Tracer GT Maintenance on Long Trip

[PhotoAl]

Decided to start this as a new thread.  I have a 2020 Tracer GT I bought in September.  1st service done at dealership in Sioux Falls SD 3 days after purchase.  By the time I got back home it was at 2,400 miles.  Changed the oil around 3,000 miles and went to Motul synthetic - cause I like the color 🙂  (really doesn't matter and don't want to start another oile thread).  Did  long trip to Topeka KS in April and currently at 6,000 miles.  Of the mileage at least 4,500 miles are long distance highway/interstate miles mostly in 6th gear.  

About to set out on a long trip of 4,000 to 6,000 miles.  Will do maintenance before I leave but wonder what you folks think about some of the recommendations:

Sync Throttle Bodies:  I have a Motion Pro SyncPro tool to sync with and know how to do it but wonder how necessary it is if the bike is running smoothly?  

Spark Plugs:  Recommend checking gap and adjusting at 4,000 and replacing at 8,000.  How necessary is it to replace at 8,000?  Just leave in until I get back?

Oil and Filter:  Will change just before leaving and probably take spare filter with me so can buy oil at an AutoZone and change in parking lot but ...  My BMW had 6,000 mile oil change intervals.  Maintenance intervals are for mineral oil (Yamalube).  Running full synthetic ester based oil - Motul should easily get 6,000 mile intervals but ....

Chain:  Have Motul chain lube that comes in a tube with a brush and will just brush some on at the end of the day.  

What do you folks do when setting out on a 6,000 mile or longer trip?  I've thought about seeing about scheduling a day in the the trip and scheduling to have a service done along the way.  Up to 5,000 miles will probably just not worry about it and do when I return.  IMO long distance trip miles are some of the easiest engine miles in the life of a motorcycle.  

[betoney]

I wouldn’t worry about the throttle bodies or spark plugs and if you change the oil before the trip, 6000 miles should be fine on full synthetic. When I go on a long trip the only thing I bring with me for chain maintenance is a can of chain cleaner and a can of chain lube and a rag in a Ziploc bag, I do a quick chain maintenance at the end of each day.

[PeterL]

I'd change the tires first as well, and make sure your chain and sprockets are in good shape. Other than that, I don't think 6K should be anything that would require much in the way of maintenance.

Have a great ride. Post some pics when you're home!

[PhotoAl]

LOL, tires for sure!  Chain and sprockets are in good shape but will be gone over before.  Put a Michelin Pilot Power 5 on the front at about 3,000 to 3,500 miles along with a Road 5 that had 3,800 miles on it.  Bought a new Road 5 at Cycle Gear when I went crazy and had a spending fit the other day - Dainese Smart Vest, RevIt jacket, Level 1 back protector and a Road 5 rear.  They love me!  Been watching the front but is wearing well - plan on running it a couple of pounds more inflated than I usually wold.  Have heard the Michelin fronts like a bit more pressure to avoid cupping.

[PeterL]

Consider a cheap digital caliper like this, along with a small notebook that you can stash in your pocket or under the seat. Periodically measure and log your tread depth all across your tire, along with your PSI in said tire and the current mileage. Over time you can easily see what your wear trends are, and can adjust pressure appropriately. This can get you significantly more miles out of your tires as well. 

[micah2074]

The oil will be fine.

[johnha1962]

All good advice so far.  If you're on the fence about the tire, you could contact some shops on your route to see if they are stocking what you prefer to run in the size you need, and what it would cost you.  If your itinerary is solid, you could even schedule it before you go.  Most shops will give priority to someone with trouble while on the road, but won't be able to do so if they don't have the tire you need in stock.

[PeterL]

Agree to disagree. I'd rather change rubber prior,  if the tire was at all marginal for the distance. Sell the takeoff on CL for cheap and recoup a few bucks if you like. If I'm going on a trip, I'd rather spend the time seeing new vistas, not the inside of yet another shop. 

Prior to an adventure like yours, I spend weeks doing all the checks and maintenance items I possibly can, even things that might not be required for months yet,  or longer. Be critical, if it gives you the least pause, address it. Rather that then get blindsided halfway through your tour.

[TomTracer]

A bike as new as yours should be good for abou any trip. My 4 bikes were good for any ride at any time because I did common sense inspections weekly. I have ridden with a guy who tries to get every mile possible out of a tire. He frets every second of a ride. If his tire blows it affects everyone else on the ride. I think if there is no doubt a tire will soon be shot shortly (2-3 days) into a ride I change it, and sure as hell don't keep it to resell. Not worth the work and if I need the $ that badly I'd stay home. I changed my own tires for over 25 yrs and still didn't keep dead ones. If riding with others, everybody doesn't need to carry an air pump, or patch kit, or multimeter (useless too if you don't know how to use it). Worry about fuel range, water, cell phone range, credit cards, and companion habits-are they reckless, want to sleep late, is 300 miles a full day or 500+, picky about motels, etc. 

[micah2074]

If the tire(s) are questionable, replace them. A 4k to 6k mile trip is a long way from home many times a long way from anywhere. Also, I was 200 miles from home a few years ago and my rear chunked on me in a rather large town... On a Saturday evening... The only bike place open nearby was the HD dealership. The HD dealership didn't have anything close to my tire. The local import bike dealership was closed on Sundays and Mondays. Fortunately, since it was only 200 miles from home; my Father in law drove up and trailered me home.

