As the topic suggests, it is wiser to ask how many miles does a bike last rather than how many years.

Well, that truly depends on how well you care for the bike. I’ve seen people with bikes over 100,000 miles and I’ve seen bikes crap out at 4,000 miles. As long as you keep up with consistent oil changes and don’t abuse the machine then a motorcycle and its engine can last you a lifetime.

For a well taken care of and maintained motorcycle – 60,000 miles or 12-14 years is a good mark to shoot for in terms of lifespan. 

So if you want to:

• Ride your bike for a really long time,
• Or you are looking to buy a used motorcycle,
• Or planning to discard yours,

Read along this post to get an idea – how a bike can be maintained which increases its life, and when is the right time to discard one.

Twelve to Fifteen years – a general Perception

The general perception on average is, if the motorcycle has not suffered any accidents or major falls, it can last you up to twelve to fifteen years. But, this period can be extended if it is a high-end vehicle that has had exemplary upkeep and maintenance, in addition to having been lucky enough to not suffer any crashes.

On the contrary, if we skipped scheduled maintenance appointments with the mechanic and the motorbike is a low-end model, we must be prepared to accept that it is unlikely to last that long.

7,000 miles – time for maintenance!

My research on over 100 different motorbikes led me to the conclusion that – a regularly ridden bike clocks at least 7,000 miles per year (on an average) on the odometer.

At this point (possibly not in the very first year) the wear and tear takes a toll on the bike – cables are shot; the mechanical components have worn out, sprockets are damaged, etc.

All these are clear indications that it is time for maintenance. And you can obviously replace all these parts and keep your bike going.

So let us move to the anatomical break-down of the bike, and address each major part of a bike separately to get a better understanding about its maintenance and lifespan individually.

Keep Your Bike Alive with Routine Motorcycle Maintenance

Climbing the Maintenance Ladder

Most of the routine maintenance procedures are quite simple. In the initial stages you just need to glance over all the components for signs of damage, change the oil and battery water, make minor adjustments and tighten a few screws.

Remember that the engine and battery are the most vital organs. They are heart and lungs of a bike. So regular oiling and battery servicing is most important for any bike.

As time and mileage increase, the inspections start getting a bit deeper and will require more time, skill, and in some cases, special tools. But in case, you don’t feel comfortable performing the work, then don’t; do only what you can and leave the rest to the professionals – because that’s what they are there for.

Frame

Steel or titanium parts are supposed to be the most durable and they’re repairable by anyone who has proper skills and right tools.

Rust will bother the steel frames if the frame is exposed to humid weather without a thorough drying afterwards. Consequently if you start getting rust you have to deal with it immediately or else it gets nothing, but worse.

Aluminum is not as sturdy as steel and more susceptible to cracks through years of use as it is not very tensile, and buckles more easily (once something buckles, most people won’t want to ride it).

Carbon frames just aren’t repairable as far as I know and they’re usually crashed permanently in a race anyway. You don’t get to see many carbon motorcycles on the road. This could change in the future, but I doubt it.

Carbon can be repaired- it’s just more difficult or rather expensive, and since Carbon has only been used in bike frames in the past 10 years, – expertise in this area is only just starting to catch up.

So, provided the frame isn’t exposed to severe elements or used abusively, it will last you a life time.

Brakes

Brake maintenance of a bike is more or less like a car, in fact much simpler than that, because a bike is so compact you can bleed the brakes all by yourself without any help. The brake levers and the bleeder screw can be reached by both hands at the same time. Unlike a car you don’t require someone to push the pedal down while you bleed the air out.

One point to keep in mind is that your front and rear brake systems are entirely independent because they are topped off by different cylinders. This means that – the life of both brakes are to be calculated separately. While checking the brakes do not forget to check the brake pads to see if they need to be replaced.

Tires

When was the last time you checked your bike tires’ pressure? Experts recommend that the pressure should be checked weekly or at least in 10 day intervals. But most of us take it for granted and overlook this crucial element of a bike set up.

If you ever feel that you are losing judgment or can’t maintain proper balance or you seem to be riding sloppily  just check your tire pressure. I bet you are low on air.

Under-inflated tires affect your braking system greatly. The soft walls create a lack of pressure for friction forces to work effectively.

