EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

Hi all, new to this forum and I've been looking through it quite a bit.Lots of great stuff.



I have what I believe to be an '88 Marathon.

Numbers...
Serial: 479369
Manufacture code: E2388

I'm thinking the engine is a Robin but I can't find the numbers or nameplate anywhere on it.It has the Hitachi external starter/generator.Muffler stands up under the drivers seat.


It has no spark.I've tested the coil according to instructions I found here and it seems to check out ok.The pulser(mounted under the flywheel just above the crankshaft, two wires) however I think is shot.It was supposed to read 75 ohms between the wires but is up to around 150 ohms.Does this mean it is done for?I also find it strange that there is no magnet on the flywheel.Just these two little bumps on the inside that ride past the pulser.The pulser itself is magnetic.

And do I really have to pay $120 for this little thing?I think I'd rather drop a sled engine in there instead of shelling out and finding out that it wasn't the problem.

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

It is not the pulsar. 150 ohms is fine. If you have a meter that measures ac you can double check by connecting across the pulsar and cranking the engine. You should see ~ half a volt ac.

The most common issue is a bad ground. You should remove the three cables on the ground point on the frame and sand the frame to bare metal. Now clean the lugs on the wires and replace. You should then have a ground from the battery, one to the FNR switch and one to the engine (this one is important). Check this and if the engine still does not run we can go further.

BTW there is nothing strange on your flywheel what you describe is how it is.
Dave

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

150 is fine (my brand new OEM replacement pulsar arrived reading 164 over a year ago and has been cruisin fine since)

If your cart is an 88 (which the SN supports) it has the 244cc Robin 2PG engine, 9hp at 5k RPM (which is redline)

If your pulsar is good (which it seems) and the coil is OK, you're looking at another common issue, a bad ignitor. The bad news is there is no way to test them other than replacement (seriously - NO way) but the good news is you can replace the $100+ ignitor box with a $22 HEI module from NAPA and you'll be fine, not to mention you'll have a much stronger spark. Search "HEI Mod" here in the forums for the diagram, should take you all of about an hour to do.

Make SURE when you mount the HEI though that you grind a bare spot behind it so it mounts solidly metal-to-metal with FULL contact on the rear of the module, both for grounding and for heatsinking - when you find the HEI Mod threads you'll see that, but it's MUCHO important so I figured I'd reiterate it right away!

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

OW - my toes !!!!!!

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

Awesome, I'll be trying it tomorrow first thing.I ran this same cart around on the mountain where I live and though it's not too fast, it was fun as heck.I'll be sure and check out the HEI thing as well.

I'm hoping to get it going, put some off-road tires on the back, and maybe lift it.

Thanks so much, I'll be sure and let you know what happens.

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

Alright, I think I have a slew of things going wrong.If I hook the battery up normally and hit the accelerator to crank the engine the solenoid keeps clicking and just barely cranks it over.At this point it won't even crank anymore.Tapping the solenoid while holding the throttle down will make the starter jump a bit but that's all.Running a wire directly to the starter cranks it over just fine.

Second issue is that the reverse warning buzzer is constantly going off unless it's in neutral and the p/o mentioned it not working in reverse.I've seen that issue on this forum and it was one of the micro switches I believe.

So, is it possible that these problems are conspiring to rob my engine of life affirming spark?I've cleaned up the grounding points as instructed but that was a big EZ-NO.

Oh and Brew, that avatar you have up, that's about where I want to end up with my cart if I get it going.Looks sweet.

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

I was having the same issue. Take the coward reverse switch out and spray the heck out of it with electrical contact cleaner and a wire brush and some rags. My buzzer still goes off but it cranks every time now.

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

Ok, got some good news that happened in a roundabout way.My Father was having trouble with his GMC pickup.Has the Q-jet carb on it.So he changed over to a two barrel Rochester.

While he was doing it, he decided he didn't like the distributor and wanted to go to breaker points(which I like better myself).

Anyhow the distributor had the HEI module in it.I took it down to Auto Zombie and it tested out ok.So I printed out the diagram for the GMC HEI retrofit and very soon here hopefully I will have spark.

I'll be sure and post the results.

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

I got spark!You guys are awesome!

I wired up the HEI module just like the diagram and it works like a charm.I need to find a chunk of aluminum to mount it to and the thermo grease, a few wire extensions to make it look nice and that will be done.I didn't even try to start it up, not going to mess with that until it's properly mounted.

After that I just have to figure out why it won't crank off the pedal and I'm in buisness.

Right now I have to run jumper cables from a regular car battery to the leads on the golf cart, then another heavy wire direct from the + of the battery to the proper terminal on the starterator to crank it.Then while it's cranking you can push the throttle down and get a nice fat blue spark.Sure is nice to see a sign of life.

Thank you so very much guys.Whoever came up with this idea deserves an apple pie.

Re: EZ-GO No spark, looking for pulser?
 

one option (which is what I did when I tore the barn apart for 2 days trying unsuccesfully to find a suitable chunk of aluminum for my HEI) is to grind a HEI-sized bare spot on the frame and mount it there, it provides a nice, unobtrusive mounting spot as well as sufficient heatsinking, just a thought.

Glad you're sparking :)