9 Tools for Maintaining your ATV or UTV
Whether you use your ATV or UTV for an occasional afternoon of fun or if you use it for hard labor and work, you should make sure you’re taking good care of it. Regular maintenance and checks are a must, even outside a professional repair shop.
Here at Crossroad Powersports, we’ve listed out 9 essential tools every powersports vehicle owner should have in order to properly maintain their ride. These will help you with your pre-ride checks and some of them will be small enough that you’ll want to take them with you when you go out.
Look through our suggestions and make sure you’ve got everything you need. But part of taking care of your ATV or UTV means bringing it in regularly to get it professionally checked. When it’s time for servicing, contact us at our Upper Darby, Pennsylvania location, near Philadelphia.
Tire Pressure Gauge
The simplest equipment, and possibly one of the most important pieces of equipment, is a tire pressure gauge. Properly inflated tires are just as important for your ATV and UTV as they are for your car. Make sure they’re up to manufacturer recommendations. This will help keep you protected from a blowout, and it will improve fuel efficiency.
Air Compressor
Air compressors are a little more expensive, but they also help keep your tires inflated. And they’re incredibly versatile tools, able to help you with other projects around the house like painting and blowing up balloons for a party.
Quality Wrenches
You’ll want wrenches for general repairs, but make sure they’re high quality. Good wrenches can last you a lifetime, so don’t waste your time on cheap ones you’ll have to replace sooner than you’d like. Most parts you’ll be working on use metric measurements, so to avoid spending all your time converting, make sure your wrench set is scaled by metric standards. Your set should include Allen wrenches, Crescent wrenches, and vice grips.
Socket Seth
Socket wrenches are also very helpful for various repairs on your ATV or UTV. They’re specifically designed to remove nuts and bolts without damaging the paint or the chrome on your machine. Make sure your set has a comfortable grip and that you only get a few ratchet sizes but a full set of sockets for each.
Torque Wrench
The more invested you are in your vehicle and the more you’d like to properly maintain your ATV or UTV, the more likely you’ll need a torque wrench. Torque wrenches help you apply a specific amount of force to fasteners, making them essential for the parts on your engine that will require more force to keep them in place while you’re out on the road.
Breaker Bar
f your wrenches aren’t enough and you still can’t quite get a stuck-on fastener out, you’ll want to make sure you have a breaker bar handy. They’re similar to normal wrenches, except they have a much bigger handle so you can really put your back into it.
Screwdrivers
Even with your extensive wrench collection, you’re still going to need a set of screwdrivers. While ratcheting screwdrivers are easy to use and store, it’s easy to lose parts, so we recommend buying a complete set of full screwdrivers.
Wood/Urethane Mallet
As unusual as it may seem, you’ll definitely want a hammer or mallet. There are certain situations in which you’ll need one, so you’ll want to make sure you buy one that gets the job done without damaging your ride. This is why we suggest a wood or urethane mallet.
Multimeter
If you get as far as working on the electrical parts of your machine, you’ll want to make sure you have a multimeter handy. It’s a small, portable device that measures conductivity on your side-by-side or 4 wheeler. It measures the different aspects of electrical conductivity, such as resistance, amperage, and voltage. It’s essential for identifying problem areas and improving performance.
If you’re serious about properly maintaining your ATV or UTV, you’ll want to make sure your work area has all these tools. But even the best home mechanics eventually run into something that will require more delicate or specified procedures, so when that happens, bring your ATV or UTV to Crossroad Powersports. We’re located in Upper Darby, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.