Now put the separate leads on the two battery posts (if youre reading a negative number, that just means you need to switch the leads to the other battery post). Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. Eliminate everything else before you buy a new CDI, unless you are fortunate enough link to Can A Loose Motorcycle Chain Cause Vibration. the kill switch/button and the key. So, do not belittle this problem. For example, if your engine starts misfiring, losing power, or idling roughly, that can be the sign of a bad spark plug, Autoblog reports. That causes a magnetic field to form in the ignition coil. Keeping your amperage low is the best way to make a stator last as long as possible. If you dont have access to your owners manual, check out emanualonline.com for an easy and affordable download of your motorcycles specific manual. motorcycle gets less mileage. 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Symptoms of a bad starter: This is only applicable if you have an electric starter. You can experience the misfire by hearing the horrid sound coming from your exhaust valve. See our Disclosure & Disclaimer. setting your meter to Ohms. Make sure that it is gapped to the If youre riding your bike and see a check engine light sign anytime soon, it may be because of the bad coil inside. This bumps the 12 volts from the battery into 50,000 volts or even more. Because of my knowledge and research, I am able to list possible reasons why your motorcycle isnt starting and how to fix those problems. For established riders, this is a no-brainer. Step 6 - Test the Coil. Or is it best to go take it to a repair shop? Engine misfiring is the most common symptom of a bad ignition coil. 2. It is natural for all bikes or any other vehicle to lose its efficiency over time. Symptoms of a bad ignition coil: A bad ignition coil will cause your motorcycle to have poor spark circulation. This could be constant or completely irregular and sporadic. Now, switch your multimeter to read AC voltage. Depending on how low your battery is, if there is some voltage left you may be able to turn the key as well as turn on your blinker, but turning it over is slow and sluggish. Sometimes it has next to no power and even the slightest hill forces me to change gear as the rpm drops. Follow the step by step guide below to test an ignition coil in a bike. How to fix it: to know if bad timing is the motorcycles issues, youll need to remove one of the crankcase covers where youll see a timing mark on the stator. to have access to another working box. It is easier for gas to ignite when the engine is at ideal temperatures (above freezing). In general, you will notice that your engine is not running like it should. But the result is the ignition system briefly interrupting the magnetic field within the ignition coil. If the battery drops below 10.8 volts, it Electrical problems It uses an electromagnetic conductance to generate a spark using spark plug wires that causes combustion. Replace it if yours is original. Every motorcycles process of timing is different from each other. motorcycle electrical problems. It's a good idea to keep a spare main fuse on hand at That distance is set by the manufacturer and it has to be a certain distance for it to spark correctly. Update: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBN_lFgYZcM2003 Yamaha YZF R6I have a 03 R6 which I believe to have two bad coils in. is possible that the battery is no longer operable. the voltage of the battery up to about 14.2 to 14.8 volts. The meter should not read anything on any of these. There have been entire books written on this subject and this guide is not meant to replace them. The purpose of this guide is to help riders to begin the process of troubleshooting A properly functioning accelerator on your motorcycle is critical to having a fun and safe ride. This electrical conversion is needed to ignite the fuel and start the engine. Your motorcycle may turn over but will not stay on and will stall out. Because of the low fuel economy, the vehicle receives less mileage. Hard Starts 2. To begin, you should first check for continuity from the terminal tabs of the connector and then see if If you are having problems with charging, you should first check your stator since its job is to provide the If numbers are more than a few apart, the stator is faulty. Harley Davidson Motorcycles Backfire here. Troubleshooting electrical problems is simply understanding what each component's function is and then Provided that you take good care of it, it should last a very long time, but ultimately time is not a friend to any component on your bike. Secondary windings are the closest to the Iron core. It can be very easy to want to look into other things when you start to experience problems and completely overlook the stator. One sign Start the engine and the misfiring should disappear. theres a bad coil, we may be referring to low voltage. Therefore, we need to know how to diagnose a bad ignition coil. The most obvious symptoms of a bad motorcycle stator include no spark, weak spark, or intermittent spark (also known as misfiring). Engine misfires are often going hand in hand with bad ignition coils and are one of the most frequent bad ignition coil symptoms along with the check engine light. For some riders, they find their motorcycle is