Winterizing a Motorcycle or ATV

While a good portion of the country has already felt the effects of the changing seasons, the first official day of Winter for this year is December 21st. Riders in the rust belt and along the east coast typically consider the end of the riding season to be in late October or early November but for the rest of the country, now would be a good time to start scaling back the riding hours and think about storing your machines during the oncoming Winter season.

Seasonal slumber is already S.O.P. for most Corvette owners and sports car owners and the ideas do carry over to motorcycles and ATVs with few exceptions. Do know that there are right ways and wrong ways to store a vehicle for extended periods of time. If you’re a first time owner/rider or maybe your last Winter shutdown resulted in some undesirable after effects, check out this checklist to help you properly winterize your motorcycle or ATV.

#1: FIND SHELTER

Your home may have a garage and naturally, that’ll be the most obvious choice but if you don’t have one on your property, you’re going to want to look into some alternatives. The ideal spot for your motorcycle or ATV to hibernate during the Winter months is in an indoor, climate-controlled location. A self-storage unit would be absolutely perfect. Go online and do some research into local self-storage facilities in your area. Compare monthly rates, ease of travel/access, and contact the managers to verify if they are able to accommodate your needs. Your area may also have rental garages and some dealers offer monthly temporary storage for your bike or quad. Check around, do your research, and come to the best possible conclusion. If you don't have a garage of your own and you have enough space on your property, you can purchase a do-it-yourself pop-up shed or storage pod in lieu of a dedicated garage. If none of these are viable options, hopefully, you have family members and/or neighbors with garages whom you can trust and can possibly set up some kind of agreement to let you store your baby (or babies) away until the weather gets warmer. Whatever you do, do your best to avoid having to leave your ride outdoors during the harsh and gelid Winter season.

#2: GO FOR ONE LAST RIDE OF THE SEASON

It’s a good idea to take your bike or 4-wheeler out for one final blast around your favorite backroads or trails before Winter hits. This will help maintain engine seals, suspension components, and other important mechanicals so that they’re less likely to suffer from fatigue after being sheltered away during Winter. Plus, you know you want to get just one more ride out of your system before the Winter solstice.

#3: ONE LAST FILL-UP

Top off your fuel tank with fresh fuel before you end your ride. It’s pretty self-explanatory, but an engine with a full tank of fuel will be much easier to start after the Winter recess than a low (or worse, empty) one. Speaking of which…

#4: USE FUEL STABILIZER

As you probably know, most fuel stations add a percentage of ethanol to their mixtures. Ethanol, by its very nature, is hydrophilic—meaning, that it attracts water and moisture from the atmosphere. Fuel stabilizer displaces water and protects it from environmental moisture contamination because fuel + water = VERY BAD. Go to your local auto parts store and pick up some fuel stabilizer. Add the appropriate amount for your tank (fuel stabilizer sold at auto parts stores are typically packaged for use in cars and trucks with much larger fuel capacities than your motorcycle/ATV) and start your engine as to allow the fuel and fuel stabilizer mixture to properly cycle through your fuel system.

#5: CHANGE YOUR OIL AND FILTER

Unless you’ve recently changed your oil and filter prior to your last ride of the season—and by prior, meaning within 2 weeks maximum—now would be the best time to do this piece of maintenance so that you’re all ready to go in the Spring. Remember: engine oil turns acidic as it deteriorates and that acid can eat into and damage your engine internals. That’s bad. Don’t put your vehicle to rest with a crankcase full of nasty, acidic oil. Change it out and help prolong the service life of your investment.

#6: CLEAN/REPLACE THE AIR FILTER

Your air filter probably has an entire riding season’s worth of trapped airborne contaminants, dirt, dust, debris, dead bugs, and road particles stuck in its media that’s suffocating your engine. Get rid of that old filter and replace with a brand new one. If yours is of the washable cotton gauze type (like K&N) or a foam filter, these can be washed and reused. Wash off your filter, let dry, and reinstall. I suppose you can hold off doing this until it’s time to wake up your ride in the Spring. Just make sure you remember to address the air filter before you go out riding next season. Then again, why be lazy? You’re already doing your end-of-year service—and, it’s good practice to make sure you’ve got all your bases covered.

#7: INSPECT YOUR BRAKES, CHAIN, AND SPROCKET

Any kind of riding, whether it’s a commuter or in full-on competition, puts wear on your brakes and driveline. Take some time out to inspect your brakes and your drive chain and sprocket for any wear that has occurred during the season. If you notice significant wear and/or damage to your braking and driveline components, as it is the case with the air filter, you can either opt to replace these parts now or wait until you’re ready to go out riding again in the Spring. If you’ve never done either of these jobs before, have a look at our how-to guides on  How to Replace Disc Brakes on an ATV and How to Change an ATV Chain and Sprocket.

