How to Detail Your Motorcycle Yourself: 13 Simple Steps

To see how passionate someone is about motorcycling, you must check how clean they keep their motorcycles. Those who love their bikes and consider them their ride partners will make you fall in love with their motorcycles.

True motorcycle lovers not only keep their bikes well-maintained but also keep them shiny and always make them look brand new.

Most bikers hate to make the effort that goes into detailing their motorcycles and keep their bikes in bad shape. To all the motorcycling fans, detailing your bike isn’t a very tough job. Considering that you can maintain its top look and ensure its high resale value, regularly detailing your motorcycle is important.

This article is a step-by-step guide for those bikers who want to detail their motorcycles. It will help you save time and effort. Also, you will not need to spend money on getting your bike cleaned up if you know how to detail it yourself.

If you are among the budget-conscious riders who love to do most of the tasks by themselves, you will enjoy detailing your motorcycle yourself. It is a very fun, satisfying thing to do. Also, it is not as difficult and hectic as most riders think it is.

Continue reading this article to learn how to detail your motorcycle yourself in 13 simple steps.

Most bikers may have a busy schedule or be lazy enough to clean their motorcycles. However, not cleaning a motorcycle can damage it and its value.

It may also result in several implications, including paint issues, rusting, and other performance problems.

The dust, debris, or mud accumulating in several sensitive parts of the motorcycle is bad for your motorcycle’s performance and health.

If you continue ignoring it for long, the motorcycle will start showing issues.

You may also experience a drop in the motorcycle’s holding and resale values.

If this is your first time detailing your bike yourself, it may cost you more than it usually does. You will need to buy a few motorcycle cleaning products to detail your bike more effectively. However, you can use these products many times whenever you plan to wash your bike.

Below is the list of the items/products you will need to detail your motorcycle yourself:

• A water bucket.

• Warm water.

• Microfiber clothes.

• Soft sponges.

• Gloves.

• Motorcycle polish or wax.

• Motorcycle tar cleaner.

• Wheels and tires cleaner.

• Engine cleaner.

• Scratch-resistant pads and applicators.

• Cleaning brushes.

• Motorcycle chain cleaner.

• Pressure washer (Optional).

To start with, you need to prepare yourself. If you are wearing anything new and don’t want to get dirty, you should change your clothes.

You can wear a rainsuit to avoid getting all wet and dirty. A full rainsuit can help your clothes stay dry and clean.

The next thing is to prepare your motorcycle for detailing.

First, find a place where you can wash your motorbike easily without creating a mess.

If you have just taken a ride on your bike, don’t go for the motorcycle detailing right away. Let the motorcycle engine cool down before you start the washing process.

Start pouring hot, soapy water on your bike to get the dirt and debris washed away from the surface. Considering the amount of dirt and for how long it has been sticking on different motorcycle parts, you can decide how much water you will need.

If the dust is normal and can be easily washed away by just pouring the water from the bucket, you should save water then.

You can also use the pressure washer if the dust and mud stains are old and stubborn.

Make sure to properly wash your bike and ensure that the water reaches everywhere to remove the dust and other contaminants.

• Take a microfiber cloth or a soft sponge and gently rub the motorcycle parts one by one.

• Do not be too harsh on the motorcycle paint and chrome parts, as they may peel off.

• Do not start rubbing the tires and wheels now.

• Do not start rubbing it if you still find dirt or mud sticking to the motorcycle paint or chrome parts. You need to ensure it washes off with water.

• Otherwise, the remaining dirt can scratch the paint while rubbing it with a sponge or cloth.

• Now, it is time to apply the motorcycle cleaner.

• Wash the bike again using the motorcycle cleaner to remove any minor stains or dirt on the surface.

• There are specific cleaners for specific motorcycle parts.

• Use the specialized cleaner to wash specific motorcycle parts, including the engine, windscreen, and wheels & tires.

• Use a soft and unused microfiber cloth while gently rubbing the motorcycle surface.

• It is time to clean your engine.

• A motorcycle engine is one of the trickiest parts to wash and clean as it does not have a smooth surface.

• The dirt and debris can get caught inside the fins and other parts.

• Also, you may find a layer of tar accumulating on the engine parts and at the engine bay.

• It is basically the by-product of the combustion process.

• If there is an oil leakage in your bike, it will also form gunk in a certain area.