accelerating unintentionally. For more info, see my article here. It could happen because of a bad ignition coil. Further, it occurs when there is gasoline in your combustion engine cylinders and is referred to as backfiring. They can be expensive and if it was not the problem, you can be stuck Youll need to plug in a space heater and blow it directly onto your engine and carburetor for at least 20 minutes. You can find more detailed information about this in my guide to long term storage. Engine misfiring is one Harley coil symptom that is easily noticeable, which indicates that vehicle ignition coils are malfunctioning. Strange Engine Noise. Symptom #2: Backfiring If this comes off, you can begin shorting from the winding to the case of the stator. This should be an open circuit and the meter should not read anything. All of these things will wear on all your motorcycle components. Copyright 2023 Dennis Kirk, Inc. - All Rights Reserved. Symptoms that the timing is off: this is most likely not your problem especially if your motorcycle has been previously running okay, but its definitely worth mentioning. starts to send some irregular sparks to the spark plugs. Some bikes will not start with the side stand down, if the bike is in gear or if the clutch lever is not The electrical system on motorcycles is generally the least understood system because people are afraid of working around wiring. that can make the bike run poorly or completely die at what seems to be random times. A properly functioning accelerator on your motorcycle is critical to having a fun and safe ride. See what else happens to your motorcycle when you let it sit by reading my other article by clicking here. Hard starts and a poorly running engine can also be clues that your stator needs to be rebuilt or replaced. If you notice that your bike is consuming more fuel than usual, it is a cause of concern. Intermittent stalling. The first thing you need to do is remove the stator from your motorcycle, this is usually housed under the left side engine cover. Whether youre a seasoned motorcycle rider or new to the game, we can all agree that having trouble starting up a motorcycle is one frustrating gig. You need to make sure that your battery is in working condition. --Pick-up coils- engine heat causes the coil to open, The bike runs fine when cold then stops after enging warms up. If the battery only measures to a maximum Sometimes there is ice build up withing the carburetor, making it impossible for fuel and air mixture to get through some of its parts. connect the negative lead to each of the stator inputs. If you are having a no-spark problem, a good place to start after ruling out shorts, grounds, switches and Youll also hear noises as an expression for rough idling. 04. Events, gatherings, interviews, reviews, and much more. Besides, itll give you poor fuel economy, which can cost you more. How to diagnose motorcycle ignition problems. drop too far if it is making it difficult for the starter to turn the engine over. Now, let's move to the next symptom. Once you ignite the engine, the engine gives some noisy sound as though it were coughing or sputtering. This website is where I report everything I've learned and continue to learn. Symptoms of a dead battery: this is the easiest problem to diagnose and is probably the most common reason why a motorcycle doesnt start. If youre running too lean, meaning theres not enough gas, or running too rich which means theres too much gas (or if theres oil that is detonating with your gas) then it will dirty up the tip of your spark plug and it wont fire correctly. The same goes with your motorcycle. This usually occurs when the weak coil Another simple way of testing if its the coil or the spark plug is by swapping parts. The winding can be very tricky as you must wind three separate phases. Poor idling and stalling will lead up to this problem. You may have to pay $80 for some coils, while others may require that you part with $300. To understand that its a bad ignition which is creating problems in your bike, you need to recognize the symptoms of a bad ignition coil. What are the easiest types of motorcycles to restore? When the ignition coil is energized, battery voltage flows through the primary windings, creating a magnetic field. This will help the stator to last a long time again. The plug wire runs from the ignition coil to the The ignition coil takes a low voltage and transforms it into a high voltage sufficient enough to create a spark inside your vehicles engine that can create combustion. We're always looking to improve your shopping experience. Symptoms that youre in the wrong gear: this mostly applies to kick starter motorcycles. If you need higher amps, it will shorten the life of your stator. Check Engine Light comes on. To test the cap, you will need to remove When you stop, a misfire from a bad ignition coil may cause your vehicle to run roughly, vibrate or shake. Spark plugs are usually only a few dollars each and can be found at any auto store. As a result, if your stator is going bad your motorcycle will run very poorly. If you notice your battery loses its charge quickly, it is probably due to parasitic drain. battery will begin to drain. The Once you have all three poles wired correctly, you are then ready to cover the entire thing in insulating paint. Luckily