Washing Your Motorcycle

Most owners would rather be riding their bikes than cleaning them, but there’s something to be said about riding a clean and shiny motorcycle. That sense of pride, the turning heads, and the gleam of sun off chrome is sometimes just as important as the thrill of pulling back the throttle. While washing your bike is rather simple, there are still some concepts to understand before you get started. 

Read on for more information about washing your bike or head into Road Track & Trail for our stock of used motorcycles. We’re located in Big Bend, Wisconsin and proudly serve Waukesha, Kenosha, and Milwaukee, as well as our neighbors in Chicago, Illinois. 

Gather Your Supplies

When prepping to wash any vehicle, you should assemble your supplies first. There’s no sense getting started only to realize you left something in a garage cabinet or don’t have the right soap and need to head to the store. Make a checklist of supplies if necessary. 

There are tons of different cleaners to choose from; just make sure they’re suitable for use on your bike. You’ll also want sponges for removing stuck-on grime, brushes for spoked wheels, cloth and flannels for drying, chamois for even more drying, and a microfiber cloth or brush for finishing touches.

Once you do gather all your cleaning supplies you need to prep your washing space. You’ll need enough room for your bike, you, and the supplies. The bike itself has to be ready too, meaning it should be cool and not hot from running. Cold water on a hot bike could spell disaster. Avoid working in direct sunlight. While it makes water dry faster, it also makes soap dry faster and will thus make it difficult to get out streaks and water spots.

Give Your Bike the Spritz

Before turning on the hose, be sure to plug up the exhaust with a rubber plug, rag, or glove. Keeping water from getting into the bike is important here. This is an especially important step with dirt bikes, but any motorcycle with an exhaust angled to gather water is in danger.

Now you’re ready for the washdown! Spray down the entire motorcycle with a combo of motorcycle cleaning and water. This can loosen stuck-on dirty before you get to the details. Motorcycle spray cleaners should be applied to a dry bike before rinsing. They work to take a first pass at loosening up dried muck, bugs, and other unsavory remnants of the road. When rinsing, don’t go for a high-power wash and instead keep things nice and soft with a standard-pressure hose.

For scrubbing, the rule of thumb is that less friction is better. When scrubbing off dirt and muck, be careful not to pull any of it across the bike’s surface. Even small bits of dirt can scrape up the finish. 

Then Hit It with the Suds

Now it’s time for the cleaner. When working directly on the bike’s frame, be careful about how much force you apply. Always start at the top and work your way down. This way you won’t have to go over anything you’ve already washed. It’s also important to be considerate of what type of chemicals you’re applying to which surfaces. Some cleaners are great on chrome and terrible on paint, for example. Keep a bucket of water to wash out your cloths and sponges for fresh takes on the next pass. Avoid getting any water or cleaner of the bike chain or the brakes, as it could damage them. It’s probably unavailable to get a little on there, but just be careful not to scrub any of those parts and clean them up asap.

Rinse and Dry

Don’t let a soapy bike sit for long before giving it a rinse. Soapy streaks aren’t very attractive and defeat the whole purpose of cleaning up your motorcycle! Work steadily and thoroughly to rinse off the suds. Get serious and go over it again if you have to! The same rigor should go into drying, as water left to dry in the sun will cause spots as well, if not corrosion if left in the spaces between bike components. You could use an air blower or office air cleaner to clean out those hard to get to spaces. A microfiber towel or chamois is also handy in the last bits of drying.

Some riders might get the idea that an air-dry on the road is the easiest way to go about it, but this just won’t due. Especially if your bike has fairings, the wind will be deflected and leave wet areas. It just isn’t an effective way to get things dry and may end up wrecking the painstaking job you’ve already done.

Final Touches

Finish off your dry bike with a bit of lubricant in the necessary places, like the chain. The soapy water will likely have washed it clean, so it’s extra important to lube it up again. And while your bike is most definitely dry and ready to go at this point, you can add some shine with a bit of polish or wax. That process deserves its own article. Wax and polish can actually help protect your bike from future harm, either by deflecting harmful UV light or giving it an extra bit of water resistance. Besides, no one ever complained about a shiny bike! Polishing is a bit more intense than waxing and best left to those who truly know their bikes or else the pros. 

We hope that with a few of these tips you’ll be on your way to an effective and quick wash for your motorcycle. Having a bike that shines like new instills a lot of pride in riders, and there’s nothing quite like a wash and ride to show off your two-wheeled best friend. For more motorcycle tips, or if you’re just after a look at some great used bikes, head into Road Track & Trail in Big Bend, Wisconsin. We serve Kenosha, Waukesha, and Milwaukee, as well as our neighbors in Chicago, Illinois. Come by today and talk with our team of experts who’ll show you the true meaning of customer satisfaction.