How to prepare your motorcycle for the riding season

Winter and early spring for motorcycle owners is a time when there is an opportunity to do the correct and comprehensive preparation for the upcoming motorcycle season, especially for those owners who failed to winterize the motorcycle properly. But before you start preparing your motorcycle for the post-winter season, you need to define a work plan. As in any job, consistency is important. So, to simplify the procedure, let’s inspect and prepare the motorcycle step by step.

Step 1: Inspect the motorcycle

Take the cover off from your bike and walk around in a circles looking for any oil stains or smudge on the ground. If there were no visible signs of leakage at the time of storing, then it is unlikely to leak in the winter, when the motorcycle was stationary.

Now rock the bike so that the stagnant shock absorbers work and drive the oil. Use your hand to touch the shiny parts of the front fork and rear shocks (if available) and check for any oil stains. If they are neat and dry; it’s good news, if not; contact the maintenance.

Look for signs of rats. Sadly, rodents are the realities of underground garages and parking lots. If there are traces, carefully inspect all wiring. A gnawed wire can make your life very difficult and in case of damage, make necessary repairs before connecting the battery.

Step 2: Connect the battery

If in case while storing the motorcycle in winter you forgot to remove the battery from the terminal, then you need to completely charge the battery before connecting it back to the motorcycle. On the other hand, you need to check the charging level for the stored battery as well. But in most cases, it will fire up the motorcycle. Once the engine starts, the motorcycle should be rolled out into the street and allowed to idle for 20-30 minutes. This would be quite enough to invigorate a stagnant battery.

If you have an old carburetor model, then before starting the motorcycle, check whether the gas tank knob is open and pumping the fuel (you don’t need to do this in fuel injected motorcycles).

Step 3: Check tires

The battery is completely charged and the engine is warmed up; now is the time to inspect the tires. A parked motorcycle may often trip when stored in the winter, if this is the case, you need to look for any undercutting along the edge of the rim, leakage from the nipple, or a nail or self-tapping screw sticking out somewhere in the tire. The problem, of course, must be eliminated. Additionally, check the instruction manual of your motorcycle to verify the ideal tire pressure w.r.t your brand.

At the same time, you can assess the condition of the tires as a whole. As a rule, before the season ends, no one changes the tires; everyone tries to ride on the old ones. But when the riding season begins again, it’s time to do it. According to traffic rules, the permissible residual tread depth of a motorcycle tire must be at least 1 mm. Truth be told, this is not even enough. But the main problem of worn-out motorcycle rubber is not even a worn out tread, but a violation of the profile geometry. The tire must be round in cross section! And when its central part is wiped out of the tread, the curve tends to turn into a square or rectangle and becomes noticeable even with the naked eye.

There is no point in talking about cracks, cuts or cords sticking out of the rubber; go straight to the trash heap!

Step 4: Change oil and filters

Now that you are convinced that the wheels are in order, you can take it for a ride, not far, but to the nearest service station or workshop to change the oil. Some riders prefer to do this before storing the motorcycle, but this is an incorrect way. During the winter, the new oil will certainly oxidize and loose some of its beneficial properties. Therefore, it is better to delay the replacement till riding season. Make sure you completely flush the old oil before pouring the new one. While you are at it, a new oil filter will add more value to the engine.

Remember to replace the air filter at the same time. And after removing the old one, be sure to scoop out all the dirt and sand that is accumulated in the air box chamber (the container where it was installed).

Step 5: Check the brakes

It is important to pay attention to the brake fluid level and the condition of the brake pads. Moreover, it is best to check the density of the liquid with a special device. Truth be told, brake fluids are very hygroscopic and absorb moisture very quickly. And the more water in the brake fluid, the lower the boiling point becomes, increasing the chances of failure at times of need.

Advice: Modern motorcycles are equipped with advanced ABS systems. Changing brake fluid on these types is not the easiest of operations, so it is better to entrust it to specialists.

However, the condition of the brake pads can be assessed independently, through naked eye. And do not be alarmed if their thickness is only 2-3 millimeters, as motorcycle brake pads are relatively much thinner when compared with four wheelers.

Step 6: Inspect drive belt / chain

Sagging is a normal phenomenon on a motorcycle equipped with chain. So the first thing when you inspect the chain is to check the tension. A loose chain will come out of the sprocket and may even grind its teeth away.

The sag can be determined manually; all you need to do is lift the chain using your fingers all the way upwards. The height of the lift should not go beyond 3-4 cm, and if it does, you may need to tighten it. This is usually done by moving the rear wheel along the guide slots in the swingarm. Loosen the fasteners and move the wheel back along with the chain. Post which; you will need to tighten the nuts back in the wheel.

Worst case scenario; if there is no space to move the wheel backwards. In this case you will be required to buy a new chain. There are, of course, mechanisms that involve cutting of old chain by a couple of links, but this is a bad move. If the chain has already crossed its maximum threshold, it can break while riding and jam the wheels.

Much the same applies to the drive belt, which is used instead of a chain, for example, in Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The only difference is that its permissible sagging is much less; up to 2 cm.

Step 7: Analyze your ride

Everything is inspected and now you are all set for the new season. However, the analysis is not yet complete, and while riding, you need to notice any abrupt behavior with your motorcycle.

For instance, a dangerous backlash may appear somewhere in the bearings of handle bar, or in the wheels. While storing it in the winter, most likely you would not have noticed it. Moreover, these defects progress slowly and it is quite difficult to feel these changes.

But when you lose the habit of riding while it was stored, the chances of noticing these abrupt changes are high. Listen to your gut; the first five kilometers are the most revealing. If something bothers you, do not blame it on suspiciousness, but be sure to check and establish the reason. Remember that a crumbled bearing may well cost life in an unfavorable set of circumstances.