CDI Electronics CHCDI-3CYL-1 4-120 Three Cylinder Engines User Manual

CDI Electronics CHCDI-3CYL-1 4-120 Three Cylinder Engines

NO SPARK ON ANY CYLINDER

Service Note: Please use the Factory recommended spark plug. (Currently Champion QL77JC4/QL78YC) gapped at 0.030″.

1. Disconnect the Black/Yellow stop wire AT THE POWER PACK and retest. If the engine’s ignition has spark, the stop circuit has a fault. Check the key switch, harness and shift switch.

2. Disconnect the Yellow wires from the rectifier and retest. If the ignition now has spark, replace the rectifier.

3. Check the cranking RPM. A cranking speed of less than 250-RPM will not allow the system to spark properly. This can be caused by a weak battery, dragging starter, bad battery cables or a mechanical problem inside the engine.

4. Inspect and clean all engine and ignition ground connections.

5. Check the stator and timer base resistance and OVA output as given below:
   Note: This reading can be used to determine if a stator or pack has a problem. For instance, if you have no spark on any cylinder and the stator’s OVA reading is out of spec – disconnect the stator wires and recheck the OVA output. If the reading is still out of spec – the stator is bad. If the reading is now within spec – the pack is bad. (#) This reading can be used to determine if a pack has a problem in the triggering circuit. For instance, if you have no spark on one cylinder and the timer base’s OVA reading for that cylinder is low – disconnect the timer base wires and recheck the OVA output. If the reading stays low – the timer base is bad. If the reading is now within spec- the pack is bad.

   • Check stator OVA first. Then if timer base OVA is 0.6 – 2.5 V, the pack is faulty. If below 0.6 V, the timer base is faulty.
   • OVA will drop below 1 V when the engine drops out of Quick-Start ( engine is over 104 Degrees or 1200 RPM).
   • This reading will vary according to the meter used. Do a comparison reading and if there is a difference of over 10%, replace the timer base. Typically, use the Red meter lead to the White wire and the Black meter lead to the other wires. The Fluke series meters will typically read 1 MO to 2.4 MO while the COi 511-60 meter will read about 5 MO.

6. Check the triggering and charge coil flywheel magnets for cracked, broken and loose magnets.

NO SPARK OR INTERMITTENT SPARK ON ONE OR MORE CYLINDERS

1. Check the stator and timer base resistance and OVA output (see NO SPARK ON ANY CYLINDER above).
2. Check the OVA output on the Orange wires from the power pack while connected to the ignition coils. You should have a reading of at least 150V or more. If the reading is low on one cylinder, disconnect the Orange wire from the ignition coil for that cylinder and reconnect it to a load resistor. Retest. If the reading is now good, the ignition coil is likely bad. A continued low reading indicates a bad power pack if the timer base checks good.
3. Visually inspect the ignition coils for burned or discolored areas and cracks in the casing (indicating arcing inside the coil).
4. Swap the ignition coil with one that is sparking correctly.
5. Rare causes include a weak trigger magnet. If possible, try another flywheel.
6. Check the power pack resistance given below:
   • Use a comparison reading as different brands of meters will give different readings. The typical range is 90 to 150 ohms for the Orange wires. You should have approximately the same ohm reading on all six tests with the Orange wires. If one of the SCR’s inside the power pack is shorted or open, the readings will be quite a bit different.

Troubleshooting

POWER PACK OR TIMER BASE REPEATEDLY BLOWS ON SAME CYLINDER:

1. Check the timer base wires for shorts to engine ground as a shorted timer base wire can destroy a SCR inside the power pack.
2. In contrast, a shorted SCR inside the power pack can destroy a timer base coil. Check the timer base resistance and OVA output (see NO SPARK ON ANY CYLINDER above).
3. Replace the ignition coil on the cylinder dropping spark.

ENGINE WILL NOT SHUT OFF:
Disconnect the stop wire at the power pack. Connect a jumper wire to the stop wire from the pack and short it to engine ground. If this stops the pack from sparking, the stop circuit has a fault. Check the key switch, harness and shift switch. If this does not stop the pack from sparking, replace the power pack.

MISS AT ANY RPM:

1. Disconnect the Yellow wires from the stator to the rectifier and retest. If the miss clears, replace the rectifier.
2. In the water or on a Dynameters, check the OVA output on the Orange wires from the power pack while connected to the ignition coils. You should have a reading of at least 150V OVA or more, increasing with engine RPM until it reaches 300-400V OVA maximum. A sharp drop in OVA right before the miss becomes apparent on all cylinders will normally be caused by a bad stator. A sharp drop in OVA on less than all cylinders will normally be the power pack or timer base.
3. Connect an inductive tachometer to each cylinder in turn and try to isolate the problem. A high variance in RPM on one cylinder usually indicates a problem in the power pack or ignition coil. Occasionally a timer base will cause this same problem. Check the timer base OVA voltage (see NO SPARK ON ANY CYLINDER above).
4. Perform a high-speed shutdown and read the spark plugs. Check for water. A crack in the block can cause a miss at high speed when the water pressure gets high, but a normal shutdown will mask the problem.
5. Check the triggering and charge coil flywheel magnets for cracked, broken and loose magnets.

