How do I get a non-running bike to a shop?

A bike that will not start is a logistics problem before it is a mechanical one. You have four realistic options, and which one is right depends on whether it rolls, how far the shop is, and what you have access to. Here they are, cheapest first.

Before anything: does it roll?

Put it in neutral and push it a few feet. If both wheels turn freely and the bars steer, every option below is open. If the rear wheel is locked, the chain is off, or a fork is bent, skip to the trailer and tow options and tell whoever moves it that the bike does not roll. That changes the equipment they bring.

1. Ask the shop

The shop you want to use may collect bikes. Some independents have a trailer and will pick up locally for a flat fee or for free on a paid job. Dealers sometimes run a van. One phone call answers it, and the shop knows how to move a bike without hurting it.

2. A friend with a trailer or a truck

Cheapest by far if you have the friend. You need a ramp, a chock or at least a way to hold the front wheel, four straps, and soft loops. Two people loading beats one. Walk the bike up in neutral with one person on each side; do not ride it up a ramp into a truck bed, that is how the classic loading injury happens.

If it does not roll, this option gets hard. A non-rolling bike needs a winch or a flatbed.

3. Rent a trailer

A small motorcycle trailer or a utility trailer with a chock rents for less than a tow in most places, if you have a vehicle with a hitch. Same strapping rules as above. The trailer rental counter will not lend you soft loops, so bring your own.

4. Call a tow operator who handles motorcycles

The easiest option and the one where the most goes wrong, because most tow companies handle cars and improvise on bikes. You want a flatbed or a purpose-built cradle, soft loops, a chock, and a driver who can tell you where the straps go. Ask on the phone, before you give the address. Prices are usually a call-out fee plus mileage; get the number first. The tow and roadside listings on this site are filtered for operators who carry motorcycles, which saves the phone screening.

The one thing not to do

Do not try to ride it. A bike that started but will not idle, has a front brake pulling to one side, or is leaking fuel is a bike that will fail somewhere worse than your driveway. The exceptions are small: a dead turn signal is not a tow. A cracked mirror is not a tow. Everything involving brakes, fuel, steering, or a noise you have not heard before is.

Tell the shop what you know

When it arrives, tell them how long it sat, what it did before it quit, and what you have already tried. “I put a new battery in and it still cranks slow” is worth an hour of diagnosis. A bike that arrives with no story costs more to fix.