Coil Testing

Hi
I am working on my 79 kz1000.
Could some one break down in real simple terms how to test my coils and test if I have a good spark at the plugs.
I am not great with electrical.

do you have a multi meter?
set meter to Rx1 range,take the 2 small wires coming from each coil after unhooking from wiring harness and touch 1 lead from meter to each wire,should read around 4 ohms of resistance.
repeat procedure on the 2 plug wires from each coil,should read around 13 ohms of resistance.
now do it all over again on other coil,its a good idea to clean all electrical connections in wiring harness and grounding points to make sure youre getting a true 12 volts to coils

I do have a multimeter.
It Sounds simple enough. Ill chick it out tomorrow and let you know how it goes.

Thank You

no problem,i use a digital meter for most stuff .real easy for me to read!

Here's test I made upfrom my factory shop manual:

Ignition Coil Primary And Secondary Wiring

Ignition coils on the 80’s Kz1000,Kz1100’s and Gpz1100’s are wired the same, that is as you sit on the bike, the LEFT ignition coil primary(small wires) are two wires, RED and BLACK. The secondary (or sparkplug wires) go to #1 and #4 sparkplugs(your primary wiring may be different).

The cylinders are numbered left to right as you sit on the seat; #1,#2,#3, and #4.

For the RIGHT ignition coil, the primary wires, again are two wires, RED and GREEN, with the secondary going to #2 and #3.

The RED wire gets it’s voltage from the run/stop switch on the right handlebar switch pod.

The BLACK and GREEN wires connect to the IC Igniter(if the bike has the Kawasaki supplied electronic ignition) it actually gives the coils their grounds to fire the sparkplugs.

Primary(small wires) side of the coils will read between 1.8 to 3.0 ohms.

Secondary(sparkplug wire ports)side of the coil will read between 10.4K to 15.6K ohms. These ports are wired together, so it makes no difference which is used, as long as the correct coil to sparkplug configuration is followed.

The sparkplug caps should read 5K OHMS, any higher, or a reading of infinity means new caps should be ordered.

To stress the ignition coils, take a hair dryer, heat the coils and see if the ohm readings change from cold to hot . If they do, it’s time to buy new coils.

Keep in mind, the wiring is reversed for the 550’s 650‘s and 750‘s, that is the RIGHT coil primary will be two wires, RED and BLACK with the secondary(sparkplugs) going to #1 and #4.

The LEFT coils primary wiring would be again two wires, RED and GREEN, with the secondary(sparkplugs) going to #2 and #3.

These engines have what is known as a “Wasted Spark” that is, a sparkplug will fire during an exhaust stroke. It does no damage and many other motorcycle engines have this design.

There is no way to accurately test a coil with a multimeter. The most common failure on a coil is high voltage arc down and the only way to find it is with a HI-POT tester which applies high voltage. Even that won't pick up arc down between winding layers. Flaky coils also tend to start acting up when hot so they have to be on the bike running.