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IMS Gas Tank and engine guards

12K views 52 replies 10 participants last post by  alphashifter 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Does anyone have engine guards with an IMI gas tank? I know of only one other forum member who has an IMI tank and he does not have guards.

I have an IMI 7 gal tank on my 2008 KLR and would like to also install guards. The original owner has obviously been down off road a few times because the tank is scuffed on the wings. I don't plan to be going down, especially at my age, but one never knows.

These are available on Amazon for $129, as are some others at different prices, but I'm not sure if they will clear my tank.

 
#2 ·
Being that the 3rd (rearward) mounting point is at the lower sub-frame mount, the rearward loops might be tucked in too close. But I do Not Know for fact.
 
#4 ·
My two cents

It was a Gen1, but when I had my 02 and my 07, I installed the IMS tank so that I didn't have to buy other protection and I got the added bonus of a bit more fuel. When I got the Gen2 I have now, I didnt want to pay the big bucks for the IMS that fits, it so I went w the bars.

Sorry but, none of that answers your question.

sre
 
#5 ·
It was a Gen1, but when I had my 02 and my 07, I installed the IMS tank so that I didn't have to buy other protection and I got the added bonus of a bit more fuel. When I got the Gen2 I have now, I didnt want to pay the big bucks for the IMS that fits, it so I went w the bars.

Sorry but, none of that answers your question.

sre
Well actually you've been very helpful. (I also realized I've been calling it IMI rather than IMS.

You've told me that the tank is very sturdy and doesn't require bars and that's good to know. I suspected so since mine has some scuff marks on the wings so it's obviously been down a few times with no damage.

The money I save not buying engine guards will be sude for some soft bag mounts.

Thanks much
 
#8 · (Edited)
yup, ims on gen 2 doesn't fit worth a crap. i even called them to complain. they really didn't seem to care. here is some of the fitment issues



fix: high temp silicone sheets



fan bracket needs total refab too. front ims mounts do absolutely nothing. only thing holding my tank on is the back frame mount. weird mounts for bolting front of side panels is a joke too. i use tye wraps now.

got all my chops from souper

https://www.souperdoo.com/STUFF THA...-a-gen-2-semi-square-peg-in-a-semi-round-hole
 
#9 ·
Wow! That difference in opinion/experience between Maverick 96100 DPelletier is significant. I'll have to go out to check my 6.6 gal tank fitment in the morning. It seem to fit just fine and there is a guard over the radiator, all of which were installed by the original owner.

I'll take a couple of pics tomorrow morning an post them.

I received this from IMS in response to my query about a crossover tube.

" Does your tank that you have on your KLR have some lift pumps or fittings on the bottom of each wing? The 6.6g tank doesn’t have any lift pumps or ways to transfer the fuel from one side to the other or to the pump in the center. Only the 10g tank that we offer will use those kind of lift pumps internally. The best way to get your fuel from one side to the other on the 6.6g tank would be just the old school way of leaning it over to that side. Sorry again for the delayed reply, but let me know if there’s anything else I can help with."

As the gent I bought my KLR from and others on the forum have suggested, I'm going to have to learn to drop my KLR over on it's dide to transfer fuel, which I'm finding is common for all tanks such as mine.
 
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#10 ·
Wow! That difference in opinion/experience between Maverick 96100 DPelletier is significant. I'll have to go out to check my 6.6 gal tank fitment in the morning. It seem to fit just fine and there is a guard over the radiator, all of which were installed by the original owner.
The reason for the difference is that I own Gen1 KLR's. fitment of a 6.6 on a Gen2 takes much more effort - reading material courtesy of Tom: https://www.souperdoo.com/stuff tha...-a-gen-2-semi-square-peg-in-a-semi-round-hole

good news is that someone already did the heavy lifting for you. I look forward to your pictures


Dave
 
#12 · (Edited)
I finally got out for a ride on Wednesday. It was a cloudless, very bright, 53 degree day. At a stop I took a couple of pics of the radiator/gas tank clearance and the radiator guard. Like a few other things I found on my KLR, the some of the mods were made differently than I would have and I'm gradually changing them.

