At our motorcycle service center, one of the most common questions we hear from Idaho Falls-area riders is about how to check motor oil—and how often to check it. You should consult your owner’s manual for specific answers to service-related questions, but in general, it’s a good idea to perform an oil change every 2,000 miles to 5,000 miles if your bike uses synthetic oil. If you use your new bike mostly for cruising around Boise, ID, you can probably get away with changing your oil filter during every other oil change. 

What type of motorcycle engine oil should you use, and how much does a motorcycle oil change cost? Learn about how to properly maintain your motorcycle with this guide from Grand Teton Harley-Davidson®.

How Often to Change Motorcycle Oil—And Why It’s Important

The purpose of engine oil is to lubricate moving parts and keep the internal components clean—and motorcycles and automobiles have a lot in common when it comes to oil changes. Motorcycle engine oil and automobile engine oil both work to keep their respective engines running optimally. 

Whenever you fire up your bike in Twin Falls, ID, the oil moves through the engine components, grabbing dirt and debris and regulating the temperature. Motorcycle engine oil also absorbs the heat inside the combustion chamber, lowering the motor’s internal temperature and preventing overheating. 

How Often To Change Motorcycle Oil: When Is It Time? 

It’s usually simple to tell when it’s time for fresh oil and an oil filter. If you observe any of the following changes, schedule an oil change at Grand Teton Harley-Davidson® as soon as possible. You can also contact our team to get an idea of the motorcycle oil change cost or how to check motorcycle oil. Here’s what to watch out for to confirm you need a change:

• The engine running louder than normal. 
• Warning lights on the dash that won’t disappear. 
• You can’t recall the last time you scheduled a motorcycle engine oil change. 

What Happens If You Skip An Oil Change? 

The engine’s parts will begin to overheat if you skip an oil change, causing a drop in fuel efficiency. The parts will develop wear and tear due to a lack of lubrication and could eventually shut down and become inoperable. Engine replacements are highly expensive, and you’ll want to avoid them at all costs—but it’s also why many bikers in this situation choose to scrap their bikes and buy new ones. It’s important to note that oil changes are cheap and only needed about twice a year, so there’s no good reason to skip them. 

How to Check Motor Oil

Here are the steps for how to check motor oil in your Harley-Davidson® motorcycle:

1. Make sure the engine is warmed to operating temperature.
2. After turning it off, allow the oil to drain down from the top end by waiting a few minutes. 
3. (Bikes with a sight glass need to be held level!)
4. Look at the window located on the bottom of the engine to make sure the oil level is between the two marks on the case.
5. If you need to change your oil, contact our service team at Grand Teton Harley-Davidson® to confirm motorcycle oil change costs, then come visit us for your service needs. 

Get Your Next Oil Change in Idaho Falls! 

Grand Teton Harley-Davidson® is your source near Logan, UT for informed motorcycle service. Our team of certified technicians can help you keep your bike—whether it’s a Harley or any other make—in great condition. If you have any questions about motorcycle oil change costs or how often to change motorcycle oil, contact us or visit us near Ogden, UT for one-on-one assistance.

Learning how to charge a motorcycle battery and how to change a tire are crucial skills for any rider, but they’re especially important if you plan to ride through the winter. You’ll also want to know how to preserve battery charge if you placed your bike in storage for Boise, ID’s colder months.

Even if you used a battery tender or trickle charger to keep your battery charged during this time, cold temperatures are tough on batteries—and you may still need to charge or replace your battery come spring! Find out how long a motorcycle battery will last, where to buy a motorcycle battery if you need a replacement, and more in this guide from Grand Teton Harley-Davidson.

How Long Does a Motorcycle Battery Last?

You should check your bike’s routine maintenance schedule, but in general, you can expect a battery to last about 48 months. However, improper maintenance and infrequent riding can shorten battery life. So, how can you get the most out of your battery? Here are our top battery care tips for Twin Falls, ID riders:

• If storing your bike for the winter, remove the battery and attach it to a battery tender or trickle charger.
• Learn how long to charge a motorcycle battery in order to obtain a full charge: if the voltage measured 12.73 volts or better, you’re good to go.
• Don’t store your motorcycle battery in a cold place over the winter.

How to Charge a Motorcycle Battery

Winters are cold in Logan, UT, so you’ll definitely need to know how to charge a motorcycle battery with a trickle charger or a battery tender. How long to charge a motorcycle battery depends on the type of charging system you use, so be sure to ask our service technicians if you have any questions about the following charger types:

• Trickle Chargers – Fully manual and the easiest motorcycle battery charger to use. Trickle chargers take AC power and convert it to DC.
• Float Chargers – This type of charger provides the battery with a constant and gentle flow of current.
• Smart Chargers – More advanced smart versions monitor charge levels and then cut the current when the battery is fully charged, taking the guesswork out of how long to charge a motorcycle battery.

