Fellow Pasoists,

My 88 Paso has no spark and will not run.

Yesterday midway through a great ride my red battery dash light lit up. I tried limping home but did not make it. It appeared to be running off of the battery, until the battery did not have enough voltage to power spark, at which point the engine stopped running. As I waited at the side of a road for a ride home, I checked a few things out.
First, the battery had some voltage, but not enough to turn the engine over, which would seem to indicate it had been running off of the battery (is this what the dash light indicates?).
Second, my Paso has an electrical connection between the battery positive and voltage regulator, which includes an in-line 30 Amp fuse. This fuse was blown.

So today, I've replaced the battery, for good measure, and the blown fuse. No spark/no run. My wiring connections and grounds should be clean and good, as I routinely clean them.
About 15 years ago I had a voltage regulator fail. In fact, it failed to the point of melting the plastic connector which contains all of the wires that connect to the voltage regulator. I've put about 10,000 miles on it since then, with no electrical problems.

It would be nice to run some electrical tests. I am familiar with checking voltage and resistances, but I am baffled about how to perform these tests based on the Paso service manual. Chapter M, page 11 provides some info about checking recharge current, but I can't see how to perform this test without the bike running.
Chapter M, page 14 gives procedures for checking ignition system resistances, but does not give a step-by-step process, so I have no idea how to proceed.
Any insight on what this might be, and simple step-by-step instructions on how to check out my ignition system and components would be very helpful.
THANKS - Dave

Gert - The only thing I found under FAQ was 'Testing the Voltage Regulator.' The only tests I was able to perform were the zero RPM tests, i.e., my battery is good (Step 1) and that I get less than 1 mA (Step 4; believe this step tests not-running Amps; correct me if I'm wrong).

Are there other tests that can be performed, in this case for overcharging, without the engine running?

Dave

I had problems w/ my 907 and had to rewind the stator. New stator put out about 116 volts a/c at 3000 rpm. At 1500 rpm about 90 volts. I disconnected the 2 yellow leads and used a Fluke 87 on ac voltage to check the voltage from the 2 yellow leads. New stator and regulator produced 14.0 to 14.2 vdc at 3000 rpm, but I still can't figure why my charge light stays on. Anyway, I can ride for days without an issue.

Good luck
Preston

Thanks Preston. I'll check the voltage (and attempt the amperage checks) as soon as I get it to run again. Even with zero alternator contribution, it should run purely off the battery for a short while, as it did yesterday...

http://www.box.net/public/oq4fober14

the last file of the Haynes Monster/Supersport manual describes how to test the regulator. Maybe this brings yuo somewhere.

G.

G,

Thank you for the reference. Assuming the regulators are the same, the last page of the last file is exactly what I'm after at this point. Knowing that this machine has fried a regulator before, and that the wire with the burned 30 Amp fuse connected from the regulator to the battery, I'm inclined to check the regulator first. If this turns up empty, i.e., regulator is good, then this will probably turn into a steady-as-she-goes winter project to not only find the problem, but perform Jon's wiring upgrade as well. I'll keep you posted.
Darn it; perfect riding WX right now, and I'm off work this week. I was hoping for at least a couple thousand miles/kms this week on the Paso.

Dave