On the other hand over inflation is neither good for a bike as it reduces the contact patch resulting in lesser grip over the tires.

To gauge the life of tires special grooves containing small raised points are provided in the tire itself. These are called wear indicators. When these indicators wear out, it signals you are overdue to change your tires.

The rule of thumb is that – the rear wheel will wear out long before your front wheel does, so you need not worry if wear and tear is uneven.

Drive chain

The perfect way to maintain the life of your chain is to ensure it is of the correct tightness. Over a period of time it will start to stretch, so you need to make sure it doesn’t get very loose. The owner’s manual contains the slack and adjustment specifications. If it’s too loose, you’ll need to adjust it.

No matter how well you take care of the chain, it will eventually stretch to the point that it is too uneven to straighten or tighten. Now it’s high time for a replacement. Generally you don’t need to replace the sprockets along with the chain as it has longer life. But I would suggest this as a good opportunity to change the same as well.

Lubrication is another important factor when it comes to chains. The lube helps the chain flex smoothly and doesn’t allow it to bind up. Mind you that the lube itself is sticky, so it tends to gather a lot of debris and particles, which can act like sandpaper. So you need to regularly clean all that off too.

Ooh, nice and shiny!

So after the basics of maintenance, we should address the next most important question-

How do you determine the life and resale value of any bike?

The answer is plain and simple – just have a look at three important measures:

• Odometer – It will tell you the age of the bike, by telling you how many miles the bike has completed.
• Manufacturer supported lifespan – Most of the motor manufacturers have the life-cycle mentioned for the product. The Motor Vehicles have regulations and expiry dates according to the Transport Department of the resident’s country. They have made these rules after studying all the technical details of/about a motor cycle or motor vehicles.
• Consumer handling – As for the consumer lifespan it depends a lot on how the vehicle has been handled.

Remember that points one and two just give you a holistic view, but the most important point is the third one – the lifespan of a motorcycle completely depends on how well it is handled and maintained. A properly maintained bike should last the lifetime of the owner or even out number his age. I have witnessed people using bikes for more than 20 years or so. (However, more than often the manufacturer will not support the bike for that period. You may have to out-source the spare parts from the third party companies).

To summarize,

1. A regularly ridden motorcycle will have an approximate life of seven to ten everyday-riding years before it starts losing steam,
2. A racer bike generally meets its fate in a crash,

And both kinds of bikes just die due to neglect– something or the other wears out, owner loses interest, things rust and/or get timely out of fashion.

And now – If you’re talking about how to keep a motorcycle running for a VERY long period, that is definitely possible if it is maintained meticulously. All parts can be quite easily replaced on almost all types of motorcycles.

Right time to change your bike and which one to avoid when buying a second hand one

Tires, rims, brakes, chains and miscellaneous accessories can all be relatively economically replaced as discussed shortly, providing the motorcycle with infinite lives, but motorcycle manufacturers like to change paradigms around every 12 years, and finding spare components for a bike that is 2-3 paradigms old from the current is often quite difficult to source out.

Besides mechanical problems, there are externally visible features of a motorcycle that can give us clues that it is nearing the end of its life. For example, rusted surfaces, or grease stains on the vehicle which reveal that the vehicle has already been used quite a lot.

Another key factor in determining whether the life of a motorbike engine is nearing its final stages is its Mileage. Once a motorcycle odometer has clocked more than 90,000 km, you can easily say that is has achieved a respectable mileage and start looking out for a replacement.

If the roads we regularly ride on are well paved and the bike has been used by a single rider then we can add a few more kilometers to this figure. But if you have abused the bike by riding it on rough potholed roads and it has been ridden by numerous riders then you might just have to do the opposite by subtracting a few miles to the 90,000 figure.

As a motorcycle tends to age – it will inevitably begin to develop a lot many problems that require more attention and further investment.

So at a point of time it becomes an expensive affair to maintain a motorcycle and obviously in such situations it is better to replace the motorcycle, and if you are looking for a second hand one – you definitely need to avoid this kind of bike.

Final Verdict

If you don’t misuse or abuse your bikes and maintain them as they deserve to be, most  modern four stroke motorcycle engines of adequate displacement will outlive you. The only cause why most motorbikes can’t reach a very high mileage is because they usually crash, or are misused severely, or aren’t paid attention to.

