How To Treat Your ATVs Gas/Fuel

If you have been experiencing performance issues with your ATV starting or running smoothly, it could be a sign that you need to treat your gas/ fuel system.

To treat your ATV’s gas/fuel, you need to purchase an ATV fuel system cleaning product, which you will apply to your gas before the next time that you refuel. In addition, the best way to avoid issues with this is to use quality, high octane gas when filling your tank.

If you love riding your All-terrain vehicle and want to get the best performance out of it, then you are going to want to know exactly how to treat your ATV’s gas/fuel. As the expression goes, you are what you eat - and the same applies with your quad and the gas that you put into it, which is why you want to make sure that you are filling it with quality fuel that is going to give it the best performance that it can deliver - and a long lifespan to take care of your riding needs for years to come. There is a lot of talk about the best way is to treat your ATV’s gas and fuel when performance issues do arise. While there are some amazing products out there that do wonders in treating your ATV’s gas/fuel system, you will find that some products do work considerably better than others.

After decades of working as a professional quad mechanic and motocross racer, I have had years of experience fixing quads that have experienced issues with their gas/fuel system. My experience has taught me that the majority of these issues arose from riders using fuel that is lower in quality and fuel system cleaning products that were not highly regarded by experienced riders and quad manufacturers.

‍ATV Gas/Fuel Treatment

There are plenty of reasons that you want to give your ATV adequate gas/fuel treatment - with the most important being to ensure that your machine continues to perform the way you want it to. Over the years I have seen plenty of quad riders fill their tanks with just about any type of gas that they can get their hands on - with the common justification being, it runs and it’s cheap! 

While you should be able to expect your All-terrain vehicle to run on just about any type of fuel that we have available to us here in the United States, you will find that long-term and sometimes even short-term performance can be greatly influenced by what you fill your tank with and how you treat the problem once it arises.

The best solution to this issue is to simply take care of your quad and fill it with the best quality fuel that is suited for your machine. However, performance issues will still happen over time with just about every quad over the years and all you can do is take the best care of your ATV that you can - while giving it routine maintenance checks periodically.

A great way to identify issues that result in gas treatment is to be well acquainted with your machine. After riding your quad long enough, you should be able to identify even the slightest symptoms of adverse performance, which will always be a telltale sign that something is off and that a maintenance check is in order. If you have been around quads long enough, then you should not have a problem taking care of most of the minor issues caused by gas/fuel on your own. However, if you are not confident in identifying what the problem is, then you should always seek professional help by reaching out to a mechanic for a second opinion.

Fuel System Treatment

If you have been experiencing performance issues with your quad such as it being difficult to start or the machine having a sluggish response while you are out driving, then you may need to treat your ATV’s fuel system.

Luckily there are some great products out there that are perfect for solving issues with your fuel system that are incredibly easy to implement by even the most novice rider and they are also very affordable. You can buy any number of fuel system treatment products online or from a mechanic’s shop that should get the job done just fine.

What we would advise that you do before you go out and buy a fuel system cleaning product is that you check your ATV’s manual for any specific type of information pertaining to this situation. More often than not, you will find that these products are suitable for being used on just about any type of quad out there, but your quad’s manufacturer may have detailed a product that is better suited for your make and model. If that is the case, always use the product that is recommended by your manufacturer.

Once you have your product, applying it to your quad is very straightforward. Here’s how:

1. Before your next fill-up, add the specified amount of the product into your gas tank, as labeled on the instructions.

2. Add 5 gallons of gasoline or an ethanol/gasoline mixture into your gas tank.

3. Let the engine run for roughly 10 minutes before riding.

4. You should repeat this process at the end of a riding season, which should be followed by another round at the beginning of the following riding season. However, if you ride all year long, then you should do this every 6 months or so.

It’s important that you use a good quality fuel system product when treating your All-terrain vehicle. While all products claim to perform the same miracles, you will find that some products undeniably get the job done better than others.

Some riders have reported having issues with some brands, which resulted in their quads seeing no improvements in performance or functionality. However, switching to a different brand that was regarded by experienced riders and manufacturers resulted in the quad’s performance improving in minutes of application.

High-Octane Fuel

If you are the kind of rider that likes to put the cheapest fuel possible inside of their All-terrain Vehicle, you should highly consider the long-term effects that this will have on your quad and its performance. While any fuel should technically work, using a lower quality type of gas can result in some unnecessary wear and tear on your machine that could easily be avoided.

To prevent this kind of damage from occurring to your ATV, you should consider using high-quality fuel when refilling your tank. Yes, it is more expensive, but the longevity that you end up getting out of your quad as a result of making the switch will save you money in the end and it will increase the fuel efficiency and performance of your machine.

With that being said, the best fuel for your quad may not necessarily be the most expensive either. Some quads are designed to perform best with mid-quality fuel which is better suited for their specific engine. The best way to find what fuel is best for your machine is to simply check the manual from your manufacturer.

By switching over to high-octane fuel, you can prevent all sorts of complications with your quad such as the buildup of deposits in your fuel system, starting issues, inconsistent acceleration response, and unexpected engine shutdowns. At the end of the day, the best way to treat a problem with your ATV is to avoid it in the first place, which high-octane fuel can certainly help prevent.