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Difference between revisions of "Used Motorcycle Evaluation"
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* *=Some bikes won't have such a cutoff. This includes certain Ducati models and a wide variety of older bikes. As noted above, if you buy a bike without a (working) sidestand cutoff, you'll need to be very careful to avoid riding off with the sidestand down. | * *=Some bikes won't have such a cutoff. This includes certain Ducati models and a wide variety of older bikes. As noted above, if you buy a bike without a (working) sidestand cutoff, you'll need to be very careful to avoid riding off with the sidestand down. | ||
* Make sure the kill switch on the right handgrip stops the engine when it's running. (Dirt bikes will have a kill button on the left side of the handlebar.) | * Make sure the kill switch on the right handgrip stops the engine when it's running. (Dirt bikes will have a kill button on the left side of the handlebar.) | ||
* Batteries are almost always located underneath the seat, though some modern V-twin [[ | * Batteries are almost always located underneath the seat, though some modern V-twin [[sportbike]]s locate it beside the engine, and many dirt bikes and older standard bikes locate it behind a plastic side cover below (or below and slightly behind) the seat. | ||
* Batteries are very hard to test without the appropriate tools, and even then they're kind of mysterious and unpredictable. For our purposes, if the battery starts the bike, it's good. If it doesn't, $50 to replace. Without hearing "good" batteries, it's hard to tell what "good" sounds like, but if the starter's cranking is obviously weak, that's probably a good indication that the battery is too. As noted below (in [[#ENGINE/FLUIDS/CARBURATORS]]), warm bikes start much easier, so take that into account when making a subjective evaluation of the cranking sound. | * Batteries are very hard to test without the appropriate tools, and even then they're kind of mysterious and unpredictable. For our purposes, if the battery starts the bike, it's good. If it doesn't, $50 to replace. Without hearing "good" batteries, it's hard to tell what "good" sounds like, but if the starter's cranking is obviously weak, that's probably a good indication that the battery is too. As noted below (in [[#ENGINE/FLUIDS/CARBURATORS]]), warm bikes start much easier, so take that into account when making a subjective evaluation of the cranking sound. | ||
* If the bike doesn't have an electric starter (i.e., it's a kick-start), there's no good way to test the battery without examining the lead plates for white sulfide deposits (bad) and checking the specific gravity of the acid with a battery hydrometer. Most auto parts places should carry those; just make sure you get one with a long, thin tube, since most cage ("car") battery hydrometers are too large to fit into bike batteries. On the other hand, if your bike is a kick-start, it doesn't depend on the battery too much, and checking it is less important. | * If the bike doesn't have an electric starter (i.e., it's a kick-start), there's no good way to test the battery without examining the lead plates for white sulfide deposits (bad) and checking the specific gravity of the acid with a battery hydrometer. Most auto parts places should carry those; just make sure you get one with a long, thin tube, since most cage ("car") battery hydrometers are too large to fit into bike batteries. On the other hand, if your bike is a kick-start, it doesn't depend on the battery too much, and checking it is less important. | ||