So, finally with a lot of research, I will like to answer the question “how many miles is a lot for a motorcycle?”

For a very well maintained motorcycle – 100,000 kilometers (62,137 miles) is the optimum lifespan. And if we are talking in years, an average of 12 to 14 years is its most. After that you need to put it to rest, either in your backyard, or at a respectable motor collectible center.

And if you are looking to buy a second hand bike (essentially a well maintained one), just look how many miles it has clocked, or how many years it has performed on the road, and you will get an idea about how much life is still left in it.

So with all this – I’ll take my leave as my bike has plenty of miles to complete.

How Do You Identify Mikuni Carburetors?

It’s simple to identify a Mikuni Carburetor by looking at the top view of the float chamber cover, the cover gasket of the float chamber or the jet chamber cover gasket.

The word Mikuni ought to be printed somewhere on the carburetor. It could be in small or large letters.

To distinguish Mikuni from Solex, note that Solex printed carburetors with a made in Italy, Germany or anywhere else in Europe sign points to the fact that this is not a Mikuni carburetor but a purely European Solex.

What is a Mikuni Carburetor?

Mikuni Carburetors are carburetors made by a company in Japan and used in Japanese bikes such as Hondas, Kawasakis, and Yamahas.

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For those who own motorcycles, there are different integral parts that you need to invest in for your machine to function optimally. The carburetor, for example, is one of the most important parts of your bike. It heavily influences the throttle: the response and control that you have as the rider.

It has the power to improve throttle control which is desirable to the rider. A time comes when you need to replace your carburetor, adjust it or even rebuild it. You could leave the work to the professionals at the dealership or choose to do it yourself.

While there are tutorials on how to do this, the first thing that you need to identify is which type of carb you have. Once you have this covered, everything else will fall into place much easier.

What is special about a Mikuni Carburetor?

A Mikuni carburetor, like any other carburetor, is a mechanical device. It works in motorcycles to combine air and fuel within the internal combustion engine.

Its primary job is to control air flow into the engine. During this controlling process, the air pressure within the engine is determined by the speed at which the air enters the combustion engine.

The unique thing about Mikuni carburetors is that they are manufactured in Japan and consequently used in Kawasaki, Honda, Yamaha and other Japanese motorcycles.

3 Advantages of Having Mikuni Carburetors

There are a number of advantages to be enjoyed from using Mikuni carburetors. The first is that it drastically improves throttle response. It does work best with a stock motor.

Secondly, it is easier to tune and does not force you to pay extra to get a professional to do it for you as you can do it yourself.

Thirdly, it makes the motorcycle much easier to start which many enjoy. In general, the Mikuni carburetor drastically improves the performance of your motorcycle.

The only problem or disadvantage is that it has a ‘click click’ sound it makes when it is idle. While this is not a problem in itself, some people do not like this noise. To be fair, some motorcyclists actually like this noise and consider it a part of their riding experience.

Mikuni Carburetors

Some of the Mikuni carburetors for motorcycles in the market include:

1) Mikuni HSR 42MM

This carburetor promises to help your engine reach its full potential. The compact design fits like stock and employs a simple bolt-on application. It comes with instructions so you need not worry about being able to bolt it on. You do not have to pay a professional at your dealership just to install the Mikuni HSR 42 mm. This carb helps to improve the rider’s throttle control and also has an instant throttle response. This carb is compatible with all Harley Twin Cams from 1996 to 2006. It can be found on Amazon here.

2) Mikuni Non-Polished HSR Smoothbore Carburetor

This carb is designed to fit a number of Harley Davidson motorcycles, from 1960 to 1999, some of which I wrote about here. It has a flat side throttle and roller bearings. It is available in 42 and 45 mm throttle bores that are supposed to be used with mild or highly modified engines and stock. The carb also has an accelerator pump technology. This technology allows the carburetor to deliver high quality performance from idle to wide open throttles. Additionally, the HSR 45 air cleaner, jets, cables and breather come in an aluminum finish. They are also interchangeable. The HSR 45 is available on Amazon here.

