Average cost of maintenance

Alvito

Alvito

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Trying to figure out how much money I will need to set aside for regular maintenance. If it makes a difference, the bikes I'm looking to get is either Ninja 250, 500 or Suzuki gs500.

How much does it cost you to do the following:

A) Oil change (DIY)
B) Buy and mount new tires (front and back)
C) Brake work
D) Anything I'm missing??

Thanks!
 
So far, these were the maintenance that Ive done for my GSX-R600:
  1. Oil changes - $65 (Motul 5100 + K&N oil filter) DIY
  2. New tires - $280 + tax (Michelin PP 2CT)
  3. Tire installation - $80ish @ Rosey Toes
  4. Chain lube - $20
 
Cleaning and lubing your chain is probably what you'll need to learn how to do properly in order to save yourself money and headaches.
If not, then you'll be real close friends with your local bike shop pretty fast since that's the maintenance requirement with the shortest interval for most bikes.
My bike's manual and Haynes say that every 600kms my chain needs to be cleaned and lubed (i imagine it's similar for other bikes). Makes sense considering it goes on clear and comes off pure black (dirt, grime, roadkill, etc...).

You'll save the most money by DIY. Biggest piece of advice I can give is: read, research and learn what you're planning on attempting!
Don't start something and have to stop halfway because you realize you don't know what to do past that point.
This forum, similar ones specific to your bike, youtube....all can be a great help as long as you take everything into the context that it's all opinionated (welcome to internetz).
 
Ah cleaning and lubing the chain! How long does that job typically take?

Do you have to take the chain off the bike?
 
I have a GS500 and I asked Kevin at Rosey Toes a similar question about my bike. I said "Hey you see a lot of bikes, how are the GS500's for known problems and cost of repairs" he said "They're really good! Haven't seen any known issues with them and if something does happen usually its cheap and not too difficult to fix"

Hearing that made me feel good about my decision to go with this bike.

My approach to owning a bike isn't much different to owning a car; as my Dad says "Welcome to owning _______ **** happens!" Do what you can to be proactive on the preventative side and be nice to her. The only real difference is that you can delay repairs to the bike until you have the time/money if you've got a car.

Alvito said:
Ah cleaning and lubing the chain! How long does that job typically take?

Do you have to take the chain off the bike?
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Only takes a few minutes to lube the chain, you don't need to take it off. I watched them lube my chain today, they just put it in Neutral up on the center stand and spun the back wheel which moved the chain while blasting it w/ lube. The mechanic said it wasn't necessary to clean the chain but that doesn't sit right with me personally. By the way my '08 GS500 comes with a center stand and a side (kick) stand, I don't know if all years have it but it sure is nice to have.
 
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sundancekid said:
The mechanic said it wasn't necessary to clean the chain but that doesn't sit right with me personally.
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Wow. Some mechanic.
By putting lube without cleaning, he's trapping the dirt between the layers of lube, thus deteriorating your rings a heck of a lot faster.
I think you should start maintaining your own chain sundancekid. :)

@ Alvito: look it up on youtube, there are 897453 ways to clean and lube your chain. Everyone likes to do it differently but as long as it's cleaned PROPERLY, and lubed PROPERLY, that's all that counts.
 
If you plan on riding a lot, then find out what the interval for your valve inspection/adjustments are. I know on my Katana it was every 12K, the vfr's are every 25K.
 
Alvito, everything you said above is essentially DIY although mounting the tire to the rim is a bit more difficult. Brake work is actually very damn easy, especially if you're just changing pads and not even cleaning the pistons in the brake caliper.

The best advice if you're interested in saving some money and learning how the bike works is to join a forum that relates to the bike you get (ninja250.org, ex-500.com, gstwin.com) and buy a service manual. Working on my 500 is a joke. it's so damn simple it's almost funny.

The only thing I've paid for is getting the tire mounted to the rim and that's only because I've either been in a rush or didn't have tire irons. The rest? Easy peazy.
 
When you say everything on 500 is easy, does that include Valve Clearance, Carb clean/ sync?

Trying to decide if I should try DIY or let the stealership handle it.
 
Dual Sport like the Suzuki DRZ400:


  1. Oil changes - $19 (Rotella T 15w40) DIY
  2. New tires - $110 + tax (Kenda 270)
  3. New Tubes $40 + tax
  4. Tire installation - DIY - static balance
  5. Chain lube - $9
  6. Air filter oil - $11.00 (clean and reoil) DIY
 
jeero said:
Wow. Some mechanic.
By putting lube without cleaning, he's trapping the dirt between the layers of lube, thus deteriorating your rings a heck of a lot faster.
I think you should start maintaining your own chain sundancekid. :)

@ Alvito: look it up on youtube, there are 897453 ways to clean and lube your chain. Everyone likes to do it differently but as long as it's cleaned PROPERLY, and lubed PROPERLY, that's all that counts.
Click to expand...

