1982 GS 550L not firing...can anyone help me?

[CrazyFazy]

first off let me introduce myself. My name is Eric and i am from western md. I have worked on bikes actually quite a bit through out my life but do not claim to be an expert...that is why i am here...lol I bought the bike for $100 off of a guy who said the previous owner before him had some electrical issues. This guy replaced the 2 coils on the bike with new ones. Why he had to cut the wires from the old ones i do not know. I am not even sure if they are wired correctly. There is 2 orange wires. a black/yellow, and a white that he had hooked up to the coil. I do not believe this is right. My push button to start the bike is broken off so i turn the key on and jump the cellunoid with a piece of wire. When i turn the key on 2 of these wires are hot and 2 are not. When i put them on one side of the coil say the positive then the negative on the coil gets hot. The problem is i am getting nothing to the plug itself as in fire. I cannot find a wiring diagram telling me what wires go to each coil from the harness. If i can figure this out at least if i am not getting any fire i can rule the wiring to the coils out. I figured if i was getting power to the one side of the coil then the coil should fire but i guess not..lol Anyway guys i am willing to listen and learn so any help would be greatly appreciated.

[CrazyFazy]

ok quick question first...does the kickstand or clutch safety cause a bike to not get spark. The bike turns over with the key on and bypassing the cellunoid but no spark to plugs. This has nothing to do with the fire does it as i am bypassing the start switch? Also have done alot of reading but not sure where the ignitor is located? Am i right reading that the signal generator is actually the stator and that this goes from here to the ignitor to the coils? If so then does the stator have to be good in order to fire the bike or is this to charge the system? Getting a headache....lol

[posplayr]

first off let me introduce myself. My name is Eric and i am from western md. I have worked on bikes actually quite a bit through out my life but do not claim to be an expert...that is why i am here...lol I bought the bike for $100 off of a guy who said the previous owner before him had some electrical issues. This guy replaced the 2 coils on the bike with new ones. Why he had to cut the wires from the old ones i do not know. I am not even sure if they are wired correctly. There is 2 orange wires. a black/yellow, and a white that he had hooked up to the coil. I do not believe this is right. My push button to start the bike is broken off so i turn the key on and jump the cellunoid with a piece of wire. When i turn the key on 2 of these wires are hot and 2 are not. When i put them on one side of the coil say the positive then the negative on the coil gets hot. The problem is i am getting nothing to the plug itself as in fire. I cannot find a wiring diagram telling me what wires go to each coil from the harness. If i can figure this out at least if i am not getting any fire i can rule the wiring to the coils out. I figured if i was getting power to the one side of the coil then the coil should fire but i guess not..lol Anyway guys i am willing to listen and learn so any help would be greatly appreciated.

you should be able to find a manual and schematic for your bike over at Bassclifs website. On your coils the two orange wires are (ignition key and kill switch) switched +12V. When the key if off the +12V goes away. When key/kill are on then +12V will be at the coils. The black/yellow and the white are the control wires from the igniter. The igniter will alternating ground these wires so that current flows from the +12V to the ground. When the grounds are lifted the coil current collapses and it generates a big spark to the spark plug.

A simplified diagram of a 550 is shown here. It should be consistent with yours.

http://www.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage/gs/550_Schematic.pdf

The white wire controls 1-4 and the B/Y controls 2-3.

the behavior of the voltages on the wires can be a little confusing so I won't go into it any further, but it sounds OK from what I can tell from what you are describing. But rather than go down that road, just connect the coils like it says in the picture. Put a volt meter on the negative side of the coils (wither B/Y or W). You should see that voltage go between 1.5V and 12.5V as you crank the engine over (slowly by hand). If not then he ignitor is bad.

When the ignitor is not grounding say the B/Y, then you will see the same voltage on both sides of the coil. All these measurements are with the coils installed and the key on.

[posplayr]

ok quick question first...does the kickstand or clutch safety cause a bike to not get spark. The bike turns over with the key on and bypassing the cellunoid but no spark to plugs. This has nothing to do with the fire does it as i am bypassing the start switch? Also have done alot of reading but not sure where the ignitor is located? Am i right reading that the signal generator is actually the stator and that this goes from here to the ignitor to the coils? If so then does the stator have to be good in order to fire the bike or is this to charge the system? Getting a headache....lol

clutch bypass is normally in series with the Green/Yellow wire to energize the solenoid (connected to the battery). Basically it stops the starter from cranking over. Not sure how you bypassed the kill switch. It normally controls both the Orange +12V wire and the Green/Yellow wire to the solenoid.


