[IndyRider]

My gas gauge stopped working. Filled it up yesterday and it went up to about 3/4 and then started going down until the gas light came on (under 1/4 tank). I rode just under 30 miles and went to a station to put gas in to see if it was a measurement problem or my gas was mysteriously disappearing - it took 0.85 gallons. OK so a reading error.

I have seen on this forum that there is a part number 75210-09 that may be the culprit. Can anyone advise on this? Also, i attached a picture of the parts under the seat with labels. Can someone tell me what they are and if this 75210-09 is one of them? Thanks

 

[IndyRider]

posted too soon - I see that part "C" in my picture is the 75210-09 part - so now the question is how i tell if that is the fault and how difficult is it to replace?
thanks

 

[h2o]

If it was my bike, I'd leave it as is. Fill it up go about 130 miles, refill and see how much gas you have left. Go from there to figure when to fill up. My bike when filled up, the gauge would read empty. The fuel light would come on. I would ride it. Eventually the gauge would read half full. When it was low on fuel the reserves light would come on. When it came on there was usual a little over a gallon left. Good luck Dave

 

[IndyRider]

Thanks - that is probably the best way to go, I will do that.

I found a youtube video of a guy replacing this part, and in the comments section he noted that it "failed" again. Here is the quote, "Just so you all know a month went by before the gauge went out again. I did a little research, the only thing that seems to actually fix the problem when this happens is to pull the 40amp fuse on the front right side of the bike for 10 mins, and plug it back in. about once a month this happens to me and resetting the fuse seems to get back in working order. Hope this helps for everyone else"

I pulled the 40A fuse, waited 10 min, and the gauge went to Full. rode it a few miles and it plummeted to less than 1/2. Topped it off, back up to Full, and in 4 miles started dropping again. Whatever....I will just use the odometer as I am safely getting 30 mpg.

 

[Obe1katobe]

I replaced the fuel sending unit in the gas tank (or whatever the part is called) and it wasn't that tough of a job. Cost about $85 and an hour's worth of time. That was a couple of years ago and it still works. Yet I still out of habit set my odometer back to 0 every time I get gas. Whatever... The gas gauge should've worked on the VRod from the beginning and if not, been recalled by HD. Great bike but one of the quirks of owning one.

 

[kjlc1225]

Yeah I replaced the fuel sending unit on my Muscle four years ago and it's still working fine. Not that hard of a job and about a hundred bucks.

 

[flybigjet]

I swapped out the (perfectly functional) sender unit a few years with the upgraded one when I was in a "fix it before it breaks" sort of mood.

It's been working perfectly for years. I occasionally run a bottle of Seafoam through the tank-- not sure if that helps or not, but it certainly doesn't hurt.

R.

 

[J.Kidd]

So is part number 75210-09 in the OP's original post and diagram (label "C") the fuel sending unit? And is that what you guys replaced?

I have sporadic fuel level readings and have been going by the trip meter...but its frustrating to have such a nice bike and such a finicky fuel gauge. For a $100 I'd like to replace it with one that works.

 

[kjlc1225]

So is part number 75210-09 in the OP's original post and diagram (label "C") the fuel sending unit? And is that what you guys replaced?

I have sporadic fuel level readings and have been going by the trip meter...but its frustrating to have such a nice bike and such a finicky fuel gauge. For a $100 I'd like to replace it with one that works.

Yes, I believe that is the part. You will have to remove that whole unit to replace the fuel sending unit (long tube). Take a look at this thread for more info:

https://www.1130cc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=305274&highlight=75210-09

From my recollection, when you order the part 75210-09, you should receive part number 75210-09A which is the fuel sending unit with the float. There is a picture in the above thread showing both part numbers, I think on the third page. You may want to confirm all this with the dealer. So when I replaced mine four years ago, I received 75210-09A for my '11 Muscle with the float, been working fine ever since.

 

[Obe1katobe]

When I ordered the new gas gauge float from my dealer, the parts guy was amazed that so many of these parts had been ordered by VRod owners over the years. So if your situation is similar to mine, your dealer should know exactly what part to order since so many VRodders have had to do so previously. Oh, and the YouTube video on how to change out this part is worth watching to get a visual take on how this operation is done. Good luck!

 

[mnchopper98]

Sometimes it's the rod the gas gauge float rides on. It gets corrosion and stops working. When I installed my 5 gallon extreme engineering tank, they gave me a small piece of red 3M scrubbing pad to polish that rod. I'm not saying that's what it is, but it's worth a look. I accidentally broke my float in half. Its a two piece design, that's fused into one. (Sort of) I fixed it using a soldering iron. Good luck.

