Preparing your machine for winter

Par cold or wet weather, you should not deflate your tires, but you should par against softening its suspensions, that is to say relieving the rebound of the shock absorber (and of the fork if possible).

In winter, a road tyre, or even a GT, will be much safer. Not only because it evacuates water better, but above all because it heats up faster, retains the temperature, distributes it better over the entire width of the tire, even if it is scabies. While the sports type tire will never heat up and will remain hard, therefore slippery.

To do well, you need tires with a compound capable of offering good "grip" at low temperatures, but which also offers good grooving to evacuate rainwater, such as Heidenau K66 tire or the model IRC Urban Snow specially designed for driving in extreme weather conditions: rain, snow, frost.

Winter imposes not only adapted driving, but also additional constraints, both to drive safely and to protect our vehicle from corrosion.

do not forget to keep moving parts lubricated.
The cold stiffens the ccommands, inducing less precision and a possibility of breaking the cable used (clutch, accelerator, counter, brake on old motorcycles). If possible, disassemble the parts before lubricating them and play them to allow the grease to penetrate. The concern obviously does not arise for the hydraulic controls. Also watch the axes of the levers et pedal.

Put antifreeze in your cooling liquid, if your motorcycle is cooled par liquid, of course. And if you had the good idea to replace the liquid par water, it's time to get real coolant. Consult your motorcycle owner's manual to find out which fluid and which antifreeze to use.

The cold also causes the humidity to stagnate in the terminals and electrical connections of the beam.
Spray an anti-corrosion product (contact cleaner) on each.

Grease the chain more frequently, it does not like humidity too much and even less spreading salt. In general, salt corrodes all metallic elements very quickly.
After each ride, hose down the entire bottom of your motorcycle with cold water. Above all, no hot water! Hot water dissolves the salt and makes it penetrate everywhere while cold water makes it go away in big crystals.

After drying and before each outing on salty roads, spray WD40 on the bottom of your motorcycle, especially on the fairings, the fork, the mudguard and the engine (but not on the brakes, nor the tires!!!).

The film thus formed will protect against salt by preventing it from becoming encrusted.

Think about the state of your tires : tread depth suitable for wet roads (less than 50% wear) and adequate pressure (under-inflating is useless).
Pay particular attention to hypersport tires which remain hard as wood until they have reached their ideal temperature, which is almost impossible to reach in winter.

Adapt if necessary engine oil.
The viscosity grade for winter is indicated par the number in front of the letter "W" (for "winter"). A cold winter means putting on 5W50. In France, 10W40 is enough most of the time. Par against, the 20W50 will be too viscous to provide proper lubrication to the cold engine.

Protect your chrome : they don’t like spreading salt either.
Treat the whole bike to the “bodywork and alloys” protective product, except the brakes and the exhaust pipe, of course!

Watch out for the brakes precisely, the stirrups seize up easily.
If possible, pass the inside of the calipers (piston side) to the brake cleaner (degreaser), then clean with a blower (ask a garage nicely if you don’t have a compressor at home). And avoid the brake pads" racing ”, hyper-biting but only when they are very hot.

Battery : make sure she answers present every morning. Replace it before it's too late or invest in a special slow-charging motorcycle charger. JetTake a look at the terminals and, if necessary, grease them. A battery only tolerates cold well if it is charged and permanently, so care must be taken to maintain an optimal charging current by brushing the connections and protecting them against corrosion (paraffin or solid Vaseline) .

The suspensions : set soft!
A firm tuned damper reduces grip on slippery surfaces. The spring setting (preload) can remain unchanged (base value), but the damping hydraulics (rebound) must become softer.

Regularly wipe your mirrors with your gloves while driving or sprayanti-fog above.

Lighting :

During this time of year, the days are shorter and the darkness will accompany you during your morning trips and at the end of the day. Remember to check your lighting whether it's your headlight, taillight and turn signals. They are essential that you can see the road and be seen.