#8: BATTERY

Another standard procedure for Corvette and sports car owners who keep their cars sheltered during Winter is to do battery maintenance. If your motorcycle, dirt bike, ATV, or side by side uses a flow battery, remove it and top off the cells with distilled water. Store the battery away separately in a dry place at room temperature. If you have a more modern gel-type or AGM (absorbent glass mat) battery in your vehicle, you won’t need to adjust electrolyte levels but you should unhook its connections to prevent power drain over the break. Many riders and enthusiasts suggest hooking the battery up to a charger during Winter storage. Keep in mind that not all chargers are compatible with flow batteries and gel batteries, so choose the charger that’s appropriate for your type of battery. Also, avoid trickle chargers and go for a model that has float, storage, and maintenance charging modes. This will protect your battery from overcharging and prematurely running through its cycles which can all happen with a trickle charger.

#9: CHECK YOUR TIRE PRESSURES

Cold temperatures will cause lower air pressures in your tires. The rule is that for every 10 degrees up or down, your pressures will raise or lower by 1 psi accordingly. This is why in modern cars with TPMS (tire pressure monitoring systems) throw off low pressure or flat tire warnings in the Winter whereas in the Summer, the tires were at their proper pressure levels. In the Fall, when there can be days with Summer-like temperatures and then drop off drastically once the sun goes down, some drivers mistakenly think that they have a pressure leak in their tire(s). The temperatures will stabilize during the Summer and Winter seasons so when it comes time to do your last tire pressure test, there are a few ways to go about this. Remember the 10 degrees = 1 psi figure and keep in mind the average outdoor temperature from your last riding season (look online for past weather reports from the previous months). You can either raise your tires’ air pressures to match the proper psi during the warm months, or you can lower them now while it’s cold so that they’ll readjust to their proper warm levels in the Spring/Summer. If you’re going to raise the pressures now, you must remember to let out the excess pressure once riding season begins next year otherwise you risk overinflation/blowout. If you’re going to lower your tire pressures, you’re going to want to either remove your wheels and tires and store them off of the vehicle or put your bike/ATV on a jack or lift so that the tires are not touching the ground. This will prevent flatspotting which can permanently warp the tire’s structure. Also, for garages that experience any degree of water pooling or flooding from outdoor precipitation, keeping the tires off the ground will help reduce the threat of rubber rot. Tire dry rot can occur during periods of inactivity so when you store your tires, be sure to clean and dry your tires, use a light coat of tire rubber protectant (different from tire gloss), and seal them in airtight plastic bags. Use a water-based protectant and avoid silicone, which can oversoften the tire (silicone is good for weatherstripping, which you want to be soft and pliable, but is not recommended on tires). NEVER use petroleum based lubricants as these will eat away the tire rubber.

#10: GIVE IT A BATH

Unless you bought your motorcycle or ATV to be a garage queen that never sees any outdoor action, any kind of riding is going to result in the unavoidable dirt, road grime, exhaust soot, and dead bug collection on your paint and chrome bits. Time to wash off all that crud and bring your finish back to its original lustre. It’s not just for looks; cleaning the paint and chrome will protect them against the elemental damage and prolong their brilliance. Use a thick coat of wax as an extra shield against settling dust and debris during storage. Treat rubber grips and levers with a thin layer of rubber protectant but don’t use too much so that the rubber is greasy and slippery; just the bare minimum to keep it from drying out. For vinyl or leather seat upholstery, use the appropriate cleaners and conditioners to avoid the seating surfaces from drying out during inactivity. Do note that some cleaners and conditioners are purposed accordingly for vinyl or leather, not both. Vinyl, a plastic-based textile, can deteriorate when it’s subjected to the oils and lotions in leather conditioners and leather, which is organic, can rot when plastic cleaners are applied. Like the rubber dressing, don’t use gross excessive amounts that can cause you to slip off of the seating surface. Just use the absolute minimum that’s required to nourish the leather/restore the vinyl’s malleability.

#11: SEAL OFF AIR INTAKES, EXHAUSTS, AND ANY OPENINGS

Most (if not, all) garages that are not attached to the house can and will experience some type of small animal infiltration during the lifetime of the construct and a vehicle that’s in extended garage storage can be a perfect contemporary resort for mice and other tiny animals that are looking to hibernate during Winter. Small rodents can cause severe damage as they try to turn your car, bike, or ATV into a Winter cottage. It might seem callous and uncaring—especially, to any animal lovers who are reading this—but you’re going to have to send these poor little creatures to go looking elsewhere for spend Winter vacation. Throw up the NO VACANCY sign on your garage by sealing off your air intakes, exhaust outlets, and any opening or crevice where an animal can sneak inside and find shelter. Try not to feel too bad about not keeping your vehicle open as a small animal hotel. They’ve got millions of years of evolution and instinct that will ensure their survival during the Winter. Plus, they’re a lot better at it than we humans are.

#12: BAG IT!

Get yourself a protective weatherproof cover for your bike or ATV and keep it under wraps until rinding season returns next year. Yes, you’re going to be keeping your ride indoors or in a garage, but think of the waterproofing as extra insurance. It’ll block dust buildup on your sparkly, shiny paint and chrome which, in turn, goes towards pride of ownership. You worked hard to pay for your warm weather recreational toys. Don’t neglect them and subject them to unnecessary damage. A little protection and prevention goes a long way. And as all of us speedfreaks and motorheads know, we spend almost as much time keeping up with our rides’ appearances as we do with tinkering and upgrading for more performance!

Until next time, just keep telling yourself: Four more months. Four more months.

Four.

More.

Months…