Career profile for Motorcycle Mechanic

What does a Motorcycle Mechanic do?

Motorcycle Mechanics diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul motorcycles, scooters, mopeds, dirt bikes, or similar motorized vehicles.

What kind of tasks does a Motorcycle Mechanic perform regularly?

Motorcycle Mechanics are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Mount, balance, change, or check condition or pressure of tires.
Replace defective parts, using hand tools, arbor presses, flexible power presses, or power tools.
Dismantle engines and repair or replace defective parts, such as magnetos, carburetors, or generators.
Connect test panels to engines and measure generator output, ignition timing, or other engine performance indicators.
Listen to engines, examine vehicle frames, or confer with customers to determine nature and extent of malfunction or damage.
Repair or replace other parts, such as headlights, horns, handlebar controls, gasoline or oil tanks, starters, or mufflers.
Disassemble subassembly units and examine condition, movement, or alignment of parts, visually or using gauges.
Repair or adjust motorcycle subassemblies, such as forks, transmissions, brakes, or drive chains, according to specifications.
Reassemble frames and reinstall engines after repairs.
Remove cylinder heads and grind valves to scrape off carbon and replace defective valves, pistons, cylinders, or rings, using hand and power tools.
Install motorcycle accessories.
Reassemble and test subassembly units.

The above responsibilities are specific to Motorcycle Mechanics. More generally, Motorcycle Mechanics are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment		Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems		Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings		Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials		Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment		Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.

Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment

Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.

Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings

Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.

Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials

Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment

Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.

What is a Motorcycle Mechanic salary?

The median salary for a Motorcycle Mechanic is $38,010, and the average salary is $40,390. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Motorcycle Mechanic salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Motorcycle Mechanics earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Motorcycle Mechanics earn less than $25,420 per year, 25% earn less than $30,090, 75% earn less than $49,100, and 90% earn less than $60,940.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Motorcycle Mechanics is expected to change by 10.0%, and there should be roughly 1,700 open positions for Motorcycle Mechanics every year.

Median annual salary: $38,010
Typical salary range: $25,420 - $60,940
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 10.0%

What personality traits are common among Motorcycle Mechanics?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Motorcycle Mechanic are usually higher in their Realistic interests.

Motorcycle Mechanics typically have very strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Motorcycle Mechanic tend to value Independence, Support, and Working Conditions.

Most importantly, Motorcycle Mechanics strongly value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Second, Motorcycle Mechanics moderately value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Lastly, Motorcycle Mechanics moderately value Working Conditions. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Motorcycle Mechanics must consistently demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, dependability, and integrity.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Motorcycle Mechanics, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Persistence		Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Initiative		Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Persistence

Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.

Initiative

Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

What education and training do Motorcycle Mechanics need?

Motorcycle Mechanics often have training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Motorcycle Mechanics usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Motorcycle Mechanics

13.6% did not complete high school or secondary school
44.2% completed high school or secondary school
27.0% completed some college coursework
9.7% earned a Associate's degree
3.9% earned a Bachelor's degree
0.6% earned a Master's degree
1.0% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Motorcycle Mechanics

Motorcycle Mechanics may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as mechanical, customer and personal service, or computers and electronics knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Motorcycle Mechanics might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Mechanical		Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Customer and Personal Service		Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Computers and Electronics		Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Mathematics		Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Education and Training		Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Mechanical

Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Mathematics

Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Education and Training

Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Important Abilities needed by Motorcycle Mechanics

Motorcycle Mechanics must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Motorcycle Mechanics need abilities such as deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning, and manual dexterity in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Motorcycle Mechanics, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Deductive Reasoning		The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Inductive Reasoning		The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Manual Dexterity		The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
Finger Dexterity		The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Deductive Reasoning

The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Inductive Reasoning

The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

Manual Dexterity

The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

Finger Dexterity

The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Critical Skills needed by Motorcycle Mechanics

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Motorcycle Mechanics frequently use skills like troubleshooting, repairing, and equipment maintenance to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Motorcycle Mechanics, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Troubleshooting		Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
Repairing		Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
Equipment Maintenance		Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking		Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Troubleshooting

Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.

Repairing

Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.

Equipment Maintenance

Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Motorcycle Mechanic

Motorcycle Mechanic

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