 

[jermterp]

I just replaced mine with 75210-09 about two weeks ago for $73 + shipping. 2009 VRSCAW. So far so good.

 

[MikeSez]

I fixed mine with a can of seafoam. Put 30% of the can in 3 consecutive fill ups and haven't had a single problem. Gas guage works like a clock. I'm guessing the was corrosion or varnish on the gauge post that was removed. I've been told seafoam would not do anything...but in my case it did.

 

[Time4Tini]

Stealership states they never heard of this problem! Right!

I finally decided to go ahead and replace mine after reading seeing this topic resurrected. I called my local dealer to order the fuel sender. He asked, "how do you know that's the problem"? I said every VROD on the street has this very same problem and apparently this is the solution. He said he has never heard of this before. I call BS!

I remember reading about this issue back in 2012 when I purchased my 2013 NRS new. My question is if the VROD was introduced in 2002, why did Harley continue to install this faulty unit on the VROD's? $$$

 

[IndyRider]

I finally decided to go ahead and replace mine after reading seeing this topic resurrected. I called my local dealer to order the fuel sender. He asked, "how do you know that's the problem"? I said every VROD on the street has this very same problem and apparently this is the solution. He said he has never heard of this before. I call BS!

I remember reading about this issue back in 2012 when I purchased my 2013 NRS new. My question is if the VROD was introduced in 2002, why did Harley continue to install this faulty unit on the VROD's? $$$

Why? Because unfortunately that is how the MoCo operates. I love the looks of almost all their bikes, but no way am I going to get anything other than this Porsche-designed engine or my trusty sportster evo from them. It's disappointing.
BTW, thanks for all the great help on this forum. it actually makes owning a vrod possible! I am going to try the Seafoam and work my way up

 

[Mike Saarela]

Gas gauge issue

Gents:

To the best of my knowledge there are two designs for the gas gauge on V-Rods.

I have a 2003 VRSCA with about 12K miles which had the early design. This design uses a variable resister which is the float having contacts that mate with a (resistance) rod in the tank. I had to pull this rod out of the tank and LIGHTLY polish the accumulated tarnish off the rod using a scotch-bite pad. I stress lightly, it doesn't take a lot of effort. I've heard of the Sea Foam trick but mine was so tarnished that mechanical scrubbing is the only way that restoring electrical continuity would have been possible. The biggest trick to this whole deal is you need to have, or build a spanner wrench to remove the large flange nut which holds the assembly in the tank.

Last I checked there is no longer a fix from HD but someone has designed one which requires you to send the instrument cluster to them and I believe the cost was in excess of $1200 and took some two to three months to get your cluster back. Not viable to me.

In later years, 2006?+ the design changed to a sonic tube which essentially acts like playing a flute. They pass air over the tube and depending upon the level of fuel in this tube the "pitch" changes and the computer knows how to interpret pitch to volume in the tank. I have to believe this is how they are still doing it. I assume the p/n provided is for this set up because, as I stated even 5 or more years ago my dealer could not help me beyond providing the info on the first fix I described.

As others state, this whole deal basically sucks in that having a $15,000 bike with a warning lamp on all the time should not be an issue. I don't subscribe to putting duct tape on my instrument panels to "mask" or hide a nuisance indicator to be considered a fix, but in this case that's about what one can do.

 

[MikeSez]

I can't help but wonder why cars had reliable fuel gauges for decades before everything started installing computers. This isn't supposed to be the space station,just a motorcycle. My philosophy is simple is better, and I might be older, but throughout the years, Most of the time I kept my bikes upright and full of gas with out a lot of over engineering...jus saying....

 

[olddude]

junk fuel sender

I tried what another member sugested and pulled the 40amp main fuse for 10 minutes. Reinstalled fuse, filled tank and went for a 70 mile ride. Works just like new. Will see how long it lasts. Didn't know a fuel sender could be rebooted. John

 

[wilbur]

went through same bs 1 month out of warranty at 4000 miles they must not be able to help a customer out after warranty expires. I am retired new car truck n jeep services manager and had the ok to take care of customers on a one on one basis and never would i have shut a customer down like they did me and the women at H D i talked with would not admit to a known product problem. After the way i was handled I do know my next new bike will not be theirs. Love the bike but their customer handling skills suck