Cosmetic Care for Your Bike

How proud we feel when our bike is just one week old! There is a shine in the bike and the empty number plate tells our friends that it is brand new. But most of us really start caring less about the bike’s looks as time goes on, and the bike is no longer shiny and appealing. But think again, a few minutes of extra care everyday will keep it as good as new. And do you remember?… Girls like clean and neat guys! The following tips will help your bike to look better than your neighbor’s…

Cleaning & Washing: Wash the bike yourself once a week with hand cloth and a bucket of plain clean water. Do not use any detergent or chemicals, as it would harm the paint finish of the bike. Don’t give the bike for water wash outside frequently as the water jet spray used has high pressure and will enter the electric circuit and wires, also more importantly stagnate at some unapproachable places and eventually lead to rusting. Always remember your bike must look good every time you hop on it. Just as we bathe, brush, shave and comb everyday your bike also needs some basic care and is entitled to proper maintenance. The cleaner your two-wheeler is the better your bike will perform.

Cleaning your bike yourself improves your bond between you and your two-wheeled steed and its fun as you would discover and explore your bike and learn more about your two wheeler. It also gives you a good workout as you stretch and reach for those unapproachable places. Wash your bike gently with water and hand and wipe clean with a soft clean cloth. Getting the bike water washed once a month is acceptable. Make sure you take your bike out for a spin immediately after the water wash as it would automatically dry the water at places you cant reach by hand. Make sure you cover the exhaust while cleaning your bike with polythene cover and secure a rubber band tightly across the exhaust and the plastic cover.

Protection of cycle parts: Always park your bike under a shade as this would help you conserve fuel as the shade prevents not only the loss of fuel due to evaporation but also protect your bike’s paint finish. By not exposing your biketo too much sunlight or rain or dust you can enhance the life of the cycle parts of your two-wheeler especially the rubber parts. For most manufacturers rubber parts are not easily available for sale at most dealerships and the rubber parts play a major role for your two wheeler’s performance. Always remember the rubber engine mountings, the rubber fuel lines, the electric wires insulation can take a beating due to too much exposure to the environment.

Bike Cover: Always park your two-wheeler under covered parking and buy a flexible polythene rain cover for covering your two-wheeler during the rains. Don’t buy cheap quality ones as it would get brittle with time and create scratches on your two-wheeler as put on and remove the cover. Get an imported one, which is silver in color and is flexible and soft almost like a cloth, this type of rain cover would last a long time and wont scratch the paint surface of the two-wheeler.

Use rubber patches to prevent rusting: Try to stick tube rubber to the bottom surface of your two wheeler’s side stand and main stand. By doing so the metal won’t scratch against the ground thereby protecting the paint finish. This helps in preventing rusting of the under sides of both the stands especially during rains as rainwater will rust the parts wherever there is no paint. Also stick a small patch of tube rubber on the part where you use to step (as shown in the third picture, on the right) and put the bike on to the side stand or main stand.

Rust prevention spray: There is a spray called WD40 it is an anti rust spray. Use it in places where your two-wheeler develops rusting so that the spray prevents further rusting of the part.

Teflon coat: Get the bike Teflon coated once every 3 months as the environmental conditions these days wreak havoc on your bike. It would only cost you Rs.150 to 250 depending on the shop and wont take more than a couple of hours and will ensure your bike is rust free and protect the paint finish.

I am going to stick to the above tips to keep my bike always shiny and sexy… will you?