How To Diagnose And Repair Electronic Ignition System Problems?

Electronic Ignition Systems are better designed ignition systems for providing high performance, less emission and reduced fuel usage. There are some essential changes that make EIS superior than the Mechanical Ignition Systems. Despite all these betterments, an Electronic Ignition System is merely a machine that is vulnerable to damages and harms. It often gets defective due to various reasons.

However, most of the defects can be diagnosed and troubleshoot easily. The ways in which it can be done are as follows:

1. Examining the Spark:

To find out whether the spark is working fine or not, we can use a spark tester. A spark tester is similar in look to the spark plug but it has an alligator clip attached to the shell. To use the spark plug, remove the coil wire from the distributor cap, insert the spark tester and start the engine. If the ignition system and coil are in good condition then a blue spark would be produced in the spark tester. If spark is not produced, then it could be due to the following reasons:

• Out of order module
• Defective pickup coil
• Weak ignition coil
• High resistance
• No voltage or low voltage to the coil

2. Testing Pickup Coil:

A faulty pickup coil can also cause no spark condition. The pickup coil is usually found under the distributor cap of electronic ignition system. Its duty is to produce an AC voltage pulse to the ignition module then the module uses it to pulse the ignition coil. Pickup coil also has a coil of wire with a specific resistance. We can use a digital multimeter to test the resistance of the coil. If the reading is not in the range specified by the manufacturer then the coil must be defective.

3. Hall Effect Sensor Testing:

To test the hall effect sensor, a digital voltmeter is required. We can test the charging voltage while the engine is running through digital voltmeter. We can also avail oscilloscope to observe the pattern of waveform.

4. Visual Inspection OfElectronic Ignition System:

Examine the electronic ignition system thoroughly to find out some external issues. Carefully examine if all the wires of spark plug are connected correctly. Also, observe the wires are securely connected to the ignition coil, spark plug or distributor cap or not. Remove the spark plug and inspect it for any damage or fault. Remove the distributor cap and check it for any visible wear or fault.

5. Test For No-Start Condition:

If the engine is not starting, we can test the crankshaft sensors output signal. Many distributorless ignition systems are equipped with crankshaft position sensors. The crankshaft position sensors could be of magnetic type or hall effect type. These sensors can produce variable signals. An AC volt meter should be used to detect the voltage across the sensor. If the meter cannot detect any voltage then there is some defect in the sensor and it is needed to be replaced.