How To Flush And Service Your Motorcycle's Radiator And Cooling System | MC GARAGE
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- čas přidán 16. 07. 2024
- Summer heat isn’t just hard on you as a rider; it’s also hard on your engine. Make it a little easier by performing a cooling system service. Most owner’s manuals recommend replacing the coolant every two years. In this video from the MC Garage, we’ll show you how.
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Summer heat isn’t just hard on you as a rider; it’s also hard on your engine. Make it a little easier by performing coolant flush and servicing the rest of the bike’s cooling system. Most owner’s manuals recommend replacing the coolant every two years. Here at MC Garage, we give you detailed instructions on how to refresh your bike’s coolant. This procedure works for most bikes, but some have very specific steps to take. Consult your manual before you begin.
Ensure That The Bike Is Cooled Off
First up, your bike should be cool before you crack the radiator cap. You don’t want to scald yourself. Also, most OE coolant is toxic so keep it off your hands and paint and don’t let your pets drink it. If it’s green, it’s likely made with ethylene glycol, which is poisonous. Most modern aftermarket coolants are made with non-toxic propylene glycol. Those will be colored blue or pink. Make sure that you have a sealed container nearby so that you can transport it to a disposal center when you’ve finished the job.
Remove Any Bodywork And Inspect The Radiator And Hoses
Before you can drain the cooling system, you’ll need to peel off whatever bodywork is necessary to get to the radiator cap, water pump, and reservoir tank. This procedure varies based on the bike, so take your time and be careful not to damage any bodywork tabs. Now is also a good time to inspect the radiator hoses for cracks or damage. Inspect the hose clamps and take a close look at the radiator itself. Use a small flat-blade screwdriver to straighten bent cooling fins.
Drain The Coolant
Once everything is exposed, locate the drain plug on the water pump. It’ll have a sealing washer behind it and is usually at the lowest point on the pump cover. Position a drain pan under the bike and unscrew the drain bolt. The fluid will dribble out slowly until you crack the radiator cap, and then it’ll come pouring out. If the reservoir tank has a siphon hose or is easy to remove, drain the tank, rinse it out with fresh water and reattach.
Flush The Radiator And Hoses With A Hose
If you notice that your coolant is extremely discolored-or you’ve neglected to change it at the appropriate service interval-go ahead and flush your radiator with a hose. With the water running through the radiator, check for cracks and hardening. Check the hose clamps for tightness, and take a look at your radiator fins again, too.
Refill The Radiator And Cooling System
Now it’s time to refill the cooling system. Throw a fresh sealing washer on the drain bolt and then tighten it. Most motorcycle coolants come pre-mixed and ready to use, but others come as a concentrate that you have to mix yourself. Usually, it’s a 50/50 mix. Make sure to use distilled water to avoid adding any minerals or contaminants to the mix. Again, do not mix your coolant with tap water, it can leave deposits inside of the delicate fins of the radiator. Reinstall the drain bolt and pour in fresh coolant to the top of the filler neck.
Burp The Radiator And Test System
Once you’ve filled up the radiator to the top of the filler neck, start the bike (with the radiator cap off) and run it for several minutes, blipping the throttle and rocking the bike gently to help free any air. This is called burping a radiator and will ensure that there are no air bubbles trapped in the cooling system. Recheck the fluid level, top it off again, fill the coolant reservoir to the upper line, and you’re good to go. Reinstall any bodywork and make sure to dispose of your old coolant at the nearest auto parts store or recycling center.
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how do I replace the air in my air cooled bike?
You ride faster.
You'll need an air compressor to add it back in.
sugest u put a fan while your bike on park lol...
Just replace your air filter after the suggested miles on the owner's manual.
Good point
Thank you for not turning a 3min video into a 15min video.
As someone who is trying to learn as much as possible in way of motorcycle maintenance (mostly to save some coin) these videos help a BUNCH :) thank you
***** well I really appreciate it :)
Ari Henning do you leave the radiator cap off when your warming it up to expel the air in the system?or does it come out via the breather?
Mark Jones I re-watched this video today looking for the same info.
You can see that he first rocks the bike back and forth to expel any air bubbles and then when he turns the bike on and revs it both caps are on and closed @2:50 ;)
i dont see the cap on when he ran the bike.
Ari. For the r1, there's a little bolt right on the cooling system pump that if you just turn it, it will get rid of all the air bubbles. Works very well. You don't have to turn on the bike or anything. It's even on the manual.
That ending statement was great!
