Motorbike maintenance advice

MCN's guide to keeping your motorcycle running, including advice on roadside repairs, lubricating your chain, cleaning your motorbike, and the bigger jobs you can do at home.

Year: ALL

Ready to Ride: Fix a roadside flat

13 September 2023 by Bruce Dunn

READY TO RIDE WITH AMAZON In this week’s how-to, we show you how to get going again after a puncture while on the move. These types of repairs can really get you out of a spot. The Gryp kit that we deployed here is really...

Ready to Ride: Fit soft luggage safely

30 August 2023 by Bruce Dunn

READY TO RIDE WITH AMAZON Don’t take for granted that when you have fitted soft luggage to your bike that it will stay secure. You should check that it is still safely fitted when you stop for fuel or park up. A pal of...

Ready to Ride: How to fit heated grips

09 August 2023 by Bruce Dunn

READY TO RIDE WITH AMAZON When it comes to choosing a set of heated grips, having the ability to vary the amount of heat with a controller is top of my agenda, but more importantly than that, is some sort of battery-saving...

Ready to Ride: Service your brakes and change pads

02 August 2023 by Bruce Dunn

READY TO RIDE WITH AMAZON When it comes to changing the brake pads on your bike it’s worth checking out what type of brake pad is available, as there will be a dizzying array on offer, each one claiming different benefits.

Fixing Up: How to refresh your oil

25 July 2023 by Bruce Dunn

Ready to Ride with Amazon In part two of our Amazon Fixing Up: Ready to Ride series we get the 2019 Kawasaki Z1000SX back in the workshop. This week’s job is to replace the engine oil and fit a new filter. An oil and...

Fixing up: Your 10-point checklist for looking after your bike

11 July 2023 by Bruce Dunn

Ready to Ride with Amazon One of the joys of motorcycle ownership for me is being in the workshop and getting the tools out. It’s a way of unwinding and learning the detail of maintaining and looking after your bike. This...

How to protect your bike from damage in a crash

01 June 2023 by Bruce Dunn

The thought of ever damaging your bike can be enough to turn your stomach, which is why plenty of us choose to lavish them with crash protection. Made from tough nylon, crash protection is designed to...

Stay connected: Wire in a motorcycle USB port and phone cradle for navigation and more

09 May 2023 by Bruce Dunn

Plenty of bikers enjoy time on two wheels precisely because it’s time that we can’t be reached, distracted or hassled by our phones. The time spent ‘off-grid’ in the saddle can be a sacred break from...

How to get your bike track ready: Some easy prep will make your trackday a total success

24 June 2022 by Bruce Dunn

If you’ve booked a place on a trackday it can be easy to focus on preparing yourself as a rider and forget to get your bike ready. In the best case scenario, this may mean having to borrow a pressure...

How to fit clip-on bars for that tucked-in race-style ride

25 February 2022 by MCN

If your bike has standard fitment one-piece handlebars and you want a tucked-in race-style riding position, then lower clip-on bars, which bolt directly to the fork legs, are the answer to your...

Discography: How to change your brake discs

07 February 2022 by Alan Seeley

Changing your brake discs yourself can save you a good chunk of cash and give you that warm fuzzy feeling inside as you complete a job well done. In this article we’re going to take you through the...

Stop motion: How to service your brake calipers

17 January 2022 by Bruce Dunn

Cleaning and servicing your brake calipers is a crucial job if you’ve ridden through winter or had the bike laid up for a while, but it only takes an afternoon. So what are you waiting for? Related:...

Shaft-drive bikes vs chain-driven bikes

13 January 2022 by MCN

What are the advantages and disadvantages of shaft drive motorcycles and chain-driven bikes? The major benefits of shaft-drive are lower maintenance and running costs, and cleanliness. The...

What’s the deal with E10 fuel? We enlist an expert to answer your 'green petrol' questions

15 March 2021 by Ben Purvis

From September 2021 ‘E10’ will become the new standard unleaded petrol in UK filling stations and the changeover has sparked concerns that it could cause poor running or even damage on some...

