Luc’s Tips December 2012: Motorcycle Giving You the Cold Shoulder? Warm it up!
Last Updated: April 1st, 2024
When we enter the winter months and the rest of the United States are putting their motorcycles into storage, we in Arizona get a big grin on our face and go riding. However, the cold bug hits us too when the sun goes down. On some nights, we can get below freezing. For those of us in the higher elevations, we may see freezing the entire day! So how does the motorcycle react?
THE SYMPTOMS
We see it happen as the weather starts to turn a bit colder. The bike starts to cough and sputter and occasionally make new-to-us noises just after start up. This is especially true for carbureted motorcycles. You may experience:
- Coughing
- Sputtering
- High idle (especially fuel injected motorcycles)
- Low idle (especially carbureted motorcycles)
- Resistance to starting
- Resistance to running after being started
THE FIX
There are many different types of metals that expand and contract at different rates. To get these multiple types of metal to interact properly and efficiently, they need to be within a prescribed operating temperature to avoid any unnecessary long term wear.
Your owner’s manual will specify your course of action when starting a cold motorcycle to help it reach operating temperature. Some manufacturers may not recommend a warm up time. Warm up time will vary from motorcycle to motorcycle. Reaching operating temperature is vital, but maybe even more so is reducing the load (not revving the engine ridiculously high when in or out of gear) until the engine reaches operating temperature. Also, oil thickens in colder temperatures creating reduced oil pressure. To ensure proper oil pressure, we need to get the oil up to operating temp before placing heavy loads on the engine.
The actions for warming up a motorcycle may include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Use the motorcycle’s choke (technically, today’s modern carbureted motorcycles use a fuel enrichening circuit) and use the choke until the motorcycle will idle properly, run correctly, and accelerate smoothly
- For fuel injected motorcycles, you may experience a somewhat noticeably faster idle; let it run until it reaches a normal idle or operating temperature.
THE BENEFITS
Longevity. You are taking care of the heart of your vehicle. You’re allowing the oil to warm up, travel, and coat all wear surfaces within the engine. Mainly, you’re preparing the internal components to receive work loads. Ultimately, isn’t it worth a couple extra minutes at the beginning of your ride to ensure the heart of your motorcycle is well cared for and ready for action?
Get your heated riding gear out of storage and go have some FUN!
-LUC
DISCLAIMER: THE VIEWS AND OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS COLUMN ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF ANY MANUFACTURER. THE CONTENT PROVIDED IS MERELY EDUCATIONAL AND NOT INTENDED AS A REPLACEMENT FOR PROFESSIONAL REPAIR. TEAM ARIZONA, ITS STAFF, AND ITS RIDERCOACHES ARE UNAVAILABLE FOR PRIVATE MOTORCYCLE REPAIR; WE RECOMMEND SEEING YOUR LOCAL DEALERSHIP OR REPAIR SHOP.
