Any tricks to keeping a motorcycle clean in towed?

Ductape wrote:
I figured this is probably the best forum to ask this question. We all know how dirty the toads get. Especially if you tow on greasy roads in the rain!

In past travels I carried a motorcycle in the rear of my trucks when we used a TT. Worked well. Now I want to carry the bike in the bed of a towed truck. Concerned about the road filth that gets sucked into the wake of the MH. Sometimes the toad is so dirty you need gloves just to approach it. :E

Any tricks? Or am I just too OCD? :B

Ductape,
Well, I've done all of what you're presently considering. I've carried dirt bikes on the back of previous coaches and towed at the same time and, I've carried our '08 Honda GL 1800 Goldwing on the back of our '04 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the C-7 330HP CAT and still towed our Jeep or, CRV.

On the back of the coach, yes, it get's fairly dirty back there. But, I wrote it off as a trade off for simplicity in carrying and towing. Now, we're doing exactly what you're thinking of. Our toad is an '11 GMC Sierra 1500 4x4 Extended Cab and, we use the Rampage lift/carrier to haul the Wing. The bike does not get nearly as dirty as in the back of the truck as it did on the back of the coach.

But, it still does get dirty, somewhat. Here's the deal. I consider myself to be fairly patient. I take the time to load the bike and then, take a bit more time to add extra tie-downs for a real secure, 900 lb. motorcycle. Now, I do have what's called the "Ultra-Gard" travel cover for that bike. It's like putting on a MUMMY SLEEPING BAG for a motorcycle. It does fit snugly.

But, this is where I don't have the patience. With 6 tie-downs on that bike, four tie-downs used for the front and two for the rear, trying to install that cover, clip all the clips on all the cinch bands/straps all over and under that cover (under the bike that is) is one serious pain in the a$$.

Now, not sure what kind or size of bike you're intending hauling but, the larger ones, HARLEYs, Goldwings, etc. take up a serious amount of room in the back of any pickup so, trying to get a body in there and sneak around trying to cinch down a cover, to me, is just not worth it. I'll simply write off the getting dirty part and give it a good spritz when I off load it at the next camp site.

And all this depends on just what kind of road(s) you've been on. If you've done mostly paved, well traveled roads, freeways etc. for that part of the trip, your bike will not be all that bad when it comes time to back it down. But, if you go goofing around off road, to get to a camp site etc, well, that's a whole different story.

By the way, again not knowing what kind/size of bike you're intending on hauling, I'd check the Craigs list adds for used Rampage lifts. They normally go for around $3K brand new but, we got ours, that had been used twice for $1500. It works flawlessly. I did the install. I set that system up so that Rampage is out of that truck in approximately 2-3 minutes. If you're interested in how I did this, PM me and I'd be glad to show and explain it to you.
Scott

Like you-I've used the Overbilt Lift, Full enclsed wells Cargo trailer, Rampart loader in back of pickup bed, and several different trailers. when using the back of the pickup I used a Gatorhide http://www.gatorhide.com/index.html Good pictures at this URL and you'll get an idea of how it works. It has a soft flannel covering that is then covered by a heavier cover and a unique 'bungee' system to secure so no wind flapping. The flannel inside cover kept ANY minor flapping from marring the paint. I'm now using this really light wt trailer that I can actually triple tow behind my tow vehicle it seals over the bike and NOTHING gets in. Of all the things I've tried, this one works the best. It is called a Toy Carrier google toy carrier canadian and you'll see some pictures of it (white shell)

I had an open trailer. Motorcycle got trashed in the rain and really messed up towing in a snow storm.

I bought a Geeze (sp?) cover. Not much better. I bought a better, heavy duty cover. The wind moving the cover wrecked the paint...

I now have an enclosed trailer where I can keep all my riding gear and other stuff I might like to take camping. All under lock and key and out of view.

Plus an enclosed trailer at the campsite makes a great "Man Cave" when its raining and you want to get away from "you know who".....;)

A full...total...bike cover

They make a Geza cover that fits like a glove over the motorcycle, it does not hurt the paint and keeps the major stuff off of the bike, it still gets some dirt on it but not too bad.
I am sure that Geza has a web site, so check it out, it has worked fine for me.
Ray

I cover mine on the back of the motorhome for long trips. Short, good weather, run without. Folks say covers cause paint damage...I have yet to experience that. :) :)
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