How to get your motorbike back on the road after a long time

12 March 2021 by Bruce Dunn

If you’ve had to lay your bike up for a long period of time, be it due to the seasons, an illness, a trip away with work or any other reason, your bike may need some attention before it’s ready to hit...

Things to do during Covid isolation: give your motorbike a proper clean

05 January 2021 by Bruce Dunn

As many of us find ourselves isolated once again and at a loose end in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, what better time is there to give your motorbike a proper clean? While scrubbing your bike...

Get your stoppers gleaming: how to clean your motorbike's brakes

02 January 2021 by Bruce Dunn

Cleaning your brakes is an important step in motorcycle maintenance and a fairly easy one to do. The tools required are basic (allen keys, a socket set and a torque wrench) and the payoff is instant.

How to prepare your motorbike for winter

20 November 2020 by Bruce Dunn

Preparing your motorbike for the colder weather, salt on the roads and slippery conditions is an important task if you don’t want to watch it rot away in front of your eyes. As well as the tips in...

Put a spring in your step: Why you should get a pro suspension set up

30 October 2020 by Justin Hayzelden

Feel like making a dramatic change to your bike’s performance, something that’ll affect every aspect of your riding? Forget fancy carbon-clad exhausts – pound for pound suspension upgrades make the...

Testing times: How to pass your motorbike MoT first time

09 June 2020 by Bruce Dunn

If your MoT expired from March 30, 2020 the Government gave you an automatic extension on your current certificate without needing a retest. But that extension will lift on August 1 as restrictions...

Charge! Keep your motorbike battery healthy while it's laid up

07 April 2020 by Martin Fitz-Gibbons

When a bike’s being used regularly, the battery should stay fit and healthy for several years. But when a bike is laid up – as many are over the winter months, and many more were during 2020’s...

Neevesy's bike-hacks: How to set up your motorbike like a road test pro

01 April 2020 by Michael Neeves

So your bike is sitting patiently in your garage, waiting to blink back out into the sun again when this is all over, but what can you do to it to make it work better for you, without spending any...

Motorbike tyre advice: know your bike’s boots

03 March 2020 by MCN News

Tyres are the most important part on your bike – your sole connection with the road for the overwhelming majority of the time. Related: Best tyre pressure gauges There’s a lot to know about your...

Can do attitude? It's MCN's guide to replacing your motorbike exhaust silencer

02 March 2020 by Bruce Dunn

Fitting a new motorcycle exhaust is usually a luxury rather than a necessity. It’s nice to slip off a clumpy, heavy OE silencer and slip on something altogether lighter and sexier. But sometimes you...

Braking bad? How to change your motorbike's brake fluid

18 February 2020 by Bruce Dunn

Changing your motorbike’s brake fluid is a relatively easy DIY job. It may be hidden from view, but the liquid inside your bike’s braking system should never be taken for granted. Related: Top...

Slick operation! How to change your motorbike oil and filters

08 August 2019 by MCN News

The oil in your motorbike’s engine plays an incredibly important role. It acts as a cushion between moving parts, such as between camshaft and head, reducing friction and wear. Related: Best socket...

Shock therapy: How to set up your motorbike’s suspension

31 July 2019 by MCN News

Your motorbike’s suspension can seem a daunting thing to take some spanners to, but do it right and you’ll almost certainly transform your bike’s ride and handling. Related: Guide to top motorbike...

The missing link? How to look after your motorbike chain

12 July 2019 by Bruce Dunn

A motorbike chain is a vitally important bit of kit. It’s essentially the part that connects your motor to your back wheel in most cases, so careful maintenance is key to keeping your bike...

What's that noise? Motorbike troubleshooting by sound

14 May 2019 by MCN News

Bike engines will make a variety of noises; hardly surprising with several hundred metal parts whizzing round thousands of time a minute. Related: Best basic motorbike tools If you are worried about...

Repairing your motorcycle on the move

13 May 2019 by Bruce Dunn

Learning to fix your motorcycle at the roadside is a skill all bikers need. It can happen to the best of us – you thumb the starter after stopping for a rest break and nothing; your bike doesn’t want...