Parking in Gear - Motorcycle Thailand

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Re: Parking in Gear

By: Anonymous: SameSame () Thursday, 05 February 2015 @ 05:08 PM ICT (Read 768 times)

I've noticed that most of my fellow riders struggling to put their motorcycles transmissions in neutral every time they stop before dismounting, and I'm not sure why they bother. I always stop with the front brake applied, clutch in, nd kill the engine by lowering the side-stand and turn the ignition key. I can then let go of the controls and remove the ignition key without fear of the motorcycle rolling forward off the kickstand if parked pointing downhill. When I want to go again, I simply pull the clutch in, lift the side-stand, start the engine and let the clutch out as normal....

Am I missing something? Why do most people leave their motorcycles parked with the transmission in neutral when for cars it is recommended to leave the transmission in gear? None of the motorcycles I had would start without the clutch pulled in, so cranking with the transmission in gear should not be a safety issue.

Anonymous

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Re: Re: Parking in Gear

By: news (offline) Thursday, 05 February 2015 @ 05:21 PM ICT

Always parking a motorcycle in gear is indeed a good practice, since very few motorcycles have any other means of preventing them from rolling forward or backward if left on a grade. If you're in the habit of doing this every time you stop and get off the motorcycle, you are unlikely to forget to do it when you park on a steep hill. But why do so many riders always park in neutral? You'll have to ask them; I'm not entirely sure why they do it.

Perhaps it's because some engines do not start so easily in gear due to clutch drag. When the weather gets colder, the oil between the clutch plates is thicker, creating enough drag to slow the cranking speed below the usual rpm level. That same drag also puts heavier load on the battery and starter motor, decreasing the current available to fire the sparkplugs. Combined, those two factors can make an engine reluctant to start in gear with the clutch disengaged, especially on smaller engine size motorcycles.

In Thailand, not all motorcycles require the clutch to be disengaged when starting, and even the ones that do usually fire up more willingly in neutral than in gear.