Change oil, shot of fuel stabilizer in the tank (then run it for 30-seconds), trickle (smart) charger on the battery, and bring it into the living room 'til the weather warms up in spring.
Well, that's what I do...and I try and not start it too many times inside the house...kinda smells up the place...I hear if you top up with Chevron Supreme (and running it for 30 seconds or a minute) you'll have less chance of the fuel gumming up the injectors etc...but I run Chevron Regular and pop in a little stabilizer.,,,I hear its the ethanol in the regular fuel that can gum things up over the course of 5 or 6 months of storage. I won't get back on the road until April.
Glad I moved down south because if it ain't raining I'm riding!
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Hahaha! You beat me to it.
How I winterize is: I put on my winter motorcycle coat, gloves, full face helmet, install my windshield, warm socks and long-johns or Carhartt overalls; then I crank the bike up, let it warm up for about a minute, put it in gear and go for a ride.
Here in NC, not everyone is as determined as I am to ride and they put the bike up for a few months. For me though, there might be a two or three week stretch where I don't ride, and then I'm having some major withdrawals!
How I winterize is: I put on my winter motorcycle coat, gloves, full face helmet, install my windshield, warm socks and long-johns or Carhartt overalls; then I crank the bike up, let it warm up for about a minute, put it in gear and go for a ride.
Here in NC, not everyone is as determined as I am to ride and they put the bike up for a few months. For me though, there might be a two or three week stretch where I don't ride, and then I'm having some major withdrawals!
I can see bringing the bike into the living room, but, does it really need the stabilizer?
Mike
Yes it does. The ethanol in the gas is alcohol, and alcohol attracts water. You don't want water to collect in the tank as it has the tendency to cause rust. Further, the current junk they call gasoline these days breaks down rather quickly and varnish and sludge can form in the fuel system. You just pour in an ounce or two--I believe 2 ounces for a full tank on the 900, run it for 30 seconds or so to make sure it gets into the entire fuel system, and you're good to go.
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"Don't sweat the small stuff---it's all small stuff"
This is what I do for winterizing my 2004 1500 carb, I will drain the gas tank by either riding until empty or pull the hose and drain all the gas into a gascan then put that gas into my Ford truck, I leave about 2-3 litres of gas in the bottom of the bikes gas tank just enough to get to the gas station, I bring a can of seafoam with me and not that pink or red Stabil stuff, so at the gas station i pour in about one-third a can of the seafoam into the tank then fill up the tank right up full then ride home, at home I pull the airbox and drain the gas from the carb bowl. Top up the gas in the tank making sure all air is expelled. Then I will drain the oil, put on a new Wix filter and fill it up with Shell Rotella T 5w40 oil. The fresh oil in there will not degrade over winter and can be used for spring riding season. In spring check the tire pressure because my tires leak air over time. I don't start the bike over winter because a heated then cooled crankcase causes condensation and water in the crankcase and also will fill up the carb bowl with gas so I don't touch the ignition key over the winter.
Fill up tank with ethanol-free gasoline (still available in certain stations, listed here: http://pure-gas.org/extensions/map.html ). Put in bottle of Stabil. Drive for at least 20 minutes to get the Stabilized fuel well into the engine. Change oil and filter. Clean and polish. Park in garage, and hook up to Battery Tender.
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( Used to have: ) '08 Vulcan 900 Custom: *Passion Red *Mustang One-Piece Vintage Seat *Hard-Krome 2.5" Strippers with Smartpartz Hard Kore Baffles *Cobra Short Sissybar, Pad & Insert *Leatherworks 312 Chopper Bag *Small/Med. Windshield
Last edited by at-home-daddy; 11-17-2012 at 04:56 PM.
Winterization
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