[linksg]

Hi, I recently bought a '06 Honda TRX250TM from a friend who has a farm. From what I know, they could never get it to start and they thought it was head issues which they have had in the past but got fixed and rebuilt (just the head). I got it home and tried to start it but the battery was dead and it would not crank. So I bought a new super start AGM battery and it cranked fine, but wouldn't start. So I checked if it had spark with a tool i got from harbor freight and it didn't seem to show any spark. I thought maybe it could be a stuck killswitch, but i can't find the right wire for it. Any suggestions on what to do, or what could be wrong? Thanks.

 

[retro]

You might be wasting your money and time on a china spark tester. I would not ever trust one of those toys. Just take the spark plug out, lay it on the head with the spark plug cable plugged back into it and crank the motor over using the starter to check for spark jumping the gap. If you see no spark, replace the plug with a new NGK plug and try again. If still no spark, diagnosis begins... You can find a copy of the service manual for your bike in the manuals thread. There is a section dedicated to ignition and also one for switches. Welcome to the forums!

 

[linksg]

Thanks for the reply! I agree with you, it's pretty garbage of a tool. I just went and got a new plug, and pulled the old one and neither the new one or the old one have spark. I "tested" the coil by reading the resistance of the primary and secondary and they seem "fine" but I don't know what the correct range of resistance is, and I can't find anything online or in the manual about it. From my limited understanding of the electronics on these things (i'm pretty new to atvs, but i've been working on cars for awhile now) I have a few suspects such as the CDI, kill switch being shorted somewhere, the coil actually being bad, or something else I don't even know of. Any thoughts?

 

[linksg]

Update: checked the kill switch wire with a multi meter by checking continuity with wire to ground, and the kill switch is fine, it's working like it should. So something else is the culprit.

 

[shadetree]

bad c.d.i. ?, bad stator ?, bad reg/rec ?, bad pick up coil ?, bad spark plug coil ?.

 

[linksg]

bad c.d.i. ?, bad stator ?, bad reg/rec ?, bad pick up coil ?, bad spark plug coil ?.

I hope it's a bad coil. I ordered one and it will be here Friday. How do I check if it could be any of the ones you said?

 

[retro]

Honda doesn't give the resistance specs for coil windings anymore. I could probably go back through manuals to a time when they did provide specs, and provide the right specs... but if you have a peak voltage adapter handy that will work too. If not, you can easily make one.

The FSM for your bike should be available free, right HERE. I'd check the ignition switch next and make sure you are getting a neutral light on the dash? Check the harness grounds where they bolt down to the frame. Unplug the fuses and plug them back in, just in case the IGN fuse terminal overheated and gave up its' grip on the fuse spade. Try tapping on the CDI while the motor is being cranked over using the starter and watch for a random (or suddenly consistent) spark at the plug. If it sparks while tapping on the CDI that means its failing... most likely a cold/cracked solder joint internally.

 

[linksg]

Thanks for all the help everyone. I recently got my hands on a service manual, that's how I was able to check all those switches. My neutral light does come on, and it works like it should. I also tried your CDI trick and nothing happened. I've checked the ignition switch, neutral safety switch, and kill switch and they all work as they should. I've also checked all the grounds, including the ground coming off the CDI, but not the ground coming off of the coil, I should check that tomorrow. I also have taken off several connections like the CDI, and other various connectors that are part of the ignition system and cleaned them with CRC electronics cleaner, then re-connected them. This includes the IGN fuse. I've been messing around with the coil, and I have a feeling it's the culprit, but I could be wrong. I get no reading through the secondary coil (spark plug cap to ground on coil) so it could be a bad cap, or just the coil all together but I did however get a reading off of the primary (black yellow lead from CDI to ground) and it read about .4-.5 on my multi meter set to 200. I ordered a "performance" coil off ebay for like 10 bucks just because why not. It will be here Friday, so if this doesn't get fixed by then ill update you all on what happens.

 

[linksg]

I got the new coil and it did nothing. Still no spark. So I'm thinking it's the CDI? Does anybody have any tips?

 

[shadetree]

9 out of 10 times, the c.d.i is bad.

 

[linksg]

Where should I buy a new one? Are the ebay ones worth the risk?

 

[shadetree]

Where should I buy a new one? Are the ebay ones worth the risk?

look on partzilla.com, rocky mountain atv, bike bandit, cheap cycles, never buy from ebay or amazon, all they sell is after market china junk !. go oem honda, or go home !..lol.

 

[linksg]

Should I get a performance CDI? Or stick to stock?

 

[shadetree]

Should I get a performance CDI? Or stick to stock?

stock, oem, from honda !.