Still dig this series, I really hope that the people that utilize their local shops watch these videos so they know just how much effort really goes into their services we perform. One step at a time.
+Ari Henning I hope I can help, even if just a little, through the occasional input after one of Motorcyclist's well produced videos! I can tell you are as well, greatly experienced, and knowledgeable. I am glad to see that so expertly conveyed. Keep up the good work Ari!👍
I appreciate these videos so much. This guy is direct, to the point, knowledgeable, and makes the maintenance very simple for a beginner who’s doing self maintenance on their bike, like I was. But after watching several of these videos, I’ve saved a ton of money in doing so. Thank you very much.
LOL, I liked the joke at the end.
Fairly new motorcycle owner, and absolutely new to motorcycle maintenance, this video was very informational and helpful. Thanks!
Thank you! So easy. I reckon I'll pour some distilled water threw because I have a ton of miles. I assume that's a flush?
Nice video but you forgot to mention that you should tighten the bolt to the torque value listed in the service manual for your bike. It's imperative that you do not over or under tighten any bolts on your bike. In the past I learned the hard way. lol
You might be settin yourself up for a real fucked up day if you don't read that service manual, right? lolol
on most new bikes thats allright if you still have the owners manual. older bikes where the manual has gone missing (and online is nowhere to be found) usually a drain plug like that isnt such a problem, if you maintain lots of vehicles you will usually learn ''the right ammount'' of tention to put on the bolt, with your hands.
My bike is JDM from the 80s and there are no english service manuals or even good japanese service manuals anywhere to be found so guess im in for a fucked up day.
Such a low torque setting that it should not be an issue, over tightening only becomes an issue when you sheer the bolt lol
buy that chineeese scooootah !
The screw directly about the drain bolt at 12.00 o'clock is the air bleed bolt on that model 👍🏼👌🏼
That is a short but very clear/transparent explanation. 👍👍👌👌👌Thank you!!! 👏👏👏😁
I appreciate these videos. I didn’t realize how simple and easy bike maintenance can be.
thanks for the very informative videos from the MC garage. Its wonderful that you put these videos out to help us riders that aren't very mechanic savvy.
short and sweet, great vidro as always +Ari Henning
also, pinching your hoses after filling up helps in removing trapped air bubbles.
I bought 6 half gallon Containers of Engine ice coolant to stock up & store them as emergency in case the industrial world goes for a long sleep. I will store them for at least 6 years for My brand new 2019 CB1000-R 😎
Thanks for making a video that is quick and to the point. Just wanted to make sure I'm not forgetting anything.
These videos are awesome! You explain everything and you are smiling always. Good luck! I
Thanks for the vids! They have saved me a lot of money on maintenance and service costs!
I needed this yesterday, when I changed the cooling fluid on my bike, but good that you made this video for the next time:-D
I love these videos, I'll do so many jobs myself from now on... I used to help out buddies working on their cars, but I'm always scared of working by myself... These will make me more confident I'm not doing stupid mistakes XD
Good tips, as usual! These things can vary by bike; on my Triumph Daytona (955) the manual just tells you to remove the drain plug, but after I noticed the plug is several inches ABOVE the lowest point of the system (the pump; don't know why they did that), I always pull the hose from the front of the pump. This drains about a pint more than just pulling the plug. There's also a bleed screw atop the thermostat housing which you need to pull when draining the system, and don't forget put it back on before starting the motor to circulate the coolant! (Yes, I've left it off and started the bike; shoots coolant right out the bleed hole.) The Daytona seems pretty finicky on coolant level; a couple times I've replaced the coolant, everything looked ok in the garage when running it a bit, but once under load it ran hot. Topping off the reservoir tank AGAIN fixes it.
Thanks man I was stressing about doing this because I had to do a rebuild on my engine and in turn replacing all fluids and this is my first liquid cooled bike so I was terrified to do the radiator but it seems easy
I SURE needed to watch this video even if I currently have an aire cooled bike... next one wont be so good stuff to learn early!
Always helpful! Thank you Ari and Motorcycle Magazine...
Thanks for uploading this video, keep up the good work. Now i can do this by my self.
My single cylinder bike is air cooled, but I enjoyed the video any way.
I've been putting off replacing my coolant for a couple months now thinking it was much more complicated than this lol
I'm getting by thanks to the winter season in my area. I'll do my coolant and brakes this weekend then. Well, my oil to since it's time to flush it again.
...funny how things work themselves out.
