Looking after my new bike

[L3nny]

Hello all, I have been a mamber on here for a while but only just bought an SV650 a couple of weeks ago. It's a 2005, Red SV650S with full fairings, tail tidy and Datatool System 3 alarm.

As it's the only decent thing I own at the moment I want to try and keep it in as good a condition as I can.

Any advice on the best general maintenance tips to do.

What do you guys do on a regular basis or after every ride to keep your bike tip top

Cheers

I clean and lube reguarly, any dirt that gets on it gets washed off pretty quickly, however im a bit of a clean freak when it comes to the bike

I use muc off bike cleaner, ACF50 & Wurth chain lube

[embee]

There'll be plenty of tips, but for starters don't use washing-up liquid for washing it. Get a car type shampoo, preferably one of the type which has some wax in it. I use Autoglym, but there are many others to choose from, and I find it preserves the polish well.

ACF50 may be cracking stuff for you, a little pricey and doesn't necessarily look brilliant when it gets dirty, but it's about the best goo going for protecting against road salt in winter.

Muc-Off in the 1l spray on bottles which is £8 BOGOF, used engine oil, couple of decent brushes,bucket or garden hose.

That will be the basics.

Clean it once a week minimum in winter and once a month in the summer. Used engine oil can be used as chain lube and you should keep your bike in decent enough condition otherwise just got for tyres and servicing.

[L3nny]

Cheers for the help so far, I had to ride abour 150 miles from back from the guy I bought it from so I gave it a bit of a hose and a rub down yesterday. I was a bit dubious about using the hose on the radiator etc even though it was pretty muddy.

Wpuld it be a good idea to get a radiator cover or is it pretty hard wearing already?

http://www.hamicad.co.uk/SV650_Radiator.html

Won't hurt it and also probably as good is a fenda extenda to keep the rubbish off and protect the front spark plug. Also consider a hugger to keep the back wheel crap off the shock but if you don't ride in the bad weather then it's up to you.

But if you skint go with the fenda at least seeing as it's £20.

Keep up with the services - oil and oil filter changes every 4000-5000 miles, valve clearence check every 15,000 miles. Keep it cleaned; at least rinse it off with some clean water if you've been out all day on salty roads, even if you're too cold / tired to be bothered to clean it properly!

Service the brake calipers; might be worth doing this now anyway, making sure it all has a good application of grease - when i changed my rear brake pads recently (never been done before on my bike), it was a 3 hour job - the pad retaining pins where seized in. Suzuki don't seem to know what grease is!

WD40 on things like the side stand pivot and levers etc once in a while helps keep those parts moving.

Every time you clean and lubricate the chain (every 200 miles or so if you can), get the cover off that hides the front sprocket to reveal the clutch worm-drive. Keep this area clean and lubricated for a nice, smooth clutch.

If you have a suspicion something isn't right with the bike, then investigate and sort it out before it becomes something that leaves you stranded on the hard shoulder of a motorway! Go on your instincts.

Happy, safe and fuss-free riding

matt

Originally Posted by jumjum_0214

I clean and lube reguarly, any dirt that gets on it gets washed off pretty quickly, however im a bit of a clean freak when it comes to the bike

I use muc off bike cleaner, ACF50 & Wurth chain lube

+1