Purchasing a motorcycle is a great way to relive your youth, deal with a midlife crisis or enjoy the highways of the world with the wind in your hair. If a stock bike doesn’t fit your lifestyle or your aesthetic, you don’t have to feel stuck with a bike you don’t quite love. Here are some quick, easy and inexpensive ways to upgrade your motorcycle. You can do many of these mods yourself!
Add a Custom Tank or Artwork
Sometimes the aesthetic of your new bike doesn’t match what you want it to, so why not change it up? A custom tank, or custom artwork, is a popular motorcycle mod, and it’s so easy to do. If art doesn’t come naturally to you, you don’t have to decorate the tank with stick figures. You can hire an artist to paint your tank, replace the entire tank with a previously decorated one or you can vinyl wrap your tank to get the color or pattern you want.
Make your bike yours by decorating it however you like.
Upgrade to Aftermarket Exhaust
Everyone knows what a motorcycle sounds like. You can’t help but hear it as you drive down the highway, the rumble that brings back memories of biker movies and happier days. Modern bikes often lack that roar because of newer exhaust systems that muffle this iconic sound. Bring back those roars with an aftermarket exhaust system. In addition to making your bike sound more like you remember, this can potentially also take pounds off your motorcycle, making it handle better.
Using Aftermarket Steering Dampers
The suspension on your motorcycle can’t match what you’re used to in a car, but that doesn’t mean you need to shake your arms off if you drive down a bumpy road. Aftermarket steering dampers help to reduce the vibrations and impacts you might experience. They can also tighten your steering to make it easier to take sharp corners, and help you manage your bike on wet or off-road situations.
Install Adjustable Suspension
If you plan to ride your motorcycle in different environments, — like on the road, on the track and off-road — install some adjustable suspension, if your bike didn’t come with it in the first place. Once it’s installed, you can adjust it as needed for your driving situation. Make it softer when you’re off-road, or harder when you drive to work. With endless possibilities, you can have a comfortable ride no matter the location.
Enjoy the Ride
Once you finish your modifications, you can sit back and enjoy the ride. You can do most of these upgrades on your own without taking your bike to the shop or breaking the bank. This is just a small sample of the modifications you can do to make your bike yours. Start with something small, like painting the tank or upgrading the exhaust, and move up to the big mods later once you’re more comfortable working on your bike. You’re not stuck with whatever stock bike you purchased. Make a few changes and turn it into something you’ll love for years to come.