3) Mikuni Round Slide 30 MM VM Series

These carburetors, particularly the VM series, are popular in motorcycling sports. They are common in flat track and road racing on 2 and 4 stroke engines. One of the advantages of this series is that it features different bore sizes which riders can select from. The purpose of this is to match engine modifications by increased fuel mixture flow. It is compatible with the pit bike engine 250cc 2 stroke and the Honda 76 MT 250 among others. It’s available on Amazon here.

4) Mikuni VM26 Carburetor

This carburetor works best on quad and dirt pit bikes. It brings about increased performance and power among other things. The Mikuni VM26 carb has a 30mm inner outlet diameter and a 42mm air filter fitting. Another important feature is the 48mm distance between the fixing holes. This high performance carb can fit a number of pit bikes including the 1982 Honda XL250R. The VM26 is available to check out on Amazon right now.

5) Mikuni 30mm Carburetor for 4 Stroke 125cc to 250cc Dirt Bike

This carb works with a Honda XR/CRF engine ranging from 100cc, 200cc and 250 cc. if you want to see the horsepower in your pit bike increase, then this is the carburetor of your choice. It also increases the airflow in the bike. The 30mm carburetor fits bikes that have an engine similar to that of the Honda 200 250. Additionally, it works with a 44mm air filter and improves throttle response in general.

6) Mikuni RS Series 36mm Carburetor

The RS series was created to meet the needs of road and drag race motorcycle teams. The 36mm along with other carburetors from the RS series has a radial flat side design which is optimal for maximum horsepower gains. It also provides an instant throttle response owing to its adjustable accelerator pump system. It is compatible with the 1998 Suzuki GSX-R11001986, 1990 Suzuki GSX-R750, 1977-1983 Kawasaki KZ1000A/J1981 and the 1979 Suzuki GS10001980 among other motorcycles. You can check out this bad boy on Amazon right here!

7) Mikuni 48mm HSR48 Carburetor

The Mikuni HSR48 is used with race and custom applications and is not for use with standard applications. It is custom polished for the Harley Davidson and uses the Harley’s cables in addition to coming with a Flange. Its finish is that of high polished aluminum and it helps riders and racers to realize the optimum potential of their custom race engines. Additionally, it is recommended for use in engines that are 120ci or bigger. These engines ought to have higher flow heads and cams for the Mikuni carb to be compatible.

8) Mikuni TMX 38-27-K Series 38mm Bore

This carb (found on Amazon) fits two-stroke off-road racing and Motocross uses. It features the radial flat side throttle design for the valve. This works well to improve throttle response. It is also important as it increases sensitivity to tuning, which is a good thing. The carburetor is best placed in a 250cc racing engine. Smaller race engines such as the 125cc would do best with the 35mm bore size instead.

9) Mikuni TM Series Flat Slide 33mm Carburetor

Like other Mikuni carburetors, the TM Series 33mm improves throttle response on motorcycles. The air flows faster in the TM series and the flat slide design blocks the jet helping to create a smooth bore effect. It is a dual cable carb and works on the Suzuki 97 DR350 bike and others, empowering them to run as though they are new although they may be significantly older.

10) Mikuni Flat Slide TM Series 4-Stroke Carb

Like the 33mm, this 36-68 TM series flat slide carb lets air flow through faster. It improves on the throttle response and is compatible with the Kawasaki KLX250S 2009 although one would need longer cables. It also fits into the 99 KLX300 and is known to generally improve the running of the motorcycle.

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Conclusion

There are a number of carburetors that you could opt for in the market. Each of these carburetors is from a well-known or hardly- known manufacturer. At the end of the day, it is upon you to decide which of the manufacturers appeals most to you.

Mikuni has been in the market for a very long time. The manufacturer has continuously provided Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha and even Harley Davidson motorcycle owners with the carburetors that they need over the years.

From various customer reviews, you can tell that customers are often happy with the product. Once it fits the bike, then praises are heaped on the increased throttle response and control.

Now that you have an idea about how to tell a legitimate Mikuni carburetor from other such as Solex, you can carry on to buy and/ or replace the one in your motorcycle.

It is best to check for compatibility before you pick any specific carburetor for your bike. However, with the Mikuni carburetors covered, you will be able to find something to suit your taste, preference and need. These carburetors are some of the best in the market and you should give them a shot.