Hi all. I for one despise skipping any maintenance tasks. But I am just going through some stuff on my bike, like coolant change, and see other things like coolant hoses and o-ring change every 3 years. Are these guys serious? My hoses are in PERFECT condition. I think this is overkill if you ask me.

Why is it that my car doesn't require a coolant change on that basis and my bike requires, by the book anyway, every 2 years. I can name a few things that are like this on the bike but you guys know what I mean. Its ridiculous and gets very expensive. My bike is always garaged. Doesn't see below zero temps so its not like my hoses are going through extreme temp changes. What are your guys thoughts? Thx guys
Jack

Jack, I think it's more ass covering so no one can sue and say, 'well it wasn't in the manual that said it has to be changed.' So they pile on the shelf life more or less so if someone goes down on a wet-cracked hose line, show the receipt it was ever changed, now 20 years later you begin the suit?

Because you know that 100k bike with all those miles, that means he's gone thru so many radi hoses 'buy' now, and oh, lookey there, the same original hoses that came with the bike... just saying. They don't say to change the drain lines off the gas tank and that's pretty much the same kind of rubber quality. How come no change in 3k for those?

So with all the bike brands, the non-replacements or the lack of following the manual replacing radi hoses for decades now, this is just as an example. Lets change rubber to the brake hoses and there are still the same old brake hoses running around on old Z-1 bikes say. It has to pass DOT, so that's quality oil resistant rubber, as opposed to the black deterioration of the brake diaphragm rubber turning the oil black on some 14's.

That's what you want to look for. Rubber has memory for so long, springs back, etc. But then it gets old, stays compressed, begins to crack. With water/oil turning black, this might be where manufacturing rubber and EPA begins messing around with the formula and now Japan is in on it too? The good old stuff that lasted longer is gone. Now it's a continued plan obsolescence shortened even more?

Radiator hoses last longer than 3 years for sure (depending upon the climate you live in). My previous ride was 10 years old when I bought it and had the original hoses without any issues. I rode it for 2 years/10K miles and had no issues. Coolant is a different story, though. It loses performance over time and I feel safer to replace it every 2 year. This is however your decision. After many years of riding you establish your own rules like what oil you use and how often you replace it. Coolant used on automobiles is slightly different and offers longer life. Toyota and Honda claim 100K miles without replacement. It may be interesting to see how Toyota's red coolant work on ZX. Anyway, the final decision is yours.