If youre using a thin oil based lube, theres no need to really grab a brush and get the chain spotless beforehand. If you spray the lube on liberally enough, its going to run off and carry the dirt with it. You can just give it a good wipe with a rag at the end. I rarely, rarely grab the brush and clean my chain. I use the dupont teflon lube though so my chain is fairly spotless. If youre using a chain wax or a really sticky oil lube, you might collect more dirt and need to actually clean the chain more often.
 
LiNK666 said:
Unless if you're doing track I would recommend using Rotella T6. It'll do the job you need.
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That's probably the brand I meant. The Class 4 diesel engine oil, JASO MA certified. Walmart special.

Oh, as far as chain lube goes, Bob J is right. I used to use Belray anti-fling and it would trap the dirt and become like a valve grinding paste, requiring frequent "cleaning" which is to say removal of the chain lube. I switched to Maxim Chain Wax and my chains began to last longer, and need less cleaning, although one run offroad through sand will strip the lube off any chain.

I just bought some of the Dupont Teflon lube to try this year, after I run out of the chain wax. ;)
 
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bobjohnson said:
If youre using a thin oil based lube, theres no need to really grab a brush and get the chain spotless beforehand. If you spray the lube on liberally enough, its going to run off and carry the dirt with it. You can just give it a good wipe with a rag at the end. I rarely, rarely grab the brush and clean my chain. I use the dupont teflon lube though so my chain is fairly spotless. If youre using a chain wax or a really sticky oil lube, you might collect more dirt and need to actually clean the chain more often.
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When you say thin oil based lube and it running off with the dirt, doesn't that mean that your chain will lack lubricant prematurely?
I rode with a fellow GTAM'er yesterday and he mentioned that he applies a light coat of his lube of choice on his chain after every ride. From what I understand he does an actual "clean and lube" job at the proper interval.

This is why I love GTAM, so many different opinions and views on things, ever-expanding what I know and apply to my own bike. :)
 
mjavor said:
When you say everything on 500 is easy, does that include Valve Clearance, Carb clean/ sync?

Trying to decide if I should try DIY or let the stealership handle it.
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yes to all of those. Get some feeler gauges to do the clearance, a few beers and some time and you're good to go.
 
jeero said:
When you say thin oil based lube and it running off with the dirt, doesn't that mean that your chain will lack lubricant prematurely?
I rode with a fellow GTAM'er yesterday and he mentioned that he applies a light coat of his lube of choice on his chain after every ride. From what I understand he does an actual "clean and lube" job at the proper interval.

This is why I love GTAM, so many different opinions and views on things, ever-expanding what I know and apply to my own bike. :)
Click to expand...

Many ppl swear by this stuff...http://www.webbikeworld.com/t2/motorcycle-chain-lube/dupont-teflon-chain-lube.htm

I still clean my chain but not as often with this stuff.
 
500= dead simple. if you screw it up, she still runs. == win.

expect cable lube as well for 10-15
various cleaners depending on how much you care, soap and water can also be fine though.

oil filters online for $11, spark plugs x2 for $3/each
ex500 will take crap oil and be happy, so 3.5 litres from crappy tire on sale (if you lurk and wait and store till needed) for about $12.
 
jeero said:
When you say thin oil based lube and it running off with the dirt, doesn't that mean that your chain will lack lubricant prematurely?
I rode with a fellow GTAM'er yesterday and he mentioned that he applies a light coat of his lube of choice on his chain after every ride. From what I understand he does an actual "clean and lube" job at the proper interval.

This is why I love GTAM, so many different opinions and views on things, ever-expanding what I know and apply to my own bike. :)
Click to expand...

Probably, thats why i use the Dupont Teflon stuff. But the thin oil based lube will work just as well, you might just have to relube more often. Im talking about spraying on way more than you need though. If youve ever been to rosey toes and see ted use that Wurths stuff, thats basically what im talking about. Excessive application, no wipe down, tons of fling... the drips and the fling pull the dirt out from the chain. Dirt doesnt have a chance to get stuck in or on the chain.

Basically how I do it, I lube my chain every other ride with the dupont teflon stuff. If while im lubing it, i notice its accumulated some dirt (Like you can visibly see sand or clumps of stuff on the chain) I grab the brush and clean it. No need to stick to a schedule unless youre OCD, just clean the chain when its dirty. Doing it this way, i clean the chain maybe once a month but probably more like every 2 months, and I ride a lot. And when i buy a new (used) bike, first thing i do is clean the chain until its spotless with kerosene, that way i know i have a good starting point and it makes it a lot easier to see when dirts building up.
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