Going out for a ride during the rainy season might seem adventurous and cool, but if you're not properly equipped for it, the situation might take a critical turn.

While it's important to get your motorcycle or scooter serviced, you can do a few checks on your own to ensure a smoother ride.

Tyre

A thorough check of your tyres for any signs of being worn out is a must. The grip and control, especially in the monsoon, depends greatly on the condition of your tyres.

Check the air pressure and the tread depth of the tyres as both affect the grip. Wet road surfaces can cause the tyres to hydroplane, which means uncontrollable sliding of the tyres. The tread depth is meant to displace water. If the grooves of your tyres are less than 2mm deep, it's time to change them. 

All wheeled vehicles have some braking system in place. Brakes are meant to bring a moving vehicle to a halt and are one of the most important features of any vehicle. There are two types of brakes used in two-wheelers - drum brakes and disc brakes. 

Both the braking systems essentially workon the same principle of pressing friction material against a spinning drum/disc. While the drum brake is an older style of braking than the disc brake which is technologically more advanced, the former is still very relevant in India and is used mostly in mass selling vehicles.

A drum brake system has a wheel cylinder with pistons and a set of brake shoes inside a spinning drum. The pistons push the brake shoes against the side of the drum, which stops the rotation of the drum and brings the vehicle to a halt.

​A disc brake system comprises a metal disc rotor and a caliper assemblywith brake pads connected to a master cylinder. When we pull the brake lever, brake fluid is pushed out towards the assembly and the hydraulic force puts pressure via the pads on the disc to stop the wheels.