Gl1500 no spark

[lrburke64]

Hello everyone, I have an opportunity to purchase a 95 Goldwing GL1500 for 900 dollars here locally in Cincinnati. The bike has 50K on the clock. Downfall is it cranks super fast with a new battery but has zero spark. I can fix the problem but my question is this: Is it worth 900 to take a chance on? Should I perform a compression test on all 6 holes first? It has a perfectly even cadence when cranking. Also the plastic has some defects so it will never be a perfect bike appearance wise. He’s had it listed for over a week so that’s why I was wondering if people know something I don’t. It’s probably a PG issue but won’t know until I own it. Thanks for any advice! Steer clear or not!

[WingAdmin]

Hello everyone, I have an opportunity to purchase a 95 Goldwing GL1500 for 900 dollars here locally in Cincinnati. The bike has 50K on the clock. Downfall is it cranks super fast with a new battery but has zero spark. I can fix the problem but my question is this: Is it worth 900 to take a chance on? Should I perform a compression test on all 6 holes first? It has a perfectly even cadence when cranking. Also the plastic has some defects so it will never be a perfect bike appearance wise. He’s had it listed for over a week so that’s why I was wondering if people know something I don’t. It’s probably a PG issue but won’t know until I own it. Thanks for any advice! Steer clear or not!

If it cranks really fast, it's possible it had a timing belt fail, which caused valvetrain damage, resulting in no compression. I would check the compression on the cylinders to make sure there is some on all cylinders.

[lrburke64]

Thanks for your reply. The bike sounds like it has compression. The issue is zero spark at any plug. I suspect zero valve train issues. It sounds like it’s cranking perfectly. Compression test is something I will perform though. Could the no spark be something expensive I guess is my question. Pulse generators aren’t horribly pricey but couldn’t a bad computer be the cause?

[WingAdmin]

Thanks for your reply. The bike sounds like it has compression. The issue is zero spark at any plug. I suspect zero valve train issues. It sounds like it’s cranking perfectly. Compression test is something I will perform though. Could the no spark be something expensive I guess is my question. Pulse generators aren’t horribly pricey but couldn’t a bad computer be the cause?

Pulse generators are a possibility, as is the computer, or the coils. However the most common cause of no spark is low voltage to the coils. Some bikes, when they are pulling current to run the starter and crank the engine, don't have enough voltage to spark the plugs. You'll know if this is the problem, because immediately after you let off the starter, you'll see spark while the engine still rotates.

[Charlie1Horse]

It is highly unlikely that all three ignition coils would fail at the same time so, you would probably have spark on several cylinders. I had one coil go out and it still had spark on four cylinders and I made it home on four cylinders. Then I replaced all four coils. The kill switch on the right handlebar could have a bad connection and not letting it spark. My 92 Interstate would turn over but would not fire off. The cause for this was that miles and years of vibration at the handlebars had caused the kill switch's wire connections to become loose. When tightened, there was no problem. There was oxidation on the pins of the coil connector near the ECU so, power to the coils was reduced somewhat. Let us know what you find.
Russell

[lrburke64]

Thanks for all the info from all!! I found a service manual and planned to do all the ignition circuit tests right at the ECM connector. Hopefully that will tell me something!! I will let you know what I find if I decide to make the purchase. Take care for know!