New guy with a technical question...

[Sinister95Z]

Hi guys, my name is Jeff and I just picked up a very low hour 04 400EX. First, I wanted to introduce myself as I will be spending some time on this forum. I like to learn as much as I can about the vehicles that I own.

Second, I would like to run a problem by you guys and hope that someone can help me out.

I picked up the bike for cheap because there is an issue holding the bike back from running properly. I was told that the left side case has an oil leak that is soaking the pulse generator with oil and preventing it from running. Is this even possible? If so, how do I go about fixing it? Are there seals that could go out and cause this?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Sinister95Z]

The previous owner stated that each time he took the side case off and wiped the oil off, the bike would run for an hour or two no problems. What's the deal?

[buck440]

no way i would of bought it without exactly knowing whats wrong with it, may honda god be with you.:devil:

[blue_ex_rider]

that isnt the problem, 400ex has a wet stator setup so u might wanna look into something else. your bike could possibly need a stator or the carb cleaned out.

[Sinister95Z]

By a wet system, you mean the entire left side of the engine should be circulating oil for lubrication correct?

I will try cleaning out the carb. I was planning on pulling the carb to take out the choke and re-jet anyways.

Any other ideas?

[sc400ex_rider]

the stator side is not wet but more of a mist. a little oil will get in there and on the stator so thats not the prob. unless the pickup is cracked or has a frayed wire or bad connection giving him the illusion that when he wipes it down it fixing the prob. next time it fails try jiggling the wires that come out of the case there. maybe a new spark plug, check all the electrical connectors for corrosion or loose (tabs not locked) check for any rubs in the harness (bare wires). check for wires pulled out of their connectors. if it has a teather kill switch take it off. check the tank vent line(on cap) if its clogged it will only run for a little while. take the fuel tank petcock off to look for any trash in the tank or a clogged up screen. if you get a new plug and it starts fine put the old plug in the plug boot and hold it to the head while cranking and see what kind of spark your getting. then when it stops on you do the same thing to see if you get spark or if its a diff color or intermitten. this will help you decide if its electrical or fuel related. also when it quits try moving the run/stop switch back and forth a couple of times. also the carb is a great place to start the carb could have a sticking float not letting steady gas in. the ex rarely has a pickup or stator problem but any thing is possible the way people are always rigging crap up. good luck let us know how it goes or if you need more help. also welcome this is a great place. except for a couple of bad arss kids.........

[Sinister95Z]

Well it is definetly a spark issue. I had the gas tank off so I could pull the carb and do some cleaning. I also upgraded to the 42 pilot as I see suggested on this forum.

I bought a new plug and ground it to the cylinder head. No spark at all. The black and yellow wire coming out of the ignition control module has no pwer when cranking. Where do I start?

[sc400ex_rider]

ok i tried to copy the electrical troubleshooting section from the manual to post but its in adobe pdf and it wont let me. but it states the blk/ylw wire should get 100v min while cranking. make sure you have your meter on the right setting and that its grounded good. if you dont get 100v it says you may have a faulty exciter coil or pulse generator. if you still need the factory repair manual PM men and i will give you the link to it.
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r20/starcraftier1/400exwiringdiagram.jpg

[Sinister95Z]

Thanks for the reply. I have the Clymer manual and traced it back to the stator. The exciter coil is the same thing as the stator correct?

I bought a new stator off ebay for now to see if it fixes the problem. I'll keep you guys informed. Thanks again!

[tri5ron]

Originally posted by Sinister95Z
Well it is definetly a spark issue. I had the gas tank off so I could pull the carb and do some cleaning. I also upgraded to the 42 pilot as I see suggested on this forum.

I bought a new plug and ground it to the cylinder head. No spark at all. The black and yellow wire coming out of the ignition control module has no pwer when cranking. Where do I start?

Sinister,
I have a dumb question here, but just wanted to make sure...
(I'm not trying to be a smart-@$$ here),
but when you were holding the plug to the head and cranking it, are you sure the red kill switch was in the center position?

and also, did you by chance try to wiggle it,(the red kill switch), back and forth while cranking the motor?

just a thought.

[Sinister95Z]

Yes I am sure. I made sure that the bike was in nuetral, key on and kill switch in the center position.

No worries about being a smart ***...I believe that there is no such thing as a dumb question. I know because I ask alot of them...lol

[Sinister95Z]

Well...I put in the new stator and the problem still exist. No start due to no spark.

Any suggestions?

[Choppers]

have you checked the fuses?

[bigbad400]

fuse wouldnt let you use the electric start (cant turn it over to test for spark) bad coil plug boot, coil connections, really you should go over the bike and put electrode grease on all your connections, its water dispercing and helps to prevent corroded electrodes. buy it at local autozone or walmart even i think. if it turns over you can narrow it down from any starter problems, you got a coil, a cdi, and wires that go to both, check all that with extreme prejudice to any cracks or kinks, good luck, and like the other guy said may the honda god be with you.


another good piec of advice dont buy parts you cant return if its not what you need, you could have ran a few simple tests and excluded the stator, all of the electrical switches and like are testable with the clymer manual, you should look into that.

[Sinister95Z]

I just checked the fuse. Good to go.

I pulled the six pin connector and checked the switch using an ohm meter per the clymer manual. Seems to be working good.

Electrode grease is the same thing as di-electric grease correct? I use it for my car and if it is the same, I will just use that.

[Sinister95Z]

We also swapped the cdi box from a running 400ex on to my bike and had the same problem. Swapped it back to the running bike and it fired right up.

Same with the coil.

[Homerx]

Is your battery properly grounded to the frame ?

[Sinister95Z]

This thing is driving me nuts!

The battery is ground to the frame very well. I took it off and cleaned it up with a small wire brush just to make sure.

So far I have swapped out the stator, icm, coil, charged the battery, tested the kill switch and went over the bike making sure all the connectors are tight with di-electric grease.

What could I possibly be missing?