• Both tar and oil residue are very difficult to clean and wash.

• It will require specialized cleaning products to remove them from your motorcycle.

• After washing the engine properly with water, use a motorcycle gunk or tar remover to remove the stubborn black spots.

• Using the tar remover, a non-abrasive soft sponge is used as an applicator to wash your engine properly.

• A cleaning brush is used to reach the less accessible parts and thoroughly clean the engine.

• After washing the motorcycle engine, it is time to remove the dirt from the motorcycle chain.

• Make sure the motorcycle is parked on the center stand so you can move the rear wheel.

• Now, wash the motorcycle chain with the same hot soapy water.

• Apply the motorcycle chain cleaner using the spray while moving the rear wheel. So, the cleaner is applied to the whole chain.

• Use a scrub and hold the motorcycle chain with it so that your hand doesn’t move while moving the rear wheel.

• If you still see the dirt or grease on your motorcycle chain, use the brush to remove the gunk from the chain.

• Now clean the chain using water to wash off all the dirt.

• Now, it is time to wash your motorcycle wheels and tires.

• First, you need to ensure that all the dirt and contaminants are completely washed off from wheels and tires.

• You will require hot, soapy water, wheels & tire cleaner, a brush, and a soft sponge.

• Use the cleaner and start washing your motorcycle tires and wheels.

• You can start by using a soft sponge.

• However, if your motorcycle has wire-spoked wheels, you can use a brush to wash in detail.

• Do not use the same sponge you used to wash your motorcycle engine.

• If your motorcycle has a windscreen for wind protection, it also requires cleaning.

• If you travel a lot on your motorcycle, you know the windscreen not only blocks the incoming wind, it also saves you from being blinded and inhaling bugs.

• Therefore, you will require a specialized bug cleaner to clean the bugs’ mess on your motorcycle windscreen.

• After you have washed the windscreen with hot, soapy water, it is time to apply the bug cleaner and start wiping the mess out from the screen.

• It is important to use clean microfiber cloth for this purpose.

• Remember! Your motorcycle windscreen must be cleaned at all times and should not have scratches on it to ensure proper vision and visibility.

• After you have washed out all the dirt, mud, gunk, oil, and other contaminants from your motorcycle, it is time to remove the cleaners and soap using water.

• Make sure you properly wash the bike again.

• The water must reach every place. Do not leave any soap or cleaner on the motorcycle surface.

• It is time to use a new microfiber cloth and start drying the motorcycle.

• Make sure there are no signs of moisture left on any motorcycle part.

• If you leave the moisture on the motorcycle surface, it will result in rust formation.

• You can also use a pressure air blower for the drying process. It helps in drying the less accessible parts of your motorcycle.

• After your motorcycle has completely dried up, it is time to apply the polish to give a clean and neat finish.

• Take some polish on a clean microfiber cloth or the applicator foam and start gently rubbing the motorbike’s surface.

• Continue rubbing the surface until you see it getting all neat and clean.

• Now is the time to protect the shine and cleanliness by adding a protective wax layer.

• After applying the polish, it is time to make your bike look new.

• Take a soft sponge or applicator to apply the wax.

• Follow the instructions and only use the specific amount of wax to apply to your motorcycle.

• Start with the gas tank, and then move on to handlebars, battery covers, fenders, exhaust pipes, and engine.

• Make sure to move your hand in a single direction to avoid wax marks.

• Uniformly apply the wax to the motorcycle.

• Also, applying too much wax will add additional wax layers, which will not perfectly blend with the surface.

• This will leave the wax marks on the motorbike’s surface, and you will not get the desired shine.

• After the wax is applied properly, gently rub the surface using a clean microfiber cloth.

• You will then start to see the shine on your motorcycle’s surface.

Every motorcyclist loves to own a motorcycle that always looks neat and clean. However, it is not possible to keep motorcycles shiny if you ride them regularly. Even if you keep your motorcycle parked in the garage, the dust will start accumulating on certain parts.

Therefore, the only way to give your motorcycle a new and fresh look is through detailing it if you love your bike and don’t want it to lose its value, learn how to detail your motorcycle yourself.

Detailing your bike doesn’t take too long. You can follow the above step-by-step guide to properly wash and clean your bike. If you do it yourself, you will require the cleaning products. These products can be used for months. So, it is a fair deal.