttle body cleaner to clean out the high pressure filter, does anyone know?

RecoilRob · Jan 30, 2014

It's just paper, so be gentle with it. I think the important thing is to flush it backwards to dislodge debris and not so much dissolving anything, so maybe just using gasoline (carefully) would be the safer way.

Bill & Ted · Jan 30, 2014

Thanks mate, I will just backflush it with petrol (gasoline).
Also buying a highflow pump as the original is now screaming its head off and thought while I am changing it out I would ask about cleaning the high pressure filter, can I use the throttle body cleaner (spray can) on the regulator or is it still to harsh.
Previous owner was always using the cheapest fuel he could find, I don't use anything but premium fuel.
Must say am loving the SV.
Thanks for the help.

RecoilRob · Jan 30, 2014

Carb cleaner 'should' be OK to use on the various fuel system components, but I'd be real surprised if the regulator needs anything but a quick wipe with a rag to make it good to go. If it's been sitting and heavily deposited with crusty rusty stuff.....I use a fine wire wheel gently to remove anything that shouldn't be there rather than trying the chemical route. The diaphragm in there has to be treated with a bit of caution...so be easy on it.

Did your pump clog the inlet screen....or 'low pressure filter' as they call it in the manual? My first pump died because of rusty debris blocking the inlet, and it also blocked up the 'high pressure' filter. I was worried about trying to flush it out....so ponied up for the new one. $$250!!!! That is insane....and I swore to never do that again.

If someone were crafty with a milling machine, a block to fit on the pump outlet with room on the side for the regulator and an outlet nipple could allow an easily sourced automotive fuel injection filter to be used....and next time I need a filter this is how I plan to proceed. If you are handy with tools, or have someone nearby with the know-how...fabbing up an adapter block to make the filters easily replaceable would be of interest to LOTS of SV and DL owners. Maybe Gixxers too if you're looking for a project.

Bill & Ted · Feb 2, 2014

Yeah the previous owner showed me photos of the inlet screen being cleaned at a workshop, said his FI light came on and was told his filter was blocked.
So I was thinking the high pressure filter is probably full of crud, so I will back flush it when I put the new pump in.
At the moment its to hot to do anything and the garage isn't air conditioned, I don't think I can convince the wife to let me bring the bike into the living room;D
What you said about fabricating is a brilliant idea and I would probably be the first to buy such a setup if someone were to make them.
I'm not bad with tools just not so good at fabricating things.
Anyway thanks for your help and suggestions.

drienkm · Feb 7, 2014

Anyone ever heard a sharp discontinuity in the usually smooth "robo-whine" sound from the pump? Mine made weird chirping noises that it's never made before. The bike has not been sitting. It's been ridden almost every day, 30,000 miles in the past 18 months.:rock: It has about 50,000 miles on it now. Can anyone speak to the longevity (in miles) of a regularly ridden pump?
There's no rust in my tank, but I'm itching to pull it and clean the screens now... just from the miles.

RecoilRob · Feb 7, 2014

I'd written up a nice explanation of the pump/regulator then had that horrible feeling that it wasn't correct, so I deleted it and went to the manual to double-check on things. Relieved now that all is well

The pump will last a LONG time if the inlet and outlet screens/filters stay clean, but running it with the inlet restricted I believe will shorten the lifespan due to over-speeding it. When all is working well, the pump puts out more pressure than needed and the regulator vents the unneeded fuel back to the tank. You can hear the pump whine and the regulator 'whoosh' as it vents the excess fuel, but this should be pretty consistent when you can actually hear it above the din of the rest of the bits when running.

If you can hear the pump changing pitch....it really shouldn't do this much at all, so I'm thinking it's telling you that an inspection is needed. Pretty nice of the pump to warn you...isn't it?

As the inlet gets restricted the pump can't put out enough volume and will speed up due to the load being reduced...at least I think it will. This excessive speed can go a long way toward wearing it out prematurely.

Early last year, mine was starting to run oddly and the pump making more noise than it had been....so to verify things I put a gauge on it so I could watch the pressure while riding. Yep....the pressure WAS dropping at speed, so out came the pump and sure enough the inlet was all blocked up. It's a pretty fine screen and doesn't take much crap to crud it up...so you've been warned and no excuses if you end up walking (or pushing).

riposseduto · Jun 6, 2014

I resume this old post just for have some confirmation.

My bike (k3 650 without secondary intake valve) start to have a big hesitation between 5500 and 8000. bike run well over 8000...

i start to think that i by bad fuel...

have you got similar problem on with yours ''dirty pumps''?

Thank you in advance :vroom:

Rhino86 · Jun 16, 2014

If your getting big hesitations between 5500-8000, you would notice bad fuel though out the rpm range, not just 5500-8000... though a clog would explain the range issue.

So as RecoilRob wrote ' It's a pretty fine screen and doesn't take much crap to crud it up...so you've been warned and no excuses if you end up walking (or pushing).'

I bet my fuel filter is bloody dirty but no problems with performance or economy, as part obsession to maintain the bike I'll be inspecting the fuel filter this coming weekend. Thanks to everyone and the OP for their tips and advice.

Rhino86 · Jun 19, 2014

**** me, ****** bloody.

You also need a 7mm spanner for the fuel pump nuts.

Cleaned out the filter, gel, dirt, rust. I took photo's of taking it apart, before and after. So hopefully I did the job right.
Put it back together, fuel pump initializes, cranks but no, she won't run. It's like she's starving, I initialized the pump a few times and she'll only run for a second or two. Fuel is flowing out to the fuel hose and there is pressure there as it squirted out when I unclipped.

Lessons from tonight, eat dinner first and don't work on your bike on a empty stomach, I'm going to get something to eat.

If anyone has any advice, your welcome to chime

How to clean the high pressure Fuel filter

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