Igniter is under the seat probably mounted to battery box or side plate.

yes the stator has to be good to charge. It is what generates the three phase power that is rectified and regulated by the R/R. The bike should start with a good battery regardless of charging system as long as you have more than 11volts to the coils.

signal generator is under the right hand side cover and tells (signals) the igniter when to "ground" (1.5V) and float(12V) the coil primary wires (B/Y and W).


This is just a guess, but it sounds like with your kill switch being broken you are failing to power the whole ignition circuit. yes the coils seem to be powered but your ignitor also needs 12V. I would suggest getting a new kill switch; and restoring your harness back to the way it was originally. The kill switch (has a short harness) and attaches to the harness through a plug normally in the head lamp bucket.

[TheCafeKid]

Posplayr is definitely one of the guys I'd turn to with electrical guru stuff, but, and I'm sure he'd agree, picking up a manual for your bike is a must for this and many other reasons. It will have a wiring diagram in it as well, and while Posplayr can teach you quite a bit if you pay attention, it's difficult to grasp what you'll be looking at and needing to do without having a diagram to reference.

[posplayr]

Posplayr is definitely one of the guys I'd turn to with electrical guru stuff, but, and I'm sure he'd agree, picking up a manual for your bike is a must for this and many other reasons. It will have a wiring diagram in it as well, and while Posplayr can teach you quite a bit if you pay attention, it's difficult to grasp what you'll be looking at and needing to do without having a diagram to reference.

Yes Josh, the manual is the first thing I mentioned. The bobber schematic reco was just because it is a bit simpler (and in color) to see where his kill switch needs to be hooked up. I figured he might have a problem reading the black and white factory manual.

you should be able to find a manual and schematic for your bike over at Bassclifs website.

[tom203]

Crazy fazy..... If you follow the orange/white wire down from coils, it will likely terminate in plug- this plug is connected to ignitor. Check to see if you got 12 volts + here when the coils have power- check on both sides of plug to ensure that the plug itself is good. The orange/white wire might change color as it passes thru plug.

[Suzuki mad]

Without all the parts in the right place and working correctly that bike isn't going to fire.With what you are saying it sounds to me like the PO has messed with the right hand switch gear/controls which run the kill switch/engine starter.

Best place to start is a manual with a wiring diagram or an on-line version to check what's been mucked around with.

[CrazyFazy]

wow alot of great information..thanks guys. Sorry for the confusion about the kill switch though. The kill switch actually works. When it is in the off position there is no spark to the coils but when its on there is. However i do not have to have my clutch in for the bike to turn over so i am guessing the PO must have bypassed it. Whats weird is that 3 wires out f those 4 with the key on are hot i believe going to the coil. I attached the hot to the coil with the key on and there is power coming out of the negative side of the coil. Then when iattached the other wire to the negative side of the coil there was no power on it. This tells me that that wre is grounded somewhere and according to posplayr this should be correct.
i am wondering why that third wire is hot though if its just a signal wire. Also does the 2 orange wires matter which coil they go to? I am heading to look at the schematics now by the way. Once again thanks everyone for helping with this.

[tom203]

Yes, looking at wiring diagram will explain alot. Basscliff's site has some colored ones which are a boon to old eyes.

[CrazyFazy]

will update results soon....too cold to work on bike right now and getting hell from my wife for doing too much too soon. Just had gallbladder surgery and thought i could resume my daily activities but i guess not....lol Thanks to everyone who has helped...i think with the help from this site i can resurrect this bike!!

[tom203]

will update results soon....too cold to work on bike right now and getting hell from my wife for doing too much too soon. Just had gallbladder surgery and thought i could resume my daily activities but i guess not....lol Thanks to everyone who has helped...i think with the help from this site i can resurrect this bike!!

Good for your wife! get some R & R and worry about bike later! Head to Basscliff's site for some reading- that should occupy you for a few weeks.

[CrazyFazy]

hate to sound stupid but how do i get to bascliff's site?

[Matchless]

hate to sound stupid but how do i get to bascliff's site?

BassCliff will be along soon with your mega welcome and more information than you would ever guess!

In the meantime here is a link to his site: http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/

Enjoy!

[CrazyFazy]

ok guys i worked all day on the bike and here is what i found. When you get mad and tap on the ignitor the bike fires....lol Anyone know where i can find one for a reasonable price?