ENGINE WILL NOT ACCELERATE BEYOND 2500 RPM (Runs smooth below that RPM):

1. Use a temperature probe and verify that the engine is not overheating.
2. Disconnect the tan temperature wire from the pack and retest. If the engine now performs properly, the temperature switch is likely bad. Reconnect the Tan wire to the pack if it goes into the harness and disconnect the Tan wire from the temperature switch in the cylinder head. If the engine now performs normally, the temperature switch is defective. If it does not perform correctly, there is likely a problem in the engine harness, VRO (if equipped) or the boat harness.
3. Make sure the Tan temperature switch wire is not located next to a spark plug wire (RF interference can activate the SLOW function without sounding the warning horn.)

ENGINE DIES WHEN QUICK-START DROPS OUT:
Check ignition timing at idle with the White/Black temperature wire disconnected. Remember to allow for the drop in ignition timing when Quick- Start disengages. Verify ignition timing after engine has warmed up.

ENGINE STAYS IN QUICK-START:

1. With the engine idling, check the Yellow/Red wire for DC voltage. If there is DC voltage over 2 volts on this wire while the engine is running, the Quick-Start will not disengage. A voltage of 5 to 7 volts will not engage the starter solenoid, yet will engage Quick-Start.
2. Short the White/Black temperature switch wire FROM the power pack to engine ground. Start the engine, if the Quick-Start drops out after approximately 5 seconds; replace the White/Black temperature switch.
3. Disconnect the Black/White wire from the power pack. If the Quick-Start feature is not now working, replace the power pack.

ENGINE WILL NOT ENGAGE QUICK-START:

1. Disconnect the White/Black wire from the temperature sensor.
2. With the engine idling, check the Black/White timer base wire for OVA voltage. There should be about 6 to 10 volts on this wire while the engine is running for the Quick-Start to engage. If the voltage is not present, verify the power coil OVA voltage is between 10 and 22 volts from the Orange to Orange/Black connected. If the OVA is correct on the Orange to Orange/Black wires, but the OVA on the Black/White is not, replace the power pack. If the Black/White wire has the correct OVA voltage, but QuickStart does not work, replace the timerbase.

ENGINE TIMING TOO HIGH:

1. Check the flywheel center hub magnet to make sure it’s tight. Look for signs of cracks and bulges in the Brown ferret magnet material.
2. Short the White/Black temp wire to engine ground and see if the timing drops back to normal.
3. Check the DC voltage on the Black/White wire going to the timer base. With the White/Black temp wire disconnected, the voltage should be 6 to 10 volts. When the White/Black temp wire is shorted to engine ground, the voltage should drop out. If the voltage on the Black/White wire stays in the 6-10 volt range, disconnect the Yellow/Red wire from the power pack. The voltage should drop out on the Black/White wire. If it does, the harness or starter solenoid is likely defective. If the voltage on the Black/White wire stays in the 6-10 volt range with the Yellow/Red wire disconnected and the White/Black wire shorted to engine ground, the power pack is defective.

Faur Cylinder Engines (Without Quick-Start)

1978-1987 85-140 HP Dual Power Pack Engines

Service Note: Please use the Factory recommended spark plug (currently Champion QL77JC4) gapped at 0.030″.

NO SPARK ON ANY CYLINDER:

1. Disconnect the Black/Yellow stop wire(s) AT THE POWER PACK(S) and retest. If the engine’s ignition has spark, the stop circuit has a fault. Check the key switch, harness and shift switch.

2. Disconnect the Yellow wires from the rectifier and retest. If the engine has spark, replace the rectifier.

3. Check the cranking RPM. A cranking speed of less than 250-RPM will not allow the system to spark properly. This can be caused by a weak battery, dragging starter, bad battery cables or a mechanical problem inside the engine.

4. Inspect and clean all engine and ignition ground connections.

5. Check the stator and timer base resistance and OVA output as given below for BOTH banks:
   
   Note: This reading can be used to determine if a stator or pack has a problem. For instance, if you have no spark on any cylinder and the stator’s OVA reading is out of spec – disconnect the stator wires and recheck the OVA output. If the reading is still out of spec – the stator is bad. If the reading is now within spec – the pack is bad. (#) This reading can be used to determine if a pack has a problem in the triggering circuit. For instance, if you have no spark on one cylinder and the timer base’s OVA reading for that cylinder is low – disconnect the timer base wires and recheck the OVA output. If the reading stays low – the timer base is bad. If the reading is now within spec- the pack is bad.

6. Check the triggering and charge coil flywheel magnets for cracked, broken and loose magnets.

NO SPARK OR INTERMITTENT SPARK ON ONE CYLINDER OR ONE BANK:

1. Disconnect the stop wires from both power packs and retest. If spark returns, swap the power packs and reconnect the stop circuit. If the no spark problem remains on the same bank, the stop circuit has a fault. If the problem moves, replace the power pack that was firing correctly due to a bad blocking diode in the pack.
2. Swap the stator wire pairs from one side of the engine to the other side and see if the problem moves. If it does, the stator is bad.
3. Check the stator and timer base resistance and OVA output on BOTH banks (see NO SPARK ON ANY CYLINDER above).
4. Check the OVA output on the Orange wires from the power pack while connected to the ignition coils. You should have a reading of at least 150V or more. If the reading is low on one cylinder, disconnect the Orange wire from the ignition coil for that cylinder and reconnect it to a load resistor. Retest. If the reading is now good, the ignition coil is likely bad. A continued low reading indicates a bad power pack.
5. Visually inspect the ignition coils for burned or discolored areas and cracks in the casing (indicating arcing inside the coil).
6. Swap the ignition coil with one that is sparking correctly.
7. Rare causes include a weak trigger magnet. If possible, try another flywheel.

TECH SUPPORT: 1.866.423.4832
CUSTOMER SERVICE: 1.800.467.3371
www.cdielectronics.com

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