I hadn't really looked at the tank near the radiator until comments in this thread. I discovered that the tank sits up against the corner of one of the brackets when it would have been best to have rounded off this corner. As soon as I can get the bike up on my table lift I'll see if I can get at the back of the radiator where the bracket is affixed. If I can I'll pull it and round it off on the bench grinder.

Edit: Now that I look at my pics again, I'm not even sure I can turn that radiator cap. When I was initially looking at the bike at the seller's shop, I commented that it appeared one has to remove that tank to service the top end. But of course.....
 

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#13 ·
The IMS 6.6 gallon fuel tank was Designed to fit the 1987 & up Gen 1 -A models, which had a smaller radiator. IMS never intended the 6.6 to be used on the -B, -C or -E model KLR650s.

So I am not surprised that there are some fitment issues when the IMS 6.6 is used on a Gen 2 -E model with the larger radiator.
 
#14 ·
Paul, I agree that the tank was originally designed for the Gen1 and takes some work to use on a Gen2 but I think the problem lies with IMS's claims that it fits both; https://www.imsproducts.com/Product...e&tyd=true&YearsSet=1987-2018&SizeSet=6.6 gal

KAWASAKI:
KLR 650
FUEL TANK:
6.6 GALLONS
IMS TANK ID: KLR-650
Fits: 1987-2007
(*CAN FIT ‘08 MODELS W/O SHROUDS;PLASTICS)
KLR 650 Models
IMS Part #:
113144


....the main page for the KLR 6.6 says 1987 - 2018


Dave
 
#15 · (Edited)
That's what has puzzled me. It is now becoming apparent that the original owner of mine installed the IMS tank solely to make the bike more off road capable, that is, getting rid of the plastic. Several friends who have had Gen 1s said they don't like the Gen 2s because of all the plastic. I see little advantage in the capacity of the IMS 6.6 over the stock tank since, even after dumping the fuel from right to left, a significant amount of fuel remains in the left wing below the level of the fuel tap, probably about a gallon.

I just got down on the garage floor (an ordeal for me these days) to take a pic of the underside of my tank/radiator and it appears to be a good installation. It also appears that I need new fan switch. The seller told me he didn't believe it went on soon enough so was going to install a manual switch. The dealership quoted him about $140 for a new one but that seems outrageous. I found a 2004 thread about testing and sourcing a new one an adventure rider forum. Ron Ayers is mentioned as a source for the switch but is there another one?

Oh and I also saw that my fuel tap is weeping a bit at the inside and it is pretty stiff to operate, a normal occurrence with these things. Can anyone recommend a good replacement? I've used Pingles on Harleys but have no knowledge of one for the KLR.

Edit: To clarify on the fuel petcock, I've done web searches and found quite a few for between $10-$92, most in the $10-$20 range. I just want a good one and one for 10 bucks seem to me they might be pretty low quality.
 
#21 ·
Oh, sweet mother of pearl, you din't!

You do know that they hate me, right?

It was some things I said about the IMS10 pump failures that got them all up in a lather...
 
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#24 ·
Thanks for all the information. Since my KLR will be used primarily for light off road riding -no technical stuff for me- and based on the enlightening comments about the true tank capacity, I'll be keeping it.

Tom, I'll definitely be removing that top bracket. I didn't consider that it might be an issue with the radiator.

And I'll get a good petcock. I've found that the Chinese ones are pretty sorry and fail rather quickly. Thanks for the recommendations on which to get.
 
#25 ·
Navigator, The Gen 2 fan switch is a 2 wire switch, where as the Gen 1 fan switch is a single wire grounding switch and is smaller diameter, so won't interchange.

If the fan comes on at anywhere near 5/8 - 3/4 of the temp scale that is great for overall tuning & engine health. The factory oem thermostat is too low at a mere 160F and that is only about 1/4 of scale. A Thermo-Bob with its 195F thermostat and radiator by-pass will set the temp gauge at 7/16 - 9/16 of scale, perfect! Then the radiator and the cooling fan are supposed to keep it below 7/8th of scale.

A Gen 2 radiator without at bypass system is extreme over-kill in sub 60F temps. The engine runs too cold.
 
