2000 Kat has spark, fuel, won't start

[Lykkan]

Hello, Been working on a 2000 kat. Recently rebuilt carbs, visual sync'd them. Tried fuel, never heard the fuel ignite. Tried starting fluid, never heard it ignite either. Checked all of the spark plugs, they still look new, slight smell of fuel, each one has spark, seems to be weak though. Battery is fully charged.
Previous owner had some type of alarm installed which has since been bypassed by them. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks

[Kreylyn]

When the starter is turning the motor over, what is the Voltage reading on the coils?

Krey

[Lykkan]

9v under load
I threw the charger on it so it can charge overnight

[05RedKat600]

9v under load
I threw the charger on it so it can charge overnight

It will probably need replaced.

[Lykkan]

It will probably need replaced.

its a new battery
The alarm system was spliced into the wires very amatuerly and removed the same way. The wires are just twisted together on the ignition from what I can tell so I'll solder them properly and then see how it goes. Spark seemed very weak. Will reply after that

[05RedKat600]

its a new battery
The alarm system was spliced into the wires very amatuerly and removed the same way. The wires are just twisted together on the ignition from what I can tell so I'll solder them properly and then see how it goes. Spark seemed very weak. Will reply after that

Next time you do this, measure the battery terminals under load also. If they are low, it's a battery that's bad and no coil mod will fix the power to the coils issue. IMO, it's best to check both places so you can see where the problem is. How "new" is the battery?

[Lykkan]

I'll assume it was bought within the last month or so
PO said he replaced battery ignition etc to try and fix the no-start issue
Battery should be charged when I get out of work so I'll test it then

[05RedKat600]

I'll assume it was bought within the last month or so
PO said he replaced battery ignition etc to try and fix the no-start issue
Battery should be charged when I get out of work so I'll test it then

Never trust a PO lols. I don't.

[Lykkan]

Depends
I usually barter with someone and agree upon a price before i even look at it, and I generally only buy things that have problems so it's already in need of repair. Sellers are a lot more honest when the buyer already knows they're getting a pos lol
I'll check the date code when I get home

[Lykkan]

Battery is new

I tested with multimeter and volts were 9 at crank, even with 12.5v battery because of loss in the ground. One of the "grounds" on the coils are not grounded. The wiring diagrams for the katana really frustrate me and the coloring they used is horrible. Why do the "grounds" for the coils go to the ignition control unit? Is this an anti-theft setup? Is it possible to bypass this for a better ground source?

[GSXFJim]

They are not 'grounds' in the sense of attaching them to the frame (-12). the ignition control module provides a digitally controlled negative trigger to discharge the coil, i.e. creating a spark at the plug. NO you can't bypass them by going to the frame or the coils will try to discharge constantly until they burn up. I can't stress enough that you shouldn't mess with the ignition control module. No such 'anti-theft' electronics on the kat.

2 things to do, pull a plug CAREFULLY hold the boot and have someone try and start the bike.. while you have the spark plug on the head (grounding the plug).. if you have a weak spark chances are the battery is toast. No spark at all.. check the fuses as well.

A battery can have 12vdc or more, but it may not be carrying the amperage needed to generate the spark needed to get it started.

[Lykkan]

Like I said the battery is now testing fine even under load
Will running new wires to the ignition module cause any problems? I've been away from the bike and haven't been able to look at it. Where is the ignition control module if you don't mind?

[Kreylyn]

Like I said the battery is now testing fine even under load
Will running new wires to the ignition module cause any problems? I've been away from the bike and haven't been able to look at it. Where is the ignition control module if you don't mind?

Stop...

Your mis understanding how it works and proceeding is going to make things worse.

It's NOT your ICM... it's not the coils. It MIGHT be connections between, but...

Coils ground directly to the frame, no wires what so ever.

Orange wires provide constant max voltage to the coils to "power" the primary circuit in them.

Black or white (depending on the side) provides constant power to the secondary circuit in the coils.

The ICM recieves information from the signal generator to tell it which coil to fire. It fires the coils by temporarily interupting power to the white or black wire depending on which coil. When power is interupted to the secondary circuit in the coil this causes the primary field in the main coil to collapse and fires BOTH plugs on the discharge.

If you had a bad "ground" in this circuit, you would get NO spart what so ever. This is what the kill switch does, grounds out the power to the coils so they won't fire.

A fully charged battery should have 13.4v. Less = bad battery.

A battery under load at the posts should have a minimal of 12v when turning the motor over, or it fails the load test and is bad.

The coils need to have a minimal of 10.5v when the starter is turning over or the coils will not spark hot enough to run the bike.

If your not getting the full power you need and the battery is pumping out more than 12V when the starter is turning over, then simply clean/fix your connections. If that doesn't work enough for you, then you can do the relay mod.

A simple test to see if the relay mod will work for you is... run power directly from the batter positive to the orange wire connections on the coils. Try to start the bike.

If that doesn't work, then check power at the coils with this setup. If your getting under 12v with the starter turning over at this point, you have a bad battery!

Krey

[Lykkan]

Stop...

Your mis understanding how it works and proceeding is going to make things worse.

It's NOT your ICM... it's not the coils. It MIGHT be connections between, but...

Coils ground directly to the frame, no wires what so ever.

Orange wires provide constant max voltage to the coils to "power" the primary circuit in them.

Black or white (depending on the side) provides constant power to the secondary circuit in the coils.

The ICM recieves information from the signal generator to tell it which coil to fire. It fires the coils by temporarily interupting power to the white or black wire depending on which coil. When power is interupted to the secondary circuit in the coil this causes the primary field in the main coil to collapse and fires BOTH plugs on the discharge.

If you had a bad "ground" in this circuit, you would get NO spart what so ever. This is what the kill switch does, grounds out the power to the coils so they won't fire.

A fully charged battery should have 13.4v. Less = bad battery.

A battery under load at the posts should have a minimal of 12v when turning the motor over, or it fails the load test and is bad.

The coils need to have a minimal of 10.5v when the starter is turning over or the coils will not spark hot enough to run the bike.

If your not getting the full power you need and the battery is pumping out more than 12V when the starter is turning over, then simply clean/fix your connections. If that doesn't work enough for you, then you can do the relay mod.

A simple test to see if the relay mod will work for you is... run power directly from the batter positive to the orange wire connections on the coils. Try to start the bike.

If that doesn't work, then check power at the coils with this setup. If your getting under 12v with the starter turning over at this point, you have a bad battery!

Krey

Thanks krey, that helps a lot
According to the diagrams, the coils are grounded through the sparkplugs. If the bodies were grounded they should have showed that in the diagram... would have helped a lot.
I'll swap batteries from the running bike and check on using a relay.
Thanks again

[05RedKat600]

Thanks krey, that helps a lot
According to the diagrams, the coils are grounded through the sparkplugs. If the bodies were grounded they should have showed that in the diagram... would have helped a lot.
I'll swap batteries from the running bike and check on using a relay.
Thanks again

No, the spark plugs are grounded through the spark plugs, and the diagram shows that. The diagram in the sticky doesn't show a ground for the coils at all, which I agree kind of sucks.

Going back a couple of posts you said

I tested with multimeter and volts were 9 at crank, even with 12.5v battery because of loss in the ground.

. Does that mean while cranking the battery dropped to 9 volts?