WMR Tech Tip: Preventative Motorcycle Maintenance & Safety

Preventative maintenance is the key to having a healthy machine

Maintaining your motorcycle through preventative measures is essential for preventing breakdowns, maximizing riding time, and ensuring rider safety. Neglecting maintenance can lead to component failure, injuries, and extended periods off the road. A well-maintained motorcycle is better equipped to handle the stresses of regular use, such as flexing under impact, thermal cycling (heating and cooling of parts), and engine vibration. While a deep technical understanding isn't necessary, understanding that parts are subject to wear and require regular attention is vital for optimal motorcycle performance and longevity. 

1. Check Hardware Tightness: Over time, vibrations and impacts can loosen hardware. Regularly checking the tightness of visible bolts and fasteners can prevent parts from falling off, potentially saving you from a bad day at the track or on the road. If you find loose fasteners, use thread loctite when reinstalling them (be mindful of excess loctite). Even if you don't find loose hardware, you might spot visibly worn parts before they become a problem.

2. Inspect for Wear and Tear: Motorcycles endure a lot: flexing under stress, heating and cooling cycles, constant vibration, and more. I've found cracks or signs of damage on rubber, plastics, and metal parts while inspecting customers' motorcycles. Sometimes, the damage found can leave you stumped, and then the question, "How did this happen?" pops into your mind. At this point, it's essential to find a logical explanation to prevent the same part failure after it has been replaced. These factors contribute to wear and tear on various components. Regularly inspect parts for signs of wear, such as: 

• Cracks in rubber, plastics, and metal parts.
• Excessive wear or play in moving parts.

3. Wipe Down Your Bike After Working On It: A helpful tech tip is to wipe down the motorcycle after you’re done working on it. By simply wiping down the bike, you contact the various parts, and sometimes, you find your own mistakes or new issues that haven’t been found yet. This simple tech tip can reveal hidden issues. By physically wiping down your motorcycle after maintenance, you make contact with various parts, potentially discovering:

• Your own mistakes during the repair process.
• New issues that weren't previously apparent.

4. Understand the Cause of Failures: When you find damage, don't just replace the part. Try to understand why it failed. This will help you prevent the same issue from recurring. If you're struggling to diagnose the problem, don't hesitate to:

• Seek expert advice from knowledgeable sources like WMR Competition Performance.
• Sometimes, a part simply reaches the end of its lifespan and needs replacement. Other times, one failing part can cause a chain reaction, leading to further damage.

5. Address Issues Promptly: Ignoring small problems can lead to bigger, more expensive ones down the road. Progressive damage from one failing part can overload others, eventually causing parts to lock up, seize, or develop excessive play. Addressing issues early can save you time, money, and potentially prevent dangerous situations.

Reaching out to get help understanding the cause of the failure when you are struggling will save you time if you talk to the right people. There are also times when a new part fixes the problem because the old part was failing on its own or just overdue for a replacement, and luckily, it didn’t affect other parts involved. 

I’ve also seen damage progressively get worse and worse from one part failure that leads to another part being overworked, and then eventually, parts lock up/seize or have way too much slack/play that increases with use. 

If you have any questions on this topic, contact the experts at WMR Competition Performance so that you can keep your ride healthy.