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Ignition Problem 1980 ET

  • Thread starter Thread starter Russell Clark
  • Start date Start date
R

Russell Clark

Guest
I have a strange problem with my 1980 GSX 1100 ET. I have very little or no spark. Last week on the way to work, the bike suddenly lost power. That night, I changed the sparkplugs and noticed No. 2 was very fouled. Put the new plugs in and bike still had no power. I took out each plug and checked the spark and found there was very little or none. I have since replaced the coils and the activator and it has made no difference. The pickups on the crank are within spec.

Before I rewire the ignition, I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem?

Russell
 
With the ignition switched on, but the bike not running, headlight on, I would check voltage level going to the coil terminals. Should be an orange/white wire on each coil. It should be more or less showing 12.5 volts.

E.
 
I have checked the voltage and it is 11.9 volts. I have also checked the voltage at the Activator and it is the same. I believe they are on the same circuit. The battery, however, is 12.3 volts.

R
 
12.3 is close to a dead battery. My first thought is you need a new battery.
There really isnt (that I know of) a reliable way to check an ignition system without having a normal charge level in the battery. At 12.3 volts and an old battery, you may simply not have the electrical capacity to power the system.

E.


Russell Clark said:
I have checked the voltage and it is 11.9 volts. I have also checked the voltage at the Activator and it is the same. I believe they are on the same circuit. The battery, however, is 12.3 volts.

R
Click to expand...
 
The battery is only a couple of months old, but I charged it it up and now the voltage is 12.97 volts. I traced all the wires and checked for breakages and rubbing, and cleaned all the connectors.

I now get the same voltage at the battery, coils and at the ativator power. I have to disconnect the activator, otherwise the coils give a lower reading.

The spark is more powerfull now, but I still think it could be better.

I will see how it runs on the road.

Russell
 
I think you may have a charging system problem. Either the rectifier/regulator or the stator. The battery is not charging so it will run down and then die. If #2 was fouled bad, you may also have a leaky petcock. The gas may be running down the vacuum line and fouling it out. Check that also.
 
I have checked the charging system and it is within spec. There was a small leak in the petcock as you suggested, so I replaced it with a Katana one from the wreckers. Thanks for that tip.

I also removed the fuse holder and cleaned all the terminals. There was a lot of corrosion and road grime behind the holder and in and around the connectors.

The bike seems to run OK now, but I will keep an eye on the charging system and wiring.

I have also asked for this thread to be moved to the technical section.

Russell
 
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