Spring may be in the air but what about the air in your tyres?

Is spring really in the air, after one of the worst winters for over 30 years? Well, before you go rushing out on your bike, don’t forget that checking the pressure in your motorbike tyres is absolutely essential. Motorbike tyres need to be correctly inflated and, with many roads in a very poor state after the freezing weather, there will be a lot of potholes around. So if your motorbike tyres are not correctly inflated, not only will your handling be affected but your tyres may also be more easily damaged.

What you should remember is that having the correct pressures in your motorbike tyres is absolutely critical, not only to the safety and stability of your bike but also for your own safety. Motorbike tyres need to make a perfect connection with the road and, if your motorbike tyres are under-inflated after being laid up for a whole winter, your bike will not handle properly, which will seriously affect your riding enjoyment and worse still, could even be dangerous - especially for those with more powerful engines.

Using under-pressured motorbike tyres can badly affect handling and steering, as well as causing increased and uneven tyre wear. So it’s really important to know what the optimum pressures for your motorbike tyres are, both front and rear. In fact why not keep a note of them either in your wallet or under your seat so you can always check what pressure to inflate your motorbike tyres to? Make sure you use an accurate tyre pressure gauge as well - many of those found on service station forecourts can be unreliable.

One of the most important things to remember about motorbike tyres is that the front is designed for braking, steering and stability whilst the back is designed for putting the power down and handling steep lean angles during cornering. Motorbike tyres not only look different to each other, it’s almost a certainty that the tyre pressures both front and rear will be different. People who race on motorbikes know that even tiny differences in pressure make a big difference to handling so make sure you get them right.

It’s only common-sense to say it of course, but you need to do more than just checking your motorbike tyres – you need to make some basic safety checks of your bike as well. Checking your motorbike tyres and the overall condition of your bike should be a weekly ritual – especially if you use your bike every day for going to work. Because if you do get into the habit, you’ll also easily spot other things like when your chain needs adjusting or if your motorbike tyres are coming to the end of their life.

Goto: Motorbike Tyres - Tyre Pressures