Where to Buy a Motorcycle Battery Replacement

As you know, how long a motorcycle battery lasts will depend on how well you care for it, weather conditions in Ogden, UT, and other factors. That said, every battery will eventually wear out and need to be replaced. If you’re wondering where to buy a motorcycle battery, the answer is clear—trust a certified Harley-Davidson dealership like Grand Teton Harley-Davidson, where we carry a wide range of genuine OEM replacement parts! You can order what you need online or stop by our service center in Idaho Falls, where we can help you find the right battery and order it directly from the manufacturer.

Choose Grand Teton Harley-Davidson for Motorcycle Battery Service Near You

Even if you already know how to charge a motorcycle battery, we’re happy to provide tips or guidance if you need it! Contact our service center for details, and explore our DIY bike maintenance guides to learn more today.

Just like front and rear car tires wear at different rates, so do front and rear motorcycle tires—and if you want to save money on maintenance as the years go by, it’s important to ask smart questions. How long do motorcycle tires last, and what can you do to maximize their lifespan? With the proper maintenance, motorcycle tires can last as long as five years before you’ll need to visit a motorcycle tire shop to replace them. 

Read the guide below from the Grand Teton Harley-Davidson® service center for details on getting the most out of your bike tires. Questions about our selection of motorcycle tires for sale near Boise, ID or how to change a motorcycle tire on your own? Contact our service center online or call at 208-523-1464—we’re here to help!

Motorcycle Tire Care Tips & Tricks

The simplest way to ensure that you’re always riding on tires that will securely grip the road is to follow your motorcycle maintenance schedule. When you bring your bike to a motorcycle tire shop or service center at the recommended intervals, technicians will carefully inspect tire tread depth and wear patterns. Here are a few more tips for maximizing the life of your tires:

• Perform a tire check. There’s no reason to do this before each and every ride, but you should get into the habit of checking your tires for proper inflation and any visible damage. If you find something unusual, contact your local motorcycle tire shop and describe the issue. They’ll let you know if it sounds like you need to start looking at replacement motorcycle tires for sale.
• Get an electronic tire pressure gauge. This tool allows you to check tire pressure quickly. Not only do digital gauges cost less than $20, but they provide an accurate reading so that you know for certain when it’s time to add air.
• Don’t reduce your tires’ PSI (pounds per square inch) for a “softer” ride. Reducing the PSI of your tires negatively impacts load-bearing capacity, and can make your bike more difficult to control on slick roads in Twin Falls, ID.
• Don’t rotate your bike’s tires. Car tires need to be rotated to even out tread wear, but motorcycles don’t. Front bike tires are typically slimmer than rear tires, so there’s no reason to rotate.

When to Visit a Motorcycle Tire Shop Near Idaho Falls

Ultimately, how long motorcycle tires last depends on many factors—including your individual riding habits, the type of terrain you ride on, the weather in Logan, UT, and others. Whether you’re due for new tires or not, keep an eye out for these signs of worn-down tires:

• Check the tire wear indicator mark. If a tire’s treads are worn up to the tire wear indicator mark, it’s time to find new motorcycle tires for sale in your area.
• Check for cupping or scalping of the front tire. This indicates an issue with the suspension system, which is worth investigating at a service center.
• Check for punctures. One or two can likely be repaired, but if there are too many to count, it’s smarter to replace the tire.

Contact Our Motorcycle Tire Shop for More Info

If you have further questions about how long your motorcycle tires will last, let us know! Our experts can guide you to the proper replacement motorcycle tires for sale in our inventory, and we can expertly replace the tires on your bike in a timely manner. What’s more, it only takes a minute to schedule your next service online.

Carburetors and fuel injectors have the same function: to mix air and fuel in the proper ratio for powering an engine. In the past few decades, fuel-injected motorcycles have all but replaced motorcycles with carburetors.

In fact, it’s easy to forget that carbureted motorcycles ruled the roads in Boise, ID and beyond for eight decades—but it wasn’t so long ago that a motorcycle with a carburetor was the only kind of bike you could buy! However, modern fuel injection systems provide smoother, more accurate, and more affordable fueling than carburetors.

In the guide below, we break down the key differences between carbureted and fuel-injected motorcycles, discuss motorcycle fuel injection conversion kits, and more—so read on!

