Right I'm sure there's been discussion on this, when a bikes layed up n not on the road what maintainance do you need to do? Some say turn it over to keep oil moving and belts to stop tensioner having belt in same place Some say drain petrol etc battery and leave At present I turn it over every month, The belts are another confusing issue, as used to change religious at 2 years, but when I was lady at Snells a salesman said it's the same belts as Diavals and they don't need doing as regular ????? Over to you experts
From what I've learnt in the last 3 months of talking, and more importantly listening, is that the majority of engine wear happens in the first 90 seconds while the oil reaches the top rockers, that the belts need to be moved round every few months and the petrol should not be left to stand in the jets for months on end. So, while not riding from end of Nov till mid Feb, I turned the rear wheel 1/2 turn while she was on the Abba stand in 3rd gear to move the belts about every 3 weeks (probably excessive) and started her once in mid January and used this start up to change the oil so she would be ready to go first sunny day. I let her run for a good 10 minutes and did not rev her. Also, fit an Optimate. From listening to those that know, 2 year belt changes are probably excessive unless you do a LOT of miles. 3 years SHOULD be fine, but you have to decide if its worth the risk yourself, my next change will be March 2016 which will be 2 1/2 years and she will have around 12k miles then so it fits quite nicely. I have been told from very respectable sources that the correct fitting of belts is as important as age. The best thing you can do, I am told, is a 45min ride once a month, but that involves tax, MOT, insurance and salt/dirt. To be honest, I don't think there is a 100% correct answer, not that everyone will agree on anyway. I don't think starting once a month and letting it tick over for 5 mins is ideal though. I'm sure others will disagree. Peace.
I tend to fire it up every couple of weeks, let it get up to temp, give the clutch a few pumps then knock it off. If it's been left longer I pull the fuel pump connector off and turn it over a bit to make sure there's oil in the heads, and then just do as above. Now I doubt dealers with 20+ bikes do this so it's clearly personal preference as to what gives peace of mind. For the price of them, I even change belts if one's been stood for 6 months or more without moving.
Ive left bikes for months in the past without doing anything. Only thing I found was if you leave old fuel in the tank for more than 2 years then it turns into treacle and messes things up. 12 months or so of fuel sitting there is fine. I dusted my 996 off this weekend and had a good 100mile ride out, first ride out in about 6 months. Only thing ive done over last 6 months is to fire her up a couple of times, and wheel her about in the garage as I re-jigged stuff about. I kept her on an optimate so battery is kept charged and thats about it. The belts on mine I do every 2 years, but the old ones I take off still look fine. Speaking to a respected indi they said for the low(ish) mileage I do, they`d suggest changing them every 3 years instead.
