Maintaining an asset such as a two-wheeler only helps increase its lifetime and prevent regular workshop visits for repairs and part replacement. All that only cost you. It's time you understand the importance of bike maintenance to reap the benefits going forward. The basic adjustments include simple maintenance for which we don't have to spend much money. With these simple steps, we can get maximum mileage and fuel efficiency.
How to Get Maximum Mileage?
There is no rocket science to get maximum mileage out of a bike. The simple rules to follow are:
Maintain a Steady Pace
Don’t speed up or rev up the engine; don’t slam on the brakes too hard. The speedometer usually has three zones: green, yellow and red.
Maintain a constant speed that keeps the needle in the green zone. This is generally between 30 and 50 kph for bikes and scooters.
Maintain tire pressure as advised by the manufacturer.
Clean Vehicle at All Times
Use the vehicle regularly. The engine becomes clogged because of irregular use. And also fill up at the same gas station.
Additionally, turn off the engine if the wait at the traffic light is over 30 seconds. It is also more environment-friendly.
With all the aforementioned in place, we should expect a 10% boost in the bike mileage.
How to Get Maximum Mileage from New Bikes?
Because the tune on new bikes isn’t as refined as it should be, they get less mileage. That shows we have loosened the fuel injection so that the entire engine cylinder receives more than enough petrol to keep the valves extra lubricated and prevent backfire.
This is because the new engine cylinders are unpolished and prone to scratches from the piston.
As a precaution, they reduce the tune a little, allowing more fuel to enter the cylinder and eliminating the possibility of a missing stroke.
After we have driven the bike for 500 kilometres, things get fine-tuned because the cylinder has become accustomed to piston movement and is now smoother enough to prevent corrosion in the event of a missed stroke.
The first few miles on a new bike will always be challenging, and the mileage will always be low. There are no exceptions.
Important Points to Remember After Second Service
Maintain these after the second service, and you will get close to the claimed mileage of the vehicle.
Throttle Gently
Never overwork the engine. If you enjoy taking part in traffic light GPs, you nullify your chances of getting any meaningful mileage out of your bike.
Maintain Speeds
We may have a bike that can easily reach 140 km/h, but in the city, we should stick to speeds of 40–60 km/h. In that area, most bikes provide superior mileage (unless those are higher capacity engines.)
Less Braking
In the city, don’t slam on the brakes too much. In the city, if you maintain average speeds. Engine braking is more than adequate for slowing down, and brakes can bring the bike to a complete stop.
Maintain Proper Tyre Pressure
Check and maintain proper tyre pressure once a week.
Servicing
A bike’s components are all subject to wear and tear. Maintain a consistent schedule for having the bike serviced. This will ensure that the bike provides more mileage for extended periods.
How to Maintain Fuel Efficiency?
Maintain the Condition of the Bike
Tyre pressure should be correct, filters should be clean, valves should be set, and all fluids should be in their respective places.
Use the Highest Gear Possible and Short-shift
Take it easy. Air resistance increases significantly with speed; we get noticeably better mileage on a back road at 45 mph than on the interstate at 70 mph.
Don’t Give Up
Plan the route to avoid traffic lights, stop-and-go traffic, and any other event that requires changing the pace.
Clean the Vehicle Periodically
While this is the most basic duty that we should perform religiously, most of us overlook it. Cleaning our vehicle can reveal a lot about the health of our two-wheelers. We notice that when we clean it, we will always find one or two things that need to be repaired or tightened that we would have missed if we just washed it.
Engine Oil and Coolant Levels Should be Closely Monitored
Even though this is the easiest thing to keep track of, we often overlook it.
Always keep an eye on your coolant levels (if the engine is liquid-cooled) and engine oil levels; low levels of either of these can cause serious harm to your engine and even destroy those piston rings that maintain your combustion chamber greased and clean.
Don’t Rev it and Give it Some Idle Time
We see many men do this; they will start their bikes and rev them up to the point of exhaustion.
Please don’t do it; it will shorten the life of your engine. Always remember that when you start a bike after 3–4 hours, most of the engine parts are not well oiled and may be at risk of excessive wear and tear, and revving it as soon as you start may wear out most of those parts sooner than before.
After starting the engine, always allow 60–90 seconds of idling time so that the engine oil in the sump can adequately lubricate all the moving parts and your engine encounters less resistance.
Lubrication and Chain Slack
This is, once again, one of the most crucial and straightforward aspects of bike upkeep. Always monitor the lubrication of the bike’s chain and grease it every 500 kilometres.
Running your chain dry and keeping a slack off over 1.5 inches may lower those kilometres and cause strange noises. Still, if you maintain it properly, a chain sprocket set will offer us an average of 20–25k kilometres before wearing down altogether.
Pressure in the Air
While most of us don’t think of it as part of maintenance, air pressure is important for boosting our two-mileage/average. A bike with somewhat low air pressure might diminish its fuel efficiency by increasing drag and eventually loading the engine.
As a result, always follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for tyre pressure.
Conclusion
Purchasing a new bike is an exciting event. It won’t take a lot of our time to maintain it to boost fuel and mileage efficiency in the same way it won’t take much time to buy insurance since it is required by law that all riders, including the two-wheeler ones, have insurance or will be subjected to a penalty. The law makes third-party insurance mandatory. In addition, having bike insurance protects us from damage, loss, or injury to us and our vehicle.
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