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#26 ·
I have heard that the Gen 2s run cold because of the radiator size and thought that perhaps a switch with a higher cut in temp would resolve the problem. I've never heard of a Thermo-Bob but just looked it up on Amazon and it sells for $147. I'm still fuzzy as to what it does but it seems very expensive when a higher temp cut in switch, or a manual one would do the trick. But in considering, it probably allows the water temp to heat up to the optimum by bypassing the radiator. I'll put that on my "upgrades to do" list or perhaps just drain half the coolant from my rad during sub 60 deg weather.

I don't have a way with tracking coolant temp but that's because I'm still trying to figure out how my Vapor digital gauge works, and what it measures.
 
#29 ·
Tieing 50 pounds of tank and fuel to the top of the aluminum radiator tank seems like an invitation to disaster ...
Completely agree - it may have seen like an easy and readily available solution - but I would expect that with one tip-over that radiator could easily be crushed.
 
#30 ·
Well the ThermoBob certainly sounds intriguing and the answer to a cool running condition. I downloaded the PDF and will read through it carefully. I've not heard the fan come on yet but it's been in the 40s and low 50s so that's understandable.

That the guy I bought it from believes the fan comes on too late is puzzling. I'll trouble shoot the switch.

On the tank mounts, mine has six, two at the rear, two at the top with the one on the radiator in question and one on the top right on the overflow tank guard. There are two at the front bottom. It's been this way for about 4000 of primarily off road riding without an issue but I'll definitely keep an eye on it.
 
#31 ·
Too many people do not realize that the Primary Fuel Tank MOUNT should be the cushions on the Center Spine of the frame. Not the rubber pucks above the valve cover.
And Not the bracket with two 6mm bolts at the rear of the tank.

I use strips of old inner tubes & contact cement, to build-up the 'rubber saddles' on the frame spine to support the load of fuel & tank bag. Not relying on the puck brackets & rear bolt bracket to support the load.
Relying on the mere 3 point mounts has caused leaky cracks around the bracket welds.

A plastic tank would still be more secure if padded better on the Center Frame spine.
 
#43 ·
I use strips of old inner tubes & contact cement, to build-up the 'rubber saddles' on the frame spine to support the load of fuel & tank bag. Not relying on the puck brackets & rear bolt bracket to support the load.
Any Pictures?
 
#32 ·
I spoke to Mike last Friday about the carb he sells, ordered one and received it today, a Yamaha and is made in Japan. It is different than the stock KLR which has some type of a vacuum component. Mikes Yamaha replacement carb came with directions to put the supplied black cap over the vacuum port on the carb.

So I'm wondering why the vacuum tube is no longer required and if this thing going to work? I've not looked closely at the carb but in trying to understand the difference in the stock without the vacuum, noted that the KLR carb is a CV, of which I've modified many over the years for Harley EVOs. I've also modified them to use on Shovelheads. In fact, I have a complete shop kit containing various jets and needles.

So how can one cut off the vacuum and have the carb still work correctly.
 
#33 ·
#35 ·
Navigator, I personally discourage the use of manual petcocks because too many people become nonchalant about ensuring they are turned OFF everytime the ignition is turned off. If you have ever had a crankcase full of gasoline or a 3 gallon puddle around a bike in the garage, I think that one would see my point.

I have found the oem automatic vacuum operated fuel taps used on the KLRs to be very reliable, over the past 34+ years of KLRs.

The KLR Keihin CVK carb does NOT have a float bowl over flow stand pipe in the float bowl (the newer HD CVs probably didn't have it either). So if it floods, it floods into the engine. Turn a manual petcock OFF.

Or install an overflow stand pipe to compliment the manual valve, https://www.souperdoo.com/stuff tha...-bowl-overflow-pipe-no-fear-of-fuel-hydrolock
 
#48 ·
I truly see your point and the more I consider it, the more believe I should have purchased a replacement vacuum actuated petcock. They are foolproof, or idiot proof being another way of stating it. I put a laminated note "The petcock idiot" on the top of my tank today.
 
#42 ·
my opinion, vacuum operated petcocks is just another thing to go wrong.
I have a level of concern about them, too, and agree with the above. I'm skeptical if I could field repair one, too.

Replacing the OEM petcock is on my to-do list, but it's a bit far down the list. Even so, I've been practicing the "always turn off petcock" routine for over a year. I should be ready when I get to this mod.
 
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