XSeries-forum

Has anybody removed and re-fitted the fuel tank of an E53? if so can you tell me how to do it?

I suspect that the vent valve of my fuel tank is blocked, and needs replacing.

symptom: can't pump fuel!!! (other than the £ it takes!! ), tank doesn't vent air, therefore fuel rises through the filler neck and stops the pump!

i've removed the left rear wheel arch, aux fuel tank pipes and tried filling (to isolate whether the issue is in that side which is easily fixable); unfortunately not, even with the aux tank removed i still can't pump; next i have to go for the main tank

There's a link to copy of the BMW TIS on the forum here: Linky

There are instructions on how to remove and refit the tank etc. Choose your model and look at the 'Fuel Supply' section. Looking at the instructions in there, this is quite a big job to do. You need to be sure you need to take the tank off before you decide to. A lot of bits have to come off the car before you can remove the tank. There are a couple of special tools listed, though how vital they are isn't clear.

i dont know if it would work or not but one thing you could try is to insert a length of tubing down the filler neck and make your own venting pipe. so air can exit the tank as the fuel fills it.
it might enable you to fill the tank at least.

worth a go untill you can sort the main problem out...and if it works well, you could just leave it in situ!!

hope this helps.

[quote=""fenj66""]i dont know if it would work or not but one thing you could try is to insert a length of tubing down the filler neck and make your own venting pipe. so air can exit the tank as the fuel fills it.
it might enable you to fill the tank at least.

worth a go untill you can sort the main problem out...and if it works well, you could just leave it in situ!!

hope this helps. [/quote]

that actually might be a good idea, will give it a try
only challenge with that might be that the filler neck is only slightly larger than the nozzle, so hardly any space in between. but worth a try.

x5sport, thanks for the link, that looks a HUGE job, no chance me attempting that on my own... although i'd love to

Yeah, I thought you might want to go to a backup plan when I looked at the instructions. I bet the Dealer would absolutely love that job...

The labour charge alone would scare most folks. There's no way I would attempt that job at home without a full car lift either.