Also, last august on Odyssey 2020, we noticed the rear on my buddy's stryker was showing the cords at the "99 miles" sign on Lolo. It's lucky we stopped for the photo or we wouldn't have discovered it. I told him to change that tire before we left on on the trip. 3K miles deep on a 6500 trip in the middle of nowhere is no place to need a tire. We limped back to Missoula to find a tire. The only tire his size within 1000 miles was over 100 miles away in Kalispell, MT. We rented a car and drove up there and back. The folks at Maverick motorsports in Missoula are good people. They stayed open late and swapped tires so we could continue the next morning. They charged him $25 to do it. Good Folks.

Long stories short, I don't chance it with tires.

[daboo]

I pulled into a McDonald's in Wyoming once.  Hot outside, and a vanilla milkshake seemed like a good idea.  A rider on a new BMW GS pulled in just ahead of me.  He sat down and was absolutely determined to get his maintenance done in town.  I'm not sure if it was just an oil change, or more.  But I thought he was more than silly and anal about the entire thing.  Would I act that way about my car?  Nah.  I'd just wait.  Well, our bikes are no different.  We just act like they are.

I'm leaving for a cross-state trip on Friday.  I'll change the oil when I get back.  It's synthetic oil, but I still stick to about a 6-8K interval and it'll be time for the change.  I leave a week later for South Dakota.  The oil will be fresh.  

My tires have about 4K on them.  I expect them to last another 7K.  (Dunlop RS4)  I'll keep an eye on them to make sure I don't get any punctures, but I won't worry about replacing them on the trip.  I did have a time a few years back when my tire wear surprised me, and I ended up contacting a dealership for a tire change before heading back home.

My calendar has all my planned trips on it and estimated mileage.  It's a way to pass the time when the rain is coming down and your trips are months away.  I can look at my current tire wear and estimate when I need to plan a tire change.  

On one of my first rallies, I saw one rally member change his tire in the motel parking lot.  We were on the Saturday ride and at a break found he had about 2 inches of cord showing.  In addition to someone coaching him on how to do the tire change, he had about 30+ guys and gals offering advice from the sidelines while they drank their favorite refreshment.  I plan to never follow his example. 

BTW, Continental has a rebate through the end of June 2021.  $40 off.  I thought prices across the Internet were "fixed", but Dennis Kirk sold them for about $50 less than Revzilla. !!!  That's a deal.  I got them today and will just store them in the back of the garage till needed.

Chris

Edited June 9, 2021 by daboo

[keithu]

The 8k sparkplug recommendation is silly. Mine still looked brand new at 8k. My last set I ran for about 18k and they were fine. I have about 12k on my current set and will probably check them next winter. 

Last year I did a 4k mile trip from Oregon to Minnesota and back. I replaced my front tire before the trip, but decided to replace the rear when I got to Minnesota and had some down time. That turned out to be a mistake. Even in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area I had a hard time finding a shop with my desired tire in stock and/or time in their schedule to mount it. And every shop there was quite a bit more expensive than my favorite local shop here in Oregon. In the future I will always take care of tires using my known-good local shop before embarking on such a trip. 

[Your_Boy_Yuriy]

1 hour ago, keithu said:

In the future I will always take care of tires using my known-good local shop before embarking on such a trip. 

I learned the hard way too.  About 3500 miles away from home and my rear tire started to wear quicker then expected. Thankfully the local shop took care of me quickly. 

Another mistake was my chain. I did some off road riding (75 miles on gravel and dirt roads) it destroy my chain. I stop at Autozone to buy a cheap tiny brush and WD-40. WD-40 helped keep my chain quite for the most part. I went through like 3 small cans of WD-40.  By the time I got home I had 3 stiff links and tons of noise coming from the chain. 23000 miles on that chain.  Next time I'll bring a brush and some good lube. Water works good enough to remove dirt from the chain. 

 

 

[Wintersdark]

I just replaced my spark plugs at ~18,000km/11k miles, and they looked fine.  Got replaced anyways, because why put used ones back in when you've got new on hand and everything is already apart.  8k is crazy for spark plugs.  I would be concerned something is wrong if they're seriously worn at 8000 miles. 

Throttle bodies... It's easy enough to do, but I wouldn't worry about it unless the bike was idling rough.  It CAN be out early in a bikes life, but if it is, it's usually pretty visible.  Even if they are out a little, taking a trip without doing that isn't going to hurt anything.

Tires and travelling - Replace before the trip, UNLESS you plan ahead, call and make an appointment, have the tires and appointment to change them set up before.  I think there can be a lot of value in this approach, if you've say got some life left on your current tires and don't want to waste that mileage.  But as @keithu said, you don't want to be stuck trying to find a place with tires in stock and time to mount them.

[TomTracer]

2 hours ago, keithu said:

The 8k sparkplug recommendation is silly. Mine still looked brand new at 8k. My last set I ran for about 18k and they were fine. I have about 12k on my current set and will probably check them next winter. 

Last year I did a 4k mile trip from Oregon to Minnesota and back. I replaced my front tire before the trip, but decided to replace the rear when I got to Minnesota and had some down time. That turned out to be a mistake. Even in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area I had a hard time finding a shop with my desired tire in stock and/or time in their schedule to mount it. And every shop there was quite a bit more expensive than my favorite local shop here in Oregon. In the future I will always take care of tires using my known-good local shop before embarking on such a trip. 

Arent the Tracer plugs irrodiums!? If not when I can change them they will be!