Re: Replacement coils...
Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2016 3:34 pm
"what I don`t understand is that you said in your first post the dropped cylinder followed the bad coil, hence the horizontal cylinder worked when the coils were swapped, right? Now there`s no spark on that cylinder no matter what CDI or coil you use. Hmm..."
I think I can explain how I first thought to test for a bad coil (it was dumb and is embarrassing): I believe what I did was simply swap out the negative wire of each coil in pure ignorance thinking that would do the trick. But this was days ago and I have kind of a poor short term memory.
The first time the horizontal cylinder dropped out, it did so for just a second and fired again. Twice in short time as I was on the SF Bay Bridge after a rare cappuccino at Cafe Trieste (US$4.25!) in North Beach. The second time was a day later (for good it seems) as I was on the freeway heading toward Mt. Diablo.
"If it is an intermittent wiring issue between pick ups and CDI units it would have been a coincidence that it worked the first time you tried"
I really thank you all for your guidance and assistance. I will use the ohm meter to check continuity of the neg wire off the horizontal coil to the CDI unit. Those particular wires are the least trustworthy on my Paso: they are cloth insulated and seem like there is some play in their wire to terminal connections even though I've tugged on them. These cloth insulated wires are shrouded by wiring harness insulation throughout their run to the coils. I can imagine a short or break in the one of concern. I do not seem to have any grease, grime, moisture, oxidation or rust that is visible on any terminals, exposed wire or ground connections. Fortunately, this Paso seems to have been coddled indoors during its lifetime. The majority of its life was under the care of a jet airline pilot, any subsequent owners have at least garaged her.
I will certainly execute the coil wiring modification. Finally. I'll take all of your advice and check the continuity between the pick-up and the coil and analyze the existing condition as it passes through the grommet at the engine case. I'll press and pull some more to the wiring inside the harness insulation just above the grommet and also by the horizontal cylinder's CDI unit. Thank you all so much.
I think I can explain how I first thought to test for a bad coil (it was dumb and is embarrassing): I believe what I did was simply swap out the negative wire of each coil in pure ignorance thinking that would do the trick. But this was days ago and I have kind of a poor short term memory.
The first time the horizontal cylinder dropped out, it did so for just a second and fired again. Twice in short time as I was on the SF Bay Bridge after a rare cappuccino at Cafe Trieste (US$4.25!) in North Beach. The second time was a day later (for good it seems) as I was on the freeway heading toward Mt. Diablo.
"If it is an intermittent wiring issue between pick ups and CDI units it would have been a coincidence that it worked the first time you tried"
I really thank you all for your guidance and assistance. I will use the ohm meter to check continuity of the neg wire off the horizontal coil to the CDI unit. Those particular wires are the least trustworthy on my Paso: they are cloth insulated and seem like there is some play in their wire to terminal connections even though I've tugged on them. These cloth insulated wires are shrouded by wiring harness insulation throughout their run to the coils. I can imagine a short or break in the one of concern. I do not seem to have any grease, grime, moisture, oxidation or rust that is visible on any terminals, exposed wire or ground connections. Fortunately, this Paso seems to have been coddled indoors during its lifetime. The majority of its life was under the care of a jet airline pilot, any subsequent owners have at least garaged her.
I will certainly execute the coil wiring modification. Finally. I'll take all of your advice and check the continuity between the pick-up and the coil and analyze the existing condition as it passes through the grommet at the engine case. I'll press and pull some more to the wiring inside the harness insulation just above the grommet and also by the horizontal cylinder's CDI unit. Thank you all so much.