Care of Your ATV

Your off-road vehicle may not be the vehicle that you use to get to work or take your family out to dinner, but is still needs the same care your regular vehicle does.  Just like your everyday vehicle, preventive maintenance and care will extend the life of your vehicle and limit the amount of major repairs in the future.  If you don’t believe that taking care of your ATV will extend your life and the life of your ATV, just walk into your local ATV dealer’s back room where they have taken all the old machines in trade, and you will see immediately that ATVs are not indestructible.

As a matter of fact, there may be more unrideable ATVs than those that operate. It is a shame. There are some things that you can do to assure yourself that you are not among the unhappy owners who can’t seem to make their ATV work for them. This list is in no particular order of importance, because they are all important:

Your owner’s manual will tell you how frequently to change the oil. It is not like a car where you have an odometer to rely on, so you have to judge it by the hours of use you put on it, or the mere passage of time. On my machine it is recommended that the oil be changed every 100 hours of use or every 3 months which ever comes first. There may be an oil filter to change while you change the oil. It will cost you $5-10 and 20 minutes if you do it yourself. All you have to do is remove the plug at the bottom of the crankcase and when it stops dripping put it back in snugly. The oil filter is usualy on the side of the machine and is easy to locate. If you have questions ask the parts guy at the dealership to show it to you on their engine map. Some ATV makers use filters you can clean yourself and others use filters you must replace. When you have the oil filter cleaned or replaced, then put in the new oil. The amount will vary by machine. Look it up. Be sure to take your old used oil to a recycling station. We wouldn’t want to pollute the environment.

Air filters can easily and quickly clog with dust and dirt. It can even be so clogged that it would stop your machine from operating in the middle of a ride. The air filter in many makes, is located under the seat. Pull the seat off and remove the cover, Air filters can be made of foam or paper. If yours is the paper type, it should be replaced. If it is a foam filter you can easily clean it. You just take the foam off the metal canister (just be careful of the sharp inside lip of the cannister, as the paper-cut-like-slice on my finger can attest) and wash in a bucket of dish soap water. The oil and dirt comes out with a little encouragement. You let them dry out, then spray them with “Foam Filter Spray” available at your local dealership

My brother-in-law’s machine is sitting in his garage right now totally inoperable because someone was kind enough to put diesel fuel in his ATV. Most ATVs run just fine on Regular unleaded gas. Higher grades won’t make them run any better. If you have a 2 stoke engine, don’t let the oil reservoir run dry. That is like trying to drive a car with no oil in it. Sooner or later it will seize up on you and no more ATV. Check the oil reservoir each time you take your machine out for a spin.

Rust is the enemy of all machinery. All you really have to do is take a hose to it and make sure that the water doesn’t sit on any parts. Oh by the way. It is not recommended that you use your high-pressure water appliances with an ATV. If water gets under the seals to the engine or drive shaft it can cause damage, according to the owners’ manual.

Both sun and water will damage your machine. If you need to cover it while parked, do so. You can purchase some really cool ATV covers. They are available in catalogs, like Cabela’s.

That is, do not loan your machine out to anyone who is not willing to read the safety manual, unless you don’t want it to come back in the same shape you loaned it in. Don’t hesitate to immediately prohibit the use of your ATV from anyone who acts irresponsibly on it.

If you take good care of your machine you can expect it to last you through decades of fun and enjoyment. You are more likely to get a new one before the old one wears out if you care for it well. The option is…. well just go check out your nearest dealer’s trade-in store room, you’ll see what I mean.