82 gs850g loses spark

[Vance1991]

Just got a 82 gs850 off my dad it quit firing about 4 years ago and has been sitting since then when I brought it home put a new battery in it and noticed it was firing. So after fooling around with it one night after work letting it run and idle everything was perfect next morning went out and was gonna ride it before work. And no spark. Later that night after work same thing ran fine. Then next morning. No spark. Any advice best place to start. Coils? Cdi?

[Bdogginit]

I had a no spark problem earlier this year, it was actually arcing from the side electrode to the frame and not from the centre electrode. Four new spark plugs solved the problem. I never thought all four plugs would malfunction for no reason at the same time but I guess that’s what happened

[Nessism]

Your bike doesn't have a CDI, it has a transistorized ignition. All explained in the factory service manual.

From what you describe, the ignitor is failed. That particular ignitor has the ignition curve built in. I'd replace the ignition with a Dyna S system. You will also have to add a mechanical governor from an earlier GS bike at the same time. Lots of threads on this mod in the archives here.

https://gsarchive.bwringer.com/

[Vance1991]

Will a igniter from a 82 gs1100gk be compatible to troubleshoot with?

[Nessism]

Will a igniter from a 82 gs1100gk be compatible to troubleshoot with?

I think so, although I've never tried. If it plugs in, you are good to go.

[bwringer]

1982 is weird.... the GS850GL model had the mechanical advancer, the GS850G had the fully electronic advance.

Vance, make sure you know which is which and what you have. Since you're asking whether a GK igniter might fit, I'm guessing you do have a G since the igniter unit looks the same. As Ed said, it should work if it plugs in.

Here's how to tell the difference between the mechanical vs. electronic advance:

https://www.bwringer.com/gs/tdc.html

Also, I hope it's obvious, but a wiring problem could absolutely cause this sort of intermittent failure; I wouldn't condemn the igniter until doing a very thorough check and cleaning of every connector and wire, eliminating that accursed stator loop, and making sure the coils and igniter are getting good voltage and signals.

.

[tom203]

“Also, I hope it's obvious, but a wiring problem could absolutely cause this sort of intermittent failure; I wouldn't condemn the igniter until doing a very thorough check and cleaning of every connector and wire, eliminating that accursed stator loop, and making sure the coils and igniter are getting good voltage and signals.“

yes indeed. As a test, I’d probably run a jumper wire from battery + up to the orange/ white wire that feeds the ignition coils and ignitor . This would bypass any weak connections.

[Vance1991]

Just picked up the igniter from the gs1100. Plugs are identical and I’m pretty sure it’s a G and not the GL. In the process now of swapping it. I’ll let you guys know how it goes. Thanks for all the advice. So far. Hopefully this does the trick.

[Vance1991]

Where does the black with yellow stripe go to in the wiring harness. One end goes to the starter solenoid mount. Any idea where the other end goes?

[pdqford]

Where does the black with yellow stripe go to in the wiring harness. One end goes to the starter solenoid mount. Any idea where the other end goes?

Sounds like that is the ground for the starter relay.
Prolly goes to the fram to ground the starter relay.
(Note: I don’t have a wiring diagram to verify that wire color).

[Nessism]

Where does the black with yellow stripe go to in the wiring harness. One end goes to the starter solenoid mount. Any idea where the other end goes?

In the link provided to you earlier, you can download the factory Suzuki manual for your bike, inside which you will find wiring diagrams. Also, the website link has colored wiring diagrams too.

[Vance1991]

Thanks for the info. I wasn’t paying attention and when I hooked back up the positive to the solenoid the terminal was touching the frame since I hadn’t put the rubber covers over it yet. Was in hurry to see if it was fixed. Rookie mistake. But pretty sure have it fixed now. As of now it’s firing we shall see how it does within the next couple days. Thanks for all the help.

[Nessism]

You should check your charging system. If the R/R has failed and the bike is overcharging beyond 15V @ 5000rpm, that may destroy your ignitor.

[Vance1991]

Has a new regulator but now since I’ve repaired what I believe is the starter switch wire in the harness that melted. Now. No fire? Plugged in the old igniter which seemed to work when it was cold. And no fire on it either?

[Vance1991]

Can anyone tell me how to cross out the emergency stop switch? I’m thinking it is the culprit. When it was firing it started while the stop switch was off?