Two-up on a bike that has been in a shed for eight months
A friend with a full licence asks you to take them pillion on a 600 cc motorcycle that has been stored in a shed for eight months. You hold a current category A learner permit and completed your IBT six months ago. Before setting off you check the machine: front tyre tread is 0.8 mm at the centre, the rear is 3 mm; the owner's manual specifies 25-35 mm of chain slack and you measure 45 mm; the front brake lever comes back almost to the grip; the rear tyre is 14 psi below the manual figure; the headlight and brake light both work. The bike is taxed and insured.
1. Can the trip go ahead as planned? Justify your answer.
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No - and there are two independent reasons, either of which is enough.
- Legal: a learner permit holder may not carry a pillion passenger. That rule is about the rider's permit, not the machine, so no amount of fettling changes it. (L plates and the motorway restriction come with the same permit.)
- Safety: the front brake lever coming back almost to the grip points to a hydraulic fault - air in the system, a fluid loss or a failing master-cylinder seal. A brake like that can fade or fail entirely under hard use, and a pillion adds weight and heat. The bike should not be ridden at all until that is diagnosed.
Answer the question as asked - not 'the bike needs a service' - but the trip is off on the permit point alone.
2. Rank the remaining machine findings and say what each means for a solo ride tomorrow.
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1. Front brake - do not ride. As above: a spongy lever to the bar is a defect, not a characteristic. Repair or inspect first; nothing else on the list matters until it is fixed.
2. Front tyre, 0.8 mm - illegal and unsafe. Motorcycle tyres must meet the legal minimum tread depth (1 mm for motorcycles), so this one is already below the limit, and at that depth it will aquaplane readily in the wet. Replace.
3. Chain, 45 mm against a 25-35 mm spec - too slack. Expect snatch on and off the throttle, a risk of the chain jumping the sprocket, and rapid wear of chain and sprockets. Adjust to spec, then check sprocket teeth for hooking and the chain for tight spots.
4. Rear tyre, 3 mm - legal but 14 psi down. Pressure that far out changes steering, heats the tyre and reduces grip. Set it to the manual figure and inspect for cracking or a flat spot from eight months standing.
Also budget for a service, not a five-minute check: eight months idle means fuel, battery, brake fluid age, fork seals and tyre condition all deserve attention.
3. Suppose the machine passed every check and the rider held a full licence. What else must be true before carrying a pillion?
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- Hardware: a proper pillion seat and proper footrests - not a luggage rack, a tail fairing or the subframe. A pillion must have somewhere to sit and somewhere to put their feet.
- Helmet: a pillion passenger must wear a approved motorcycle helmet, same as the rider.
- Setup: tyre pressures and suspension preload adjusted for two-up as the manual specifies - the 14 psi and the slack chain would both matter far more with a passenger aboard.
- Insurance: confirm the policy covers carrying a passenger.
- The rider: carrying a pillion changes braking, steering and low-speed balance noticeably. A rider who has never done it should not start with a long motorway trip or a wet night.
- The passenger: brief them before moving off - hold on, lean with the rider, keep feet on the pegs at every stop, and do not mount or dismount until told.