Motorcycle wheel and tyre accessories buying guide | How to keep your bike rolling for the long term

Your motorcycle tyres and wheels are the only part of the bike that ever touch the tarmac (hopefully), so it’s important to have some wheel and tyre accessories and tools on hand to keep them in good nick. These accessories and tools help you perform little maintenance tasks that keep your bike ready for every ride — because the open road should beckon you on, not taunt you while your bike’s out of action.

There are plenty of accessories and tools available for the wheels and tyres of your ride, all designed for different purposes. From checking tyre pressures and tread depth, to inflating them, protecting your bodywork from grime, and more.

What to consider before buying

Compatibility

For some wheel and tyre accessories, it can be important to consider whether it will work with your bike. Puncture repair kits, for example, typically only work with either tubed or tubeless tyres, and fender extenders will be made to fit a specific model of bike.

Size and weight

Some wheel and tyre accessories might look lighter than they are, whereas some are no bigger than a pencil. In each case consider what you’ll be using it for, and whether the size and weight will work for you.

Accuracy

If you need to measure things like tyre pressures or tread depth, these should be accurate, but consider how important this is for you, and weigh up your options based on your budget.

Build quality

Investing in good quality and durable tools is an investment in your bike too, and wheel and tyre accessories are no exception. If you go with the best quality that you can afford, your bike will pay you back with cheaper garage bills in return.

The best motorcycle wheel and tyre accessories and tools

Tyre inflators

Having a tyre inflator at home means you don’t need to take a trip to the petrol station just to top up the air in your tyres. You can quickly and easily change your tyre pressures when you need to for riding two-up, testing different pressures on a track day, or inflate them if you’re changing tyres at home.

Gauges

From tyre pressures to tread depth, keeping an eye on the condition of your tyres is important, as poorly maintained tyres are one of the easiest ways to end up in a potentially dangerous situation on the road. Thankfully, a gauge is all you need to check on your tyres, and they’re compact and cheap enough that there’s always room in the garage for one. If you haven’t got one yet, here are our favourite gauges to help you keep your wheels and tyres in good nick:

---

Puncture repair kits

The one wheel and tyre accessory you always have but hope you never use: You never want to get caught out without a puncture repair kit. They’re cheap enough that if you run tubeless tyres, these puncture repair kits are an absolute no-brainer:

---

Fender Extenders and Mudguards

Not everyone likes the look of a fender extender or mudguard, but they’re one of the best ways to keep dirt off your bike so it doesn’t accumulate as quickly. When the weather takes a turn for the worse, these are our favourite fender extenders and mudguards to consider:

---

How MCN tests products

Here at MCN, we make it our mission to help you find the right kit for you, at the right price for your budget. We test our wheel and tyre accessories the same way you’ll use yours, by maintaining our own bikes with them. Our word is backed by thousands of hours in the workshop and hundreds of thousands of miles in the saddle, but our recommendations come from each tester individually.

While testing, we mainly focus on build quality, ease of use, and value. When we write up our full reviews, we’ll give each wheel and tyre accessory a rating out of five stars in each of these categories, and offer a final verdict too. This page is only for the best wheel and tyre accessories, so each one you’ll see has been awarded at least four stars overall – that’s the passing grade – but here’s what each score really means:

1 star – Poor performance in this category or overall. A wheel or tyre accessory with a single star rating has fallen below the expected standard and should be avoided.
2 stars – Basic performance in this area or overall. A wheel or tyre accessory with a two-star rating has managed to perform to a barely acceptable level, and there is much room for improvement.
3 stars – An average performance in this area or overall. A wheel or tyre accessory with a three-star rating has achieved a basic level of performance and is deemed adequate.
4 stars – A wheel or tyre accessory has performed over and above the accepted averaged in this category or overall. A wheel or tyre accessory with a four-star rating has surpassed expectation and delivered in a particularly impressive way.
5 stars – A wheel or tyre accessory has performed at the highest possible level in a particular category or overall. A wheel or tyre accessory with a five-star rating has delivered to the highest possible level, impressing the tester with its performance. We would happily spend our own money on it.

To find out more, head to our dedicated page explaining how we test motorcycle products.

- Just so you know, we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website - read why you should trust us.