The Powerband Podcast's Ray Heron is a man on a mission. Loving to ride in the dirt whenever the opportunity knocks, but hating the arduous task of cleaning up after, he needed something to take the effort out of the job. Enter Motomuck.
Words and Photos by Ray Heron
Let’s get one thing straight from the beginning, I hate washing motorcycles. I love a clean bike, but there are so many nooks, cranneys, and fiddly bits. And no matter how long you spend washing, scrubbing, wiping, there are always bits you miss. Then you get chain lube on the rims or swing arm and that's pretty difficult to get off on top of it all. Not to mention tar spots and water marks, and if you ride your road bike year round, don't get me started on the road grime that accumulates literally everywhere… So that said, what will Motomuck do to change this? Well, before we see if it worked on our test bike, we should discuss where Motomuck came from. Motomuck was started by Hylton Pause in 2009, after he became frustrated by not being able to find a cleaner good enough for his beloved vehicles.
There was a lot of testing which lead to the original Motomuck Cleaner eventually becoming the product Hylton had been looking for.
The rest of the family were roped in and put to work in the manufacturing, bottling, packaging and delivering, all from the garage of the family home! Not gonna lie, that’s pretty damn cool!
These days Motomuck is 100% NZ developed, and operates in bigger premises with bases in Auckland and Brisbane.
Add to that the fact that Motomuck is currently endorsed by multiple NZ World Champions, iconic rally drivers, professional speedway racers, NZ Offroad Champions and many other NZ motorsport champions. They wouldn't put their name to it if it wasn't the goods would they?
Motomuck also has over 300 other supported competitors who are supported via the Motomuck sponsorship program. With backing like that, it must work, right?
With the bold claim of “no effort cleaning” we put Motomuck to the test on our 2003 Yamaha WR250 dirt bike. We usually clean the bike the ol’ fashioned way, that is with a bucket, sponge, standard car cleaning detergent and a pressure sprayer for the non-sensitive parts. But as stated already, the results can vary due to energy left at the end of the day and attention span.
Following a four hour ride through dust, mud, and river crossings, we were satisfied the bike was sufficiently filthy and a worthy test of this “no effort cleaner”.
We started by hosing the bulk of the mud and grit off the bike. Next up we sprayed the pink Motomuck cleaning solution all over the bike. Being sure not to skimp on the fiddly bits like the rear shock, around the triple clamp and the swing arm.
If we’re being honest, the hardest part of this was the repetitive motion of squeezing the spray bottle trigger.
Surprisingly, already some of the grime that had been on the bike for years was already starting to run off – including hardened chain lube on the swing arm!
After a couple of quick coats of Motomuck (as advised by Hylton) we cracked a Fanta and gave the cleaning solution a good 5 minutes to soak in before taking the pressure sprayer to the bike. At this point I would like to be perfectly clear, we have not been paid to review this product. Hylton and the team at Motomuck have not put us under any pressure to supply a positive review. So when we say we are impressed with this product, that is the truth. We could instantly see a massive improvement. Seriously, our WR250 has actually never been cleaner.
When they say “no effort” they’re not kidding. At the risk of sounding like like a laundry powder commercial, the whites are whiter, the colours are brighter and the decals and stickers haven't been damaged in the slightest. If there is any downside at all, that would have to be the need to be quite liberal with your usage of the Motomuck cleaning solution, but if that's the only downside, and it is, we struggle to see that as a reason not to use Motomuck every wash. What we are more impressed with however is the fact that we are assured this product is safe to use on plastic, metal, rubber, chrome, and anything else you find on your bike. Meaning you can use the same bottle of Motomuck on your road bike as well as your dirt bike. Regardless of weather its a Harley, Indian, KTM, BMW, Yamaha, what ever. While taking a look at the Motomuck website we were impressed at the wide range of products the company now has on offer. Everything from products for alloy wheels, Off-road vehicles and 4X4s, mountain bikes or even your lawnmower.
Then there's a range of applicators and spray nozzles, and when you completely fall in love with Motomuck, you can grab some apparel and stickers too.
We’re struggling to think of another product that cleans our bikes as well and with as little effort as Motomuck, though we’re willing to try as Motomuck is without a doubt THE benchmark. This is honestly a must in the garage for any motorcycle owner, not only for dirt riders, but for any motorcyclist, for removing that road grime and restoring the lustre of your ride.
Motomuck, 5 stars, look for it at Repco, Supercheap Auto, or local motorcycle dealer, if they don't stock Motomuck, do them a favour and ask them to get it in.