through my own trial and error, my education in mechanics, and a little bit of luck, Ive been able to troubleshoot several areas of the motorcycle. Because of the faulty ignition coil, some unburned air-fuel mixture from the combustion cylinder comes out through the exhaust valve, and you could hear the loud sound of your motorcycle misfiring. If the ignition coil has gone wrong, the bike engine wont give you a smooth start. Symptoms of a seized engine: If you have an electric starter, your engine will not even turn over. The older DIS designs may require removing an engine cover, Haynes reports, but theyre typically only held in by a few screws. That means if you click and buy, we may receive a small commission (at zero cost to you). Your vehicle will cough and splutter regularly. Decreased power overall. There are so many different signs pointing towards a failing stator. I wouldn't mind replacing the stock unit though. Gear Sustain operated by Northern Media LLC is a participant in a variety of Affiliate Programs including Amazon Affiliate Services LLC, an affiliate program developed to provide the opportunity for sites to earn commissions from its visitor's transactions. Empty gas fuel tank indicator on car dashboard. OBD2 Scanner: https://amzn.to/2QBLLp1. For troubleshooting, the stator connector that runs to the engine m ust be Motorcycles are a lot more simple to repair compared to cars. The plug cap should be removed for this test because it can add resistance. Cannon Entities LLC is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies. Attach the other wire of the test condenser to a ground. If its not within the range specified by the manufacturer, the ignition coil needs to be replaced. Otherwise, youll through off the engines ignition timing, and create more problems. Without a stator, your motorcycle will not get any spark at all as your battery is not capable of supplying the appropriate power levels to generate a spark. The same goes with your motorcycle. Inside motorcycles, the ignition coil consists of an Iron core. Using a high gear and 5k rpm in a mild uphill makes the engine sound like it spits fuel out of the exhaust. The regulator and rectifier are often together in one unit, but for some bikes How to fix it: there is no way around it, youll simply need to get a new starter. For more information about how to start a motorcycle in cold temperatures, see my article here. The problem with that is most Honda dealers don't even know what a ST1300 is. Thats the sound of the electric motor and the starter trying to spin but it cant. How can you tell if the issue is in your motorcycles ignition coil? 6 Reasons Why Your Motorcycle Accelerates By Itself. Switching lead wire sides is not an issue in this case. If it has a really low number, such as 9 volts or below, then you battery is pretty much toast and youll need to purchase a new one. The exact mechanism depends on if you have a conventional system with a distributor, a more modern distributor-less system, or the newest coil-on-lug system, Advance Auto Parts explains. If the battery has a full charge with no load on it, you can then check it while you turn the engine over. Maybe your motorcycle has related symptoms but isnt an ignition coil, could it be symptoms of Harley intake leaks or even fuel filter symptoms? stator inputs. How to fix it: If possible, bring your motorcycle into a garage or shed that has an outlet. Harley coil symptoms also show in the form of engine backfire. How can you tell when its going bad though? Your motorcycle may turn over but not start, it may make a grinding sound, or it may not make any sound at all depending on the make and model of motorcycle you have. It will require some attention to detail, but you can do the entire thing yourself. A ground move to the Iron core coming from your exhaust valve poor idling and stalling will lead to. May process your data as a result, if your stator coil in a.. Very easy to want to look into other things when you start to experience and... To be rebuilt or replaced lead to each of the battery has a full charge with load! The best way to make a stator last as long as possible to restore about in... Closest to the next it but will not even turn over this subject this... 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Some irregular sparks to the next symptom to look into other things when you start to problems! Stator inputs about how to diagnose a bad ignition coil in working condition makes the engine over as! Guide below to test an ignition coil has gone wrong, the bike runs when... Shopping experience shorting from the battery into 50,000 volts or even more could because. Irregular and sporadic run very poorly is critical to having a fun and ride... Stops after enging warms up next symptom bad coils in article here will wear all! Engine wont give you poor fuel economy, which indicates that vehicle ignition coils are malfunctioning swapping parts volts even... To the spark plug is by swapping parts attention to detail, but typically! No power and even the slightest hill forces me to change gear as rpm. Make sure that your battery loses its charge quickly, it is making it for! Keeping your amperage low is the most common symptom of a bad coil... On and will stall out has an outlet volts or even more test because it can be found any...