Ignitor in a 00 Si

How do I test if its bad?

Im not getting any spark to my plugs. I ran an ohm test on the coil and it
looks to be fine. I checked for voltage coming from the + and - from the
harness going to the dizzy and I have power. I checked the + and - coming
out of the ignitor and theres no power.

I dont wanna just run out and get one, called discount auto they want 220$
for one and if I plug it in and it doesnt fix the problem, Ill get screwed
out of that money since its electrical.

Anyone have any thoughts or know how to test the ignitor? Thx a bunch

 

don't know if the ignitor has the same kind of connections as described
here:

http://www.gcw.org.uk/rover/igniter.htm

if it does, you can test it by fixing the ignitor t3 to +12V, connecting
a small bulb between t2 & t3, then connecting t4 between +12V & 0V. the
bulb should light with t4 at +12V, iirc. either way, ignitor output
should /definitely/ change state when t4 changes state. if it doesn't,
ignitor's dead.

read graham's page completely & follow the links for the wiring diagrams
to be sure you understand the principles of the test - that way, even if
your igniter is slightly different, you should still be able to test it.

 

Google yo' fren', bro.


Like this (wire colors may differ from your application):

***DO NOT CRANK ENGINE WITH DIST CAP OFF OR PLUG WIRES DISCONNECTED. YOU
WILL DAMAGE THE COIL***

1) With the distributor cap off and the ignition ON (but not START),
disconnect the blk/yel wire from the igniter itself and check for battery
voltage between it and a body ground (not the igniter terminal). If none,
there's your problem.

2) Now remove the wht/blue wire from the other igniter terminal. Check for
battery voltage there as well. If none, there's your problem.

Turn ignition OFF.

3) Visually and physically inspect the white wire at the two connectors
mentioned before. Follow wiring along from distributor to each connector
and to firewall, looking for abraded or pinched wires. If the white is
shorted, the igniter will be damaged.

Of course. And that tells you absolutely nothing, unfortunately.

Whee! I'm dizzy! Gotta tell my sister not to wind the swing up so far...

Damn straight. $220 will buy you a lot of beer.

See above.

I'm in the middle of the graphics for the next instalment to the FAQ
(igniter function). I'm finding it a bit hard to decipher current flow
through the Darlington pair, so I'll post what I've got this weekend for
public critiquing.

 

I read thru gramham's page ( great info, thank you ) and made the LED
light. I tested the ECU wire ( T4 )and ground. Now he states " the LED
should pulse ", well mine stayed on solid, just at a low light level.

Here I didnt follow what he was saying " The Yel/Grn wire on pin 2 of the
Igniter, however, is not responding to the signal on pin 4 (White wire)
from the ECU". Is he saying connect the wire from pin 2 and ground it out,
or connect it to the wire on pin 4? If I connect wire from pin 2 and pin
4, I get nothing. If I connect wire from pin 4 and ground it out, I get a
solidly light LED.

Now onto his directions from the diagrahm on how to check it.

I did step 1 and 2 as said. Step 3, I did have voltage. Step 4, I had no
voltage. Now he stated to check the wire and the coil. The wire is fine
and when I checked my old coil, the ohm reading was ok and when measured
against a new coil it was exactly the same reading. So I dont think its
the coil either, which leaves me where? It sounds like he is saying that
if theres no voltage, its 1 of the 2 problems not the ignitor, but both of
what he suggestion are fine.

On to what you said for testing.

I got really confused ( sorry ). You want me to reconnect the pin 3 wire (
12v ) back onto pin 3. Then using my LED tester connect pin 2 and pin 3.
After I do that I need to connect pin 4 to 12 volts and OV ( what does OV
stand for ). Also iirc I dont know what stands for.

Sure hope you can help me understand this better. Thanks for your help so
far.

 

TeGGer..

Step 1 and 3 are all good.

Step 2, no voltage.

This this means that the ignitor is definetly bad, correct?

 

No.

If you mean this:

"2) Now remove the wht/blue wire from the other igniter terminal. Check for
battery voltage there as well. If none, there's your problem."

Then it means the wiring (or connectors) is corroded or otherwise damaged.

