IC Igniter Problems

How's the spark look? It should be a hot,fat,blue spark. Checked the input voltage to the coils?

badrhino wrote: Well it is running. Loudhvx- Thank you for the directions on how to make the HEI Ignition Mod.

I attached a video of the bike running. Is it running way to rich when it blows blackish smoke and stinks up the place?

Nice looking bike...is it a "J" engine in an older 900/1000 frame?

badrhino wrote: ... Is it running way to rich when it blows blackish smoke and stinks up the place?....

If not already done, would perform clear tube test on carbs to assure fuel levels within specs.

Too high fuel level -- with everything else perfect -- may cause over-rich mixture resulting in "... blows blackish smoke and stinks up the place...."

Good Fortune!

I had good voltage at the coils when I checked before starting the bike. I still wasn't getting fat blue sparks at the plugs however. My ohm readings for primary and secondary are dead on. What else could cause not getting good spark strength?

Yes it is a J motor in a 1980 Frame.

Patton, I have done the clear tube test many times they should be on.

Checked the pick up coils?

Ohm Checking Pickup(Pulsing) Coils

The pickup(Pulsing) coils on the Kawasaki’s with the factory supplied electronic ignition can sometimes fail or become intermittent due to heat and vibration.

1.Trace back from where the pick up coils are mounted,(BEHIND A RIGHT SIDE, CD SIZED ENGINE COVER) locate and disconnect a small 4 pin connector. Using a multi-meter set on OHMS and range of 2K, check between the BLUE and BLACK wires(#1 and #4 sparkplug wires) for between 360- 540 OHMS.

2.For #2 and #3 sparkplugs the wire colors will be YELLOW and RED, again 360-540 OHMS. The 550’s,650’s & 750’s may be backwards to the Z1’s,Kz900’s,Kz1000’s & Kz1100’s.

3.If the pickup coils are suspect of failing due to heat, they can be stressed using a hair dryer without the need of the engine running.

4.A replacement set of pickup coils might be obtained from a dealer who serviced the police Kawasaki’s.

5. If replacement pickup coils are not available, your next choice would be to order a Dyna “S” electronic ignition system from www.z1enterprises.com It replaces the IC igniter with a smaller module located where the mechanical ignition advancer was mounted.

6. Checking with Kawasaki.com website has determined that the Pick up(pulsing) coils are available . The pulsing coil # is 59026-1133 and replaces the older # 1002, 1012 which were used from the MKII motors until the 2005 P24.

7.Check the small 4 pin connector that the pickup coils connect to for corrosion/loose pins too.

8. The mechanical ignition advancer needs periodic service too, it's in the area of the pickup coils, mounted on the end of the crankshaft. Some light lubrication on the weight pivots and the moving shaft are about all it needs. A dab of Moly grease or 3-in-one oil will work for this.

OldSchoolZ wrote:
From my experience in shops, the pickup coils either quit working when the motor is good and hot and with ohm meter tested right after it quits, the ohms show bad, then while it cooling down, you'll see the ohms come back and it runs on that pickup again until it gets hot. OR they don’t work at all. High rpm doesn’t sound like a pickup coil. I'd suspect something in wiring or ignition coil.

P.S. remove sparkplug caps if they unscrew from wire and ohm them out where wire goes in to where the plug connects. Often an old cap builds high resistance and will only fire at high rpm. Your caps resistances should be similar to each other(5000 ohms). If you get one not showing continuity, that’s most likely your problem. And sometimes you need to trim wire back and inch or so to get good wire to screw back into. (if wires are not too short to do so) That’s just something to check that is problematic with hot running air cooled motors. They will eventually cook the caps and the resistor inside the cap goes bad.

Pick-up coils test good also. I wonder why I'm not getting a powerful spark?

I'd verify the wiring to the GM modules,also are the resistors and diode wired in the circuit correctly? Are they shock mounted(encapsuled in RTV)compound?

While the bike is idling, connect a voltmeter so the black meter lead is on the battery's negative terminal directly.

Read the voltage on the yellow/red wire on the coils. It should reach 14v if you rev the bike a little.

Read the ground terminal/heatsink of the HEI modules. It should be just about zero.

Make sure you have the Non Resistor spark plugs, No "R" in the part #. Also what coils and wires are you using, stock or other? Is there a resistor cap, and a resistor wire? Only one resistor should be used in the secondary side of the ignition.

1.5 ohm grey coils and Taylor 8mm Spiro-Pro wires.

I'm wondering if the coils should be such a low resistance. The stock coils are usually 3 ohms or less. Can you try another, higher ohmed coils for comparison?

I'm sorry I meant 2.2 ohm grey dyna coils.