Winterizing Your Ride
Article #1-09

Ugh! Motorcycle Maintenance Again? Yeah, I know, we all just want to ride 'em not work on them. Believe me I know it gets tedious sometimes - all this maintenance. But if you spend a couple of hours preparing your bike now - your motorcycle should crank right over and breeze right out of the driveway next Spring.

We all know batteries and tires need winter attention, but leaving the old fuel in the bike all winter can also cause engine and carburetor problems next Spring. If you are planning on winterizing your own machine pay careful attention, recommendations for computerized, Fuel Injected models are different than those for Carbureted models.

The following suggestions are for folks who are parking their motorcycles until next Spring.
On either style of engine if you are not going to drain the gas be sure to use a good fuel stabilizer in a full tank of gas a.s.a.p.
These products can help prevent gumminess in the fuel during storage.

Carbureted Engines should have the fuel drained from both the tank and the carb. Open your fuel line somewhere between the gas tank and the carburetor and simply drain all the gas into a suitable container. Replace your fuel line, close the fuel valve and run your bike in neutral until the carb is empty. All finished with that chore. It is pretty easy actually! This does not harm your engine - it is the same thing as if you ran out of gas while riding. Now you won't have to worry about 'gummed up' fuel passages next year.

Fuel Injected Engines - DO NOT attempt to drain all the fuel from the system! Instead you want to do the opposite. Keep the gas tank filled to the top to discourage moisture build up. Start your motorcycle at least twice a month from now until you start riding it regularly again. You'll want to run it approximately 5-8 minutes - no more. Remember, if your motorcycle is air-cooled, leaving it idling for any longer can cause other costly damage - so only run it for a few minutes. A good way to determine how long to run it - if during this process the bike becomes so hot you cannot touch the motor with your bare hand - it's too hot - turn it off immediately. If it is liquid cooled - I would still not recommend letting it run longer than about 8 minutes. Circulating the gas in this manner will keep the fuel passages open and will also help circulate the oil and lubricate seals throughout the engine. Remember to open a window or door if you are working indoors.

Cable Lubrication is also important. Whether you lubed the cables last Spring or not, it is now time to lubricate them again to prevent moisture inside the sheath over the winter months. Your owners' manual or dealership can recommend a suitable cable lube product. In the past, we always used an oil-based cable lube, but now we prefer to use Dri-Slide™, a Moly Dry Film Lubricant. This product is easier to use as the molecules are smaller so it works its way through the cable sheath faster and is less messy. However, Dri Slide is more toxic. You will need to wear gloves and be careful.

With either product, simply follow the directions supplied with the cable lube and squirt that oil or moly film into the sheath at the grips until it comes out the other end. You can see it come out at the transmission for the clutch cable, or at the carburetor for throttle cables. Redo the cables at the hand grips and your bikes cables are protected against rust and corrosion for another season. There is a detailed chapter on how to do this in my new book ABC's of Motorcycle Wrenching.

Antifreeze, if your bike is liquid cooled it is absolutely mandatory that you check the freeze-point of the coolant. Make sure it's good enough for the coldest temperatures you expect in your location. While you're at it - look at the condition of the coolant. Is it clean and sweet smelling? Or is it brown, smelly, full of rust or other contaminants? The coolant may no longer be able to do its job if it smells or looks nasty. The dirt or rust could cause engine damage. Probably a good time to flush the system and put in new, clean antifreeze as per your owner's manual recommendations.

Speaking of Batteries, did you know computerized and fuel injected bikes draw current all the time, even when your bike is parked? Yes they do! I recommend keeping a battery tender on your bike all winter long. This is also helpful for being able to start it up periodically to circulate the gas and oils.

On some motorcycles, it's recommended to simply remove the battery from the bike, Dual Sport or Dirt bikes for example. Store the battery somewhere warm for the next few months to prolong its life. Remember to throw a charge on it before reinstalling next Spring.

Protecting the Internal Engine might be in order for some riders. If you plan to start it up throughout the winter, no need to think about this step at all. On the other hand, if you are planning to remove the battery, some mechanics recommend protecting the cylinders by squirting about 1 teaspoon of Clean engine oil into the cylinders through the spark plug holes. Next, you would replace the spark plugs, but not the plug wires. Carefully ground the spark plug caps, but do not reattach to the spark plugs yet. BE CAREFUL - DON'T ELECTROCUTE YOURSELF. There's about 50,000 volts coming through those spark plug wires and caps during the time you are cranking the engine. Keep Your body parts and anything flammable well away from the spark plug caps at this point in the proceedure.

Then simply crank the engine over - once or twice only. This spreads the oil to coat the cylinders to protect them. Then simply reattach the wires to the plugs. Note: do the above before you remove the battery.

TIRES: We all want nice round tires when we're next ready to ride. If you leave your bike parked in one spot for months we all know what happens right? First ride next year, your bike will be making all kinds of ka-thunka-a-thunka noises! The tires will develop flat spots. To prevent this, store the bike on a center stand or mc lift that gets it up off its tires for the winter. If you don't own anything like that, simply roll the mc to a different tire contact patch periodically and often. Special Note: If any or all of the above sounded like Greek to you - don't mess with winterizing your own motorcycle (unless you are Greek) - take it to the dealership or shop.

I always like to remind ya'll that the best thing for your motorcycles over the winter is to keep riding them! But then, Winter riding certainly carries its own hazards and is not for everyone. Speaking for Roger and I, we ride every chance we get - even in the cold. Chilly, short rides are great for relieving cabin fever and PMS (parked motorcycle syndrome) and are good for the bike as well.

If you take care of this maintenance now, I predict you will open your garage next Spring to a much happier motorcycle that is ready to hit the road when you are. Now that is something to look forwards too!

Jasmine Bluecreek Clark
www.bluecreekartworks.com
www.bluecreekmotorcycletraining.com

ABC's of Wrenching Book


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ABC's of Motorcycle Wrenching Book




Other Motorcycle Maintenance Articles by Jasmine Bluecreek Clark

Diagnostic Tips

Motorcycle Drive Systems

Tune Up Tips



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***Disclaimer Repeated: The decision to work on your own motorcycle ~ or not ~ is a personal choice. It is possible to do serious damage to both you and your motorcycle. Jasmine Bluecreek Clark, Bluecreek Art Works and Bluecreek Motorcycle Training Co. creates and shares these articles to be an aid in understanding how your motorcycle works.
They are not a substitute for professional repair or maintenance work done by a certified mechanic or technician.
In some cases, working on your motorcycle could void your warranty, if you motorcycle is still under a manufacturer's warranty.

While the information shared is true and accurate to the best of our knowledge, motorcycle technology is a rapidly changing field.
All recommendations are made without any guarantee on the part of the Author and/or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability incurred
in connection with the use of the data or general or specific details included within this web site.