How To Clean A Motorbike: 6 Simple Steps

Keeping your motorcycle clean is one of the most important steps towards its maintenance and the long-term life span of its parts.

If you are riding in all weather, including rain, you will start to see the parts on your motorcycle deteriorate and rust much faster if you do not keep them clean and wipe them down regularly.

A tip we can give you right off the bat is to always wipe your motorcycle down after a ride in the rain (provided it is being stored inside), making sure to wipe down the areas that are prone to rusting including the forks and their seals and the exhaust once it has cooled down.

Regarding regular cleaning, we have put together a handy guide for you to ensure your bike is kept clean regularly and to help you if you have no idea what to do.

1. Spray Clean

The first thing to do is pre-clean the bike and give it a spray clean, this means covering the bike in a gel based cleaner and letting it set, this will allow it to reach those hard to get places and extract the dirt from within, it may be worthwhile also using a brush to dislodge anything before rinsing off the bike.

2. De-grease the metal

This is where it gets good. You need to now do a deep clean on the metals of your bike from the engine to the chassis and exhaust to prevent them from rusting further down the mine: there are plenty of strong degreasers on the market which will help you to achieve this.

Make sure to use a non-abrasive brush when working this into the metal and scrub carefully, the last thing you want to do is leave a load of scratch marks everywhere.

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3. Clean the brakes

Using some brake cleaner, make sure to tackle your brakes as over time they can accumulate rust, dirt and even powder from the pads themselves as they wear down over time, therefore it’s a good idea to ensure they are as clean as possible to improve your braking abilities.

Rinse the bike with water to remove any excess dirt and muck that may have been found during the cleaning process, it is important to do this before you clean and lubricate the chain as you do not want to be washing off the lubricant you apply to the chain.

It’s best to use a pressure washer but if you do not have access to one a bucket and sponge will also be sufficient to get rid of any dirt on the bike.

This will help to prepare it for when you spray it with a motorcycle protectant afterwards also, you do not want to be spraying it on whilst there is still dirt hiding within the cracks of the motorcycle.

4. Clean the chain

Here is how to clean your chain:

1. Put The Bike On It’s Stand

Put the bike into neutral and raise the rear wheel of the motorcycle, a paddock stand would be the ideal way to go about this, however, if you do not own one you can lay the bike onto its side to allow the rear wheel to spin freely.

Do not put the bike into gear and allow the wheel to spin to save you from spinning the rear tyre, this is how you lose your fingers when they get caught.

2. Spray Chain Cleaner On Both Sides Of The Chain

Spray the cleaner onto the chain to loosen up all of the dirt and grime that may have accrued on the chain, ideally, this should be onto the sprocket side of the chain and simply spin the wheel around to ensure it gets an even coating.

3. Brush Off The Dirt

Spin the chain whilst rinsing with water until you find that the grime has all gone from the chain, this should take a few spins to fully remove all the dirt.

If you find that the chain is still dirty, repeat steps 2 and 3 over again until you are satisfied with the cleanliness of the chain.

4. Rinse With Water

Spin the chain whilst rinsing with water until you find that the grime has all gone from the chain, this should take a few spins to fully remove all the dirt.

If you find that the chain is still dirty, repeat steps 2 and 3 over again until you are satisfied with the cleanliness of the chain.

5. Wipe It Dry

6. Lubricate

From here, wipe the chain dry and remove any excess water to reduce rusting and further damage to the chain over time, it’s best to use a dry cloth to dry the chain.

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6. Spray On Motorcycle Protectant

Once clean, make sure to use a protector to protect the motorcycle from any future corrosion that may occur.