UTV Maintenance Tips
Your utility vehicle, also called a UTV or a side by side for its bench seating, is a versatile and useful tool whether you’re doing heavy hauling around the work site or on a recreational off-roading ride. If you want your side by side to continue to serve you well for work and play, you’ll need to keep it well maintained. Fortunately, most UTV maintenance isn’t too difficult to do at home in your garage or shed, provided you have the correct tools and a little know-how. Your local UTV dealer, America’s Motor Sports Dickson, serves the whole of Tennessee, so come down to us if you have any questions about UTV maintenance after reading this handy guide.
Check Your Tire Pressure
The tires of your side by side hold up the weight of the vehicle and have to face all that difficult terrain, so they’re likely to wear out sooner than those on your passenger car. You’ll want to check the tires before each ride to make sure that they’re evenly aired up. Use a tire pressure gauge like the one you have in your glove box and fill up tires to the manufacturer’s suggested pressure rating. While you’re down there, check each tire for bald spots, low treads, embedded objects and any other issues that could reduce performance or cause a blowout.
Protect Your Battery
The battery of your side by side is vital to keeping it running, so you’ll want to check it regularly to make sure it’s not corroded. Look at the battery posts on a monthly basis and make sure all wires are connected well. While your UTV’s battery will hold less of a charge over time, if you notice a significant and sudden drop in performance, then this might merit a battery replacement or at least an inspection by a professional mechanic.
Replenish Coolant
Refill your UTV’s coolant on a regular basis to keep your engine from overheating. Make sure that your radiator cap is secure and not broken, since this component is responsible for drawing the coolant into your engine. If the cap seal is loose, then your UTV might not perform as well and is more liable to overheat. If you see fluids pooling beneath your parked UTV, this is a sign of a radiator leak that you’ll want to have addressed by a professional mechanic like those here at America’s Motor Sports Dickson.
Oil & Fuel
Your side by side engine’s oil needs to be regularly topped up and changed on a schedule, just like the oil in your passenger car’s engine. Whenever you check the oil using the dipstick, wipe it and reinsert it before you examine it again. Change the oil if it looks viscous and dark, and change the oil filter at the same time. If you find metal shavings in the oil, take your UTV to a mechanic right away because this signals that parts of your engine are grinding against each other.
As for fuel, side by sides run best when filled with high-octane fuel. Ethanol can stretch fuel supplies, but it also leads to corrosion and build-up in your side by side’s engine, so it’s best to use pure gasoline without ethanol added. If you do use standard gasoline, drain your carburetor after each ride and add fuel stabilizer when you’re storing your side by side.
UTV maintenance is perfectly doable so long as you know where to start and what you’re looking for. Check out our dealership in Dickson to see our full inventory of new and used side by sides for sale. America’s Motor Sports Dickson is conveniently near Jackson, Clarksville and Columbia, Tennessee. We also serve the city of Huntsville, Alabama.