gas tank leak

[bws2]

My 2001 KDX200 has been sitting for a couple years. I recently rebuilt the petcock and had the tank off for that.
Over the years I've taken the tank off numerous times.

Yesterday, I filled it full of gas and this morning found it has a small leak. Seems to be coming from one of the bolt holes in that tank where
it attaches to the frame.

I noticed that one of the tank bolts had a washer on it and the other one didn't. I'm assuming I must have over tightened it or something.
Would the length difference in the bolts (washer vs. no washer) be a possible the cause?

I guess my question is do I need to buy a new tank?
If so, should I look a used OEM one or go new aftermarket?

Would you guys have any other ideas/suggestions for me?

Thank you!

[Chuck78]

Be careful on older used tanks - when they sit for a long time with no fuel in them, the plastic dries out internally. When reintroducing gasoline into them after being shelved, old plastic occasionally develops big splits in it overnight and is ruined forever... The older the tank, the more likely this is.

Using too long of bolts definitely could punch a hole through the tank. Not using a washer isn't likely to have caused it unless there was a steel sleeve missing in the tank mount rubber, and allowed the bolt to get tightened way too far.

IMS Products makes oversized tanks that use proprietary shrouds.
Clarke Mfg makes stock shape/size and oversized tanks that use the OEM shrouds.
http://Gilimoto.com.br make OEM style tanks as well.

[KDXGarage]

Sorry to hear that. If you need one right away, pay up for a used OEM or just put some more to buy new aftermarket. A used tank could be made in 1994 - 2005, so 30 to 19 years old.

[Chuck78]

I was going to suggest if trying to buy a used tank, to bias your search towards listings stating they were removed from 2000's KDX H-Series donors vs 1990's...

Also, I've heard that with old tanks being taken out of dry storage and back into service, that it's best to slosh around some diesel fuel or kerosene in them at first, and then after sitting for a day or two, to measure out premix oil for say 2.5 gallons worth at 32:1, and mix in only 1/2 gallon of fuel, slosh around even upside down to coat the top of the tank, drain out, let sit for a day or three with the entire insides coated, then dump that mix back in, slosh around, let sit overnight, then add a bit more of all of the remaining 2 gallons. This way you're not shocking the dried out plastic tank with a high concentration of gasoline immediately. It gives it time to reacclimate. Store the tank in a bucket for the first several days of this process, just in case.

I have a well used sun faded purple '96/'97 tank AND a rare purple IMS oversized tank (& matching purple IMS shrouds) that I plan to put back into service this winter in this manner.

My buddy has a low hours '99 KDX200H that spent a lot of it's life sitting unused with a half tank of fuel or less, and the tank developed several cracks running out radially from the filler neck threaded area immediately after he had put the bike back in service and fueled it up for it's first few test rides. Previously, I'd only heard about this phenomenon from the vintage/Evo era 1977-1984 Suzuki PE 2-stroke enduros, but David's '99 KDX showed me that this can happen to "newer" old bikes as well.

[KDXGarage]

and some of the old green tanks cracked at the top, so be careful on shopping

do a search from years ago

[bws2]

Thank you for the great info and advice, Chuck and KDXGarage.

I'm wondering if my cracked tank is because it didn't have any gas in it for two years, then I filled it all at once.
Maybe the 23 year old plastic just gave way.

I'm leaning toward getting a standard size Clarke Manufacturing tank (green).
When looking at OEM used vs. new, we're only talking an extra $ 50-60 or so.

Does anyone have experience with the Clarke tanks on the KDX as far as fit and level of quality?

[billie_morini]

bws2, This my / may not matter to you.

I have a Clarke tank on my KDX 220. Intentionally, I selected the translucent non-colored tank so it is possible to see the fuel level. Before I bought it, I talked to the really nice Clarke Tank lady. She told me the only two colors you can see the fuel level in are the yellow and translucent. I actually have a yellow one on my DRZ400S. That gave me the idea to call & ask if you can see fuel level in the green tank.

Final note: I have the larger tank on my KDX 220. Its capacity isn't hugely different than stock. But, that little bit extra provides just enough for me to go round trip from home to dirt to home.

[Chuck78]

The translucent plastic tanks are cool when new, but I find the yellowed discolored look after many years of use to be a bit of a deteriorated aesthetic. I'd rather just know my bike is in a good state if tune and check the fuel level after riding for 5+ hours to see how close to reserve I may be. Usually when the KTM brands 300cc 2-strokes are getting low, we head back, at which point, I could probably go another 1.5-2hrs over their fuel eange, with the stock KDX tank... I have 2 oversized tanks, a black Clarke, and a purple IMS, but haven't ran them for years. I might put the Clarke on again soon though if we attempt a 75 mile hard enduro loop in 2 weeks. The hurricane winds in Southeastern Kentucky (almost to the areas if catastrophic flooding in Tennessee) have probably toppled over a handful of massive trees across the steep rugged trails at Redbird Crest, which often means a lot of backtracking to find a suitable grade to do a ride around path... Most of the big modern bikes pack some premix oil to go, and stop at a halfway point and fuel up. I may top off with 1.0 gallon and bring just enough premix oil (3.2 Fl. Oz.) but really may just roll with the larger of my two my MSR gasoline/diesel camp stove fuel bottles (large water bottle sized canister) and see how far I get before reserve! Guys usually do the trails in reverse order # 22 down to #1, get the harder stuff out of the way earlier.