Very informational and well put together video thank you
When he says: "Don't let your dog drink it" He is totally serious! Apparently it tastes pretty good, so animals like to drink it.
Coolant has a bitterant exactly for that reason. But some dogs and people are still really dumb
I'd imagine it would have a very minty flavor to it, like a spearmint-flavored spray
@@UnsungThermidor It smells quite good tbh, I was tempted to take a sip
Yup my dog died like this left coolant out after draining it from a car and couldn't catch him quick enough
72 Iraqis die every year from it....
I really like your video and instruction coz it is easy to follow. Your explanation is easy to understand as well. Good job.
I want to hear this man says "alright alright alright"
Thankful for this channel. Thanks!
Short informative and easy to follow!
Great job :)
Thank you for the video
Great video on how to change coolant. I want to see a video on how to get them arms though! More powerful than the R1!
Can you please make a video on aftermarket air filters and how they affect the engine and should they be installed?
Thank you for this video
thanks for the great video
Mate thank you 🙏 love you videos.
thank you!
Another awesome video. Can you guys do one on spark plugs replacement? Thanks.
Thanks Man!!!
great videos , keep it up
easy and really help......tks
Thx u , u videos are helpful
aircooled biker here haha
I'll have the last laugh if you get stuck in traffic! :P
hmmm, thinking bout contering that... i'll just turn off my bike when the road is stuck?! haha
I also ride an aircooled bike.
Traffic jam? I'll just split lanes ;)
or that
In a traffic jam, we just turn the engine off. Simple.
My klx 150BF is air cooled.. Btw, thanks for the tips and tricks.. Might be useful if I purchase a new bike one day
Very informative
I have been very hesitant to change the coolant on ZX6R because I was afraid I would have a hard time bleeding the system but this video makes it seem like its really as simple as doing an oil change.
You can do it fine. Just make sure to download the Kawasaki manual specific for your bike. If to anything like the other big 3 it has 2 drain locations (engine and water pump) to get it ALL out.
Actually i do ride air cooled,but i still watched it ..great Ari
good stuff as usual
Silicate free antifreeze recommended for my Honda and most Japanese bikes as apparently the silicate type eats water pumps.
Cool video, could you do a video where you install a power commander on something like a honda CBR 500r? Thanks!
Thx❤
My coolant is pink but based on ethelene glycol. Contratry to what you just said
even though my bike is air cooled type still watching your vids. by the way can you make a vid of difference of hand clutch type motorcycle and clutchless type thanks
Any opinions on Evans waterless coolant!? I've been running it in my fz6r for almost a year now & would like to know if you guys have used it before.
very nice video ! But air or liquid cooler is the best???
Hi can you explain how liquid cooling system works? And how it should behave when throttled or high temperature? And the parts involving the cooling system.
There is a handy bleeder bolt on the top of the water pump to easily bleed the system. Running these bikes with the rad cap off will spill all coolant everywhere.
So after flushing the coolant you fill the radiator to top, start the bike to remove air bubbles,top up radiator if necessary then fill the expansion tank to max mark. Just need to make sure as im doing this for the first time on my honda sh300 2017. Thank you
I just subscribed
What about a bike that uses vacuum in the cooling system? (BMW K1200S for example)
System didn't start pumping when I used your method. Just after sucking on this little thingy (hehe) of the pump, it worked again.
Always check the bike's manual to see how to bleed the system. On my RC8 bleeding the air out is a pain in the ass. The front of the bike should be lifted up 50cm to get the air out. Even with that it is still a hard job and there are bikes that are even worse. I like the video, doing stuff yourself is always good. But doing it like you said would give alot of problems on certain bike models.
Just bought my 300R and was wondering, if I know how to perform the 600 mile initial service mostly thanks to your how-to's and my owner's manual, is it still a good idea to let the dealer do it?
Daaang it ! , No thanks for letting me know I don't need to do these on my air cooled motorsickle ! at the very end of the videoooooooooo , I need my 4 minute back................... :D
Can you do a video on oil cooled bikes
pleasre do a video on changing brake fluid on abs system and changing clutch fluid for say a bmw or ducati bike.
hey great videos!
what about oil cooled bikes? could you tell me what are the do's and don'ts with them.
replace the oil, and check after riding if the oil cooling radiator has gotten good hot all over.
What about the expansion tank after everything is done ? Fill it up too I guess ?