 

No, heres what I did.

Ran my test light to ground and blk/yel wire, got power.

Ran my test light to ground and the wht / blue terminal, no power

 

terminal T3 is power in feed and T4 is out to the coil, so wouldnt that
suggest that somewhere inside the ignitor its lossing its signal, in turn
creating a bad ignitor?

 

Actually T4 that goes to the coil is marked on the coil -

So T4 shouldnt have power coming out of it, right?

T3 has a tap that runs a wire to the + of the coil.

Now Im confused... Or does this take me back to still being a bad ignitor
since Im not seeing any voltage between T3 and T4?

 

if you're testing on the car, follow tegger's advice. you should get
pulsing /from/ the ecu. that /should/ give you a corresponding pulse
/from/ the igniter. if not, it's dead. my igniters have failed so
their output is energized so the light would stay on solid which is
consistent with what you describe.

checking coils can be hard. if the coil is breaking down, it can be
giving normal readings with a resistance meter, but when the field
decays to create the voltage spoke for the spark, you can get arc-over
within the coil and weak/zero output.

ok, my test is if the igniter's /out/ of the car. if so, first,
describe the igniter - does it have the same pin configuration as the
one on graham's page? if so, test as i describe. you need a battery,
[even 9V will do] some wires with croc clips & a test bulb. doesn't
even need to be an led. write back if you need me to be more specific
on this.

 

Wow sorry Jim, I didnt realize how posting replies work on here, never saw
your response up here.


So if my light stays solid, no pulse, that is a sure sign the ignitor is
dead?


Yes, my ignition is exactly the same as grahman described/showed. Its
still hooked up to the distributor, but easy to get to. I have the tools
needed as you described also, but im alittle confused still on how you want
me to connect everything.

Heres what you said and tell me if Im wrong.

you can test it by fixing the ignitor t3 to +12V, connecting
a small bulb between t2 & t3, then connecting t4 between +12V & 0V. the
bulb should light with t4 at +12V, iirc. either way, ignitor output
should /definitely/ change state when t4 changes state. if it doesn't,
ignitor's dead.

My understanding = take a wire connect it to a 12v source and the t3
teminal. Connect a light between t2 and t3, then connect t4 back to the
12v source and the OV ( not sure I can access it ).

If thats right, great cause then Im on the same page as you. If not, well
im still lost then. What if I cant get a connection to the OV?

 

if you're leaving the igniter in the distributor, use the led test you
discussed with tegger. if the ecu lead pulses the led, you know it's
not the *expensive* [ecu] end of things! if you've passed the above
test & the led is connected where the coil would be [correct polarity]
but stays on all the time, the igniter's dead dead dead.

check out hondaautomotiveparts.com for a better price than the one you
were quoted. genuine honda parts are warrantied for 12 months. also,
you could try checking out whether you can substitute a cheaper part.

http://img.eautopartscatalog.com/live/F2024101541FOR.JPG is for the
1996-2000. ~$140.
http://img.eautopartscatalog.com/live/F204570454BOS.JPG is for the
1988-1991. ~$70. lead output looks the same so maybe you could
jury-rig the mounting? or find the same igniter on a cheaper car?

to clarify on the out-of-car igniter test, you place the test load
between t2 & t3 because t3 is the power supply & t2 [in a working
igniter] "sinks" that load, making the circuit. t4 makes & breaks the
output signal from t2 & it needs either +12V or ground to switch it. [i
forget which].

 

Thanks Jim, got it nailed down last night. Push the car in the garage at
3:30am, shesh... Turns out bad igniter..

 

Thanks TeGGeR, got it nailed down last night. Push the car in the garage
at 3:30am, shesh... Turns out bad igniter..

 

Thanks for the feedback.

 

simple test for ignitor.. put clamp of test light on neg. terminal
of coil, put probe of test light on pos terminal of battery. crank
engine over, if it flashes it's good if not it's bad...... all the
ignitor does is make and break the ground circuit to the coil.
Chip

 

Well, if the light flashes the ignitor is good. If it doesn't the problem is
in the ignitor or anything before that... even a bad ignition switch or
failed timing belt.

Mike