When Did Fuel Injection Replace Motorcycle Carburetors?

Even after the first fuel-injected motorcycle hit the market around 1980, they didn’t catch on in a big way for another couple of decades. Why? One reason is that fuel-injected motorcycles require pressurized fuel. An electronically-powered fuel pump requires a better electrical system, and until fairly recently, the systems on most bikes didn’t generate enough juice.

Fuel-Injected Motorcycle vs. Carburetor: Fuel Mixture

A motorcycle carburetor works mechanically, and the desired air-fuel ratio needs to be set manually. The bike runs on the same air-fuel ratio at all times, a mixture that’s on the fuel-rich end of the accepted range.

In a fuel injector, the air-to-fuel mixture is dynamically controlled by an Electronic Control System based on the engine load, speed, riding conditions, engine temperature, throttle response, and other factors. Since fuel injection systems offer finer control over the air-to-fuel ratio, they can keep the mix lean when you’re cruising Logan, UT or Twin Falls, ID highways, and then rapidly richen it up with more fuel when you pick up the pace.

This flexibility allows fuel injected bikes to run cleaner, so manufacturers turned to fuel injection systems as environmental protection laws began to kick in for motorcycles. Many new bikes also use catalytic converters, which require a lean air/fuel mix.

Fuel-Injected Motorcycle vs. Carburetor: Environmental Concerns

A fuel-injected motorcycle is better for the environment than a motorcycle with a carburetor, but not necessarily because it generates fewer tailpipe emissions. Although there is a difference—fuel injected motorcycles are more efficient than carbureted bikes—the biggest environmental impact has to do with fuel evaporating when the motorcycle is idle. Fuel injected systems are sealed, while carburetors allow unburned fuel to escape.

Learn More About Motorcycle Fuel Injection Conversion Kits With Grand Teton Harley-Davidson® 

Have a carbureted bike you love and don’t want to give up? It’s possible to replace the carburetor on your old bike with a fuel injection system! We’re happy to tell you more about motorcycle fuel injection conversion kits—just reach out and let us know you’re interested! Our parts department experts can help you to select the right kit for your bike, and our service technicians can take care of the installation or tell you how to do it yourself. Stop by our Idaho Falls Harley-Davidson® dealership to get started today!

Proper maintenance can go a long way toward extending the life of your motorcycle tires, but as every rider knows, anything can happen when you get out on the road! If one of your tires is punctured while you’re on a ride—and you’re nowhere near a service center—is it safe to plug your tire and keep riding? Yes, but this is a motorcycle tire repair that you should only perform in an emergency situation, and if you know how to do it properly. After patching your tire, you’ll want to head to the nearest Boise, ID-area service center for a professional motorcycle tire repair or to replace the tire, depending on the size of the puncture.

How To Plug a Motorcycle Tire

Suffice it to say, plugging a motorcycle is a whole lot more complicated than patching a bicycle tire. If you’re at all unsure about how to perform motorcycle tire repair properly, don’t risk it—call a tow truck! Rapid deflation due to an improper motorcycle tire repair could have dire consequences when you get up to speed on Twin Falls, ID highways.

Here are a few points that Logan, UT riders should keep in mind about plugging and patching motorcycle tires:

• You can only plug punctures that are located in the crown of the tire. Sidewall punctures can’t be plugged because there isn’t enough structure to keep the plug in place.
• If you ride a vintage bike or a dirt bike, it most likely has an inner tube inside the tire. To repair the puncture, you’ll need to remove the tire and patch the tube.
• Tubed tires are harder to repair, but it’s far easier to inspect the extent of the damage.

Can Motorcycle Tire Repair Save the Tire?

If you recently dropped nearly $300 for a new tire only to wind up with a flat a few weeks later, the last thing you want to hear is that you’ll need to replace it. So, can a motorcycle tire repair be permanent?

It depends. As long as the puncture is a certain size and shape, a professional can and repair can plug it in and then seal the damage with a patch. As long as certain criteria are met, a professional motorcycle tire repair can be permanent and prevent you from having to replace the tire.

Grand Teton Harley-Davidson®: Your Source for Motorcycle Tire Repair in Idaho Falls

Wondering where to buy motorcycle tires that uphold the quality standards of your Harley-Davidson®? Start at an authorized Harley-Davidson dealership like Grand Teton Harley-Davidson®. We carry a wide range of tires for all Harley-Davidson models and model years, and our expert staff is happy to assist you with selecting the right ones for your ride and riding style. Check out our guide to changing a motorcycle tire or schedule your next tire service today!