Good day sir ari, how about oil cooled MC? Is there any maintenance? Thanks in advance
Any videos On Switching Out A Radiator On A 21' CBR600RR & Disconnecting The Fan Fuse
engine ice! I use it in all my race bikes and street bikes. they run about 15-20 degrees cooler
Can you show how to change clutch fluid.
Any tips on how to responsibly dispose of old coolant?
I wonder if there is a nice convenient drain bolt on my k4 gsxr 600.
can you do a video on how to flush engine oil.
I bought a 33% (33/66) premixed coolant. Is it ok to use or do I have to buy the 50% (50/50) premix coolant. I'm living in south east asia where it is hot and humid all year long.
valve adjustment please
Those are fun. Especially if your bike uses shim under bucket to adjust the valves.
especially on a v twin with two banks of cylinders!
Hi, the motorcycle manual stated that coolant reservoir capacity is 0.25 L and radiator capacity is 2.25 L. My question is for coolant flush, I need to prepare 2.5 L of fresh coolant?
It is because engine ice coolant comes in 1.89 L per bottle. I am thinking is it sufficient to use only 1 bottle? My bike is Yamaha FZ1-N 2014. Thanks
I have one of those cruisers that you have to remove the gas tank to change or flush the system. My question is: You said to run the bike until operating temp.....That means putting my bike back together running it letting it cool then taking it back apart again, then draining it, filling it with distilled water, putting it back together again running it, letting it cool then taking back apart again to drain and fill???
What is the purpose of the reservoir and why do we fill them? I have a fireblade and mines in between the engine and swingarm. Was thinking of putting a motion pro bottle there.
So the reservoir does not need to be air tight like brake liquid? I want to check if there is liquid in my system, because I saw some red liquid under my dirtbike. I just dont want to mess anything up by opening the reservoir. Am I good to check it?
Tip.. if your engine is running hotter than usual even after you've flush your coolant and checking that the radiator and thermostat and water pump are ok, that's most likely your o2 sensor isnt working properly. i disconnected mine, and the engine temperature are back to normal. I now run with the o2 disconnected.
If I go on track days, can I just put in destilled water, or is the coolant mandatory? It's pretty slippery once coolant is on the ground.
Is there anything else you can use then standard coolant if your riding in temps in the late 30's early 40's and with dry air all around you as I have an r6 2008 model and I'm going to Pakistan this summer where it will be very dry and hot 40degrees, anything else that I can do to stop the bike from overheating and having any of the coolant stopping from leaking out, what about a larger radiator and silicone hoses instead of rubber hoses?
If my workshop manual says to use ethylene glycol, am I fine using propylene glycol instead or would that cause any damage? Thanks in advance.
Rookie question ahead: I ride a 2017 Yamaha XSR900. I bought some Maxima 50/50 Coolanol. I'm not sure what coolant is currently in my bike and my dealer closed so I can't ask them. Am I OK to just top up with the new coolant I bought or does the whole system need to be flushed. I'm only at 2k miles so i figured I'd have a while more to go before I completely flush it.
My bike has a bleeder bolt on the radiator; as far as bleeding the system, how would the process be different? Just take the bolt off while I'm bleeding it?
My coolant is a milky green. I thought blown head gasket but my oil looks black. Any suggestions?
As always, great vid. I have a question: How does one best dispose of old coolant? Is there a way to recycle it?
FWIW to anyone ... I found this site which will tell you where to bring it: earth911.com/recycling-guide/how-to-recycle-automotive-fluids/
Check your county haz waste drop-off locations, many places will take oil & coolant
ive done 20,000 miles on my 2011 honda cbr 125r do you think i should do this?
i like in the north of england so it cold anyway.
Hi this is MARCEL from Argentina, I want to ask you about what coolant is better for my KTM Duke 200 2014. Sorry for my bad English, thanks.
I checked my r6s manual for coolant type, but found nothing. If I put g12 (red or pink) coolant on my could cause damage?
My 08 R1 is running kinda hot ( I feel ) around 180’F normal riding conditions come to a stop light it’s shooting up way too fast previously I owed 06 R1 that thing ran 165’F normal riding condition I had used motor coolant in this 08 R1 is this the issue? Shall I use half distilled water and half different coolant. Please leave helpful comment. Thanks
How important is it to flush the coolant tank with water?
I bought a 2003 sv 650 how I know which coolant I can put , can I mix any coolant with the one it in there already
awesome buddy! great job..I'm from India..I have an Indian Motorcycle called 'Bajaj Pulsar 220' (you can Google it).. It has oil cool system..So if you can help to understand that how the system works that will be great!..