TOPIC:

Hi everybody,

I've got a 78 kz650B. Bike is not starting as of late. I am pretty sure the problem is electrical as I am not getting any spark at the plugs.

I turned on the ignition (lights and everything turned on no problem) and checked for spark by pulling out a plug and kickstarting it. Also measured at the coils with the ignition on - no power. When I push the starter - nothing.

Since the ignition turns on, I figure the power is being lost somewhere between the ignition and the coils. According to the schematic, possible culprits are the starter lockout switch and the starter relay.

My questions are:

a) where is the starter lockout switch?
b) how do I test the starter relay?
c) if anybody has the wiring diagrams for my bike, is there any other possibility that I might have missed?

Thanks in advance for all opinions!

Tony

a) The starter lockout switch is connected to the clutch. You have to pull in the clutch or the electrical starter wont work. Under the tank, about at the midpoint of the length of the tank, there is the male/female plug connection for the starter lockout switch. They are Black wires, and sometimes come loose or need cleaning.

b) With the power on, you can short the two large terminals of the Starter Relay with a screw driver or something. Make sure your in Neutral. If it works then, you may have a bad relay, or bad wire connections to it. Clean and use di-electric grease on all connections.

c) Make sure your Kill Switch is On/Run. Could be a problem with the Kill switch as well.

Check for power at the yellow/red wire that feeds your coils. There is a dual female plug on the yellow/red wire that both your coils plug into. You should have close to 12 volts at this dual plug with the power on. Attach your red multimeter lead to the yellow/red wire and ground the black multimeter lead. Have the multimeter set to a proper DC volt setting.

Thanks for the input.

Since the bike won't start with the kickstart either, I am starting to suspect the kill switch. According to the diagram, the power from the ignition is from a brown wire that goes to the kill switch. From kill switch I guess it goes to the coils. I just changed my handlebars recently so I wouldn't be too surprised.

To test the brown wire in the kill switch I just put the red lead on the brown and ground the black?

Thanks!