What year is it? I see there is no key!!! Is that the only problem? Jump the key switch wires.

It looks like someone has been trying to troubleshoot, but for your purposes you need to start near the motor. When bypassing saftey switches, the drive belt should be removed, or the rear should be off the ground so the sled can't move!!!!!
There must be a spark problem judging by the disconnected wires. First check for spark. No spark? Separate the four wire connection coming out of the motor. Then jump the blact wire to the brown wire on the motor side of the plug. This will bypass all electrical kill switches. You should have a string tied to the jumper. That's your temporary tether switch!
If you don't have spark now, the problem is the motor. If you do have spark, you are back to the switches. Let's stay with the motor and check connections and plug wires. The CDI electronic ignition fires both plugs with one pulse to the coil. If you have or can borrow similar known good components to substitute, that's the way to go.
Do you have an electric meter to check coil resistance?
Are we going the right direction?

BIGDAVE

 

That jumper wire with the string on it. Its for the TSS (Throttle Sensor Switches) NC system on that year sled. Everything arctic cat built with a Suzuki motor was NC. You need a jumper wire to make the loop. So you have to unplug the wiring harness and put a jumper between the ignition wires to get spark. Or you can jumper each key, tether, and kill to make the loop. Best is jumper it right at the motor. I think the wires off the top of my head I could be wrong. Black and Brown wires. Are the two I would jump. this just a guess. Yellow is lights most of the time. Black and Brown wires run to the kill switch and turn into black. In the kill swich and back out to make the loop when the sled is on. Say the plug to the kill switch has from the motor a black wire and a brown. Then the plug from the kill has just 2 black. Will inside the switch when on connects the black to the brown makes a loop. Hope that helps. Maybe someone on here knows more about the electrical then I do. google the diagram for the year of the sled.

 

There will be two wire plugs coming from the motor.
4 wire square and 3 wire square.
The 4 wire will have yellow and black wires and these are for the lights and accessories.
The 3 wire plug is the one that you want to separate from the harness and add a jumper between the black and brown wires to get spark.

 

Maybe I'm wrong but doesn't the 3 wire plug go to the cdi? And the 4 pin plug is the one you want to jumper the 2 non yellow wires? Maybe I'm wrong let me know

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Yes I have a key for it, just took it out since it's sitting outside now. I believe it is a 90, manufactured in 90 but the first two numbers of the serial are 91. So there is a plug on the motor that has a brown wire, I just need to ground that wire? After I get it running I will figure out those switches. How hard is it too get to the wires for them? And yes I have a multimeter I can use.

 

It's a 91. You could ground the brown to the motor, but jumping to the black is easier. With the year, I can look at diagram.
The kill, key,tether, and throttle switches all have to be made (closed) to have spark. The older style pre '79 had to be open. Throttle relies on correct cable adjustments to hold tension against switch.

 

If you could post the diagrams I'd appreciate it. Sounding simpler to test it now, I'll just have to look at it to find the plugs. What do you mean with the throttle, it needs to be tight enough to keep an electrical switch open?

 

The throttle safty switch, TSS, senses throttle cable tension. It is in the throttle lever pivot. Watch the pivot slide as you press the lever. There are switches in there. Search these forums. The main symtom is motor dies or bogs as lever is moved.

 

I'll look for that when I mess with it.

 

Wiring diagrams online. Check our forums. Maybe" Boss Cat Legacy" site. vintage snow.com site. Also find repair manuals online.

 

I used to have an 88 El Tigre years ago. If I remember correctly, you could take the 3 prong wire, unplug it, spin it around and plug it in backwards with the 3rd prong not plugged into anything, to make the jumper. I had to do this one time to get me home after I had a failure in the faulty key switch that made the sled not run. But as mentioned you have no kill switch and no lights.


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It runs with a jumper but not getting gas out of the tank. Nothing comes out from either side of the fuel shut off. Am I missing anything?

 

The hose in the tank may have come off. Try to look in with flashlight.

 

It runs now, just had to pull it a lot to get enough gas into the bowls I guess. Filled the garage with smoke and shouldn't be making the noise now. Tomorrow I'll figure out how to get into the handle bars to fix the electrical. I'm guess the rpm gauge is all electrical? Also near I assume the brake is a four pin plug that I couldn't see anything for it to go into.

 

Yes, the tach is Electrical and runs off the lighting circuit. Back a few years, some Arctic tachs were mechanically driven by a speedometer like cable from the crankshaft. The tach would likely not cause running problems..

The light circuit is the two yellow wires at the four wire plug. With the black to brown jumper in place, you can still put the plug into place connecting the lights. Turn the plug 180 degrees.

 

The tach was just wondering, that would be weird if it actually affected the engine. This another plug down low near the outside on the right side that I can't figure out where it goes. I'll have to get some pictures because there are a few plugs. Do you know how to get into the handle bar to get access to the plugs in there?

 

Looking at your picture, I see unconventional tether. Also 3 wire plug. My diagrams (89 El Tigre, 93 Lynx) does not show 3 wire plug! 1991 must be different. Back to 4 wire plug, the brown is grounded inside motor) the black is ignition, which must be grounded for spark.

 

Yes that tether on there does not work, no spark with it like that. I think I may be missing some parts. I just hope i don't need to rewire much. I'll get some more pictures in a bit.

The first one is where i put the jumper to get the engine running. The second picture is by the carbs, the two prong wire is coming from the carb not sure where ether of those are supposed to go. And the last one is on the right side near what i assume is the break can't figure that one out.

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B2oYwmftJiALLUN4MW5rMjZadDg&usp=sharing

 

The wires on the carbs are magnetic switches which is a style TSS I have not dealt with.

 

The mag carb switches you can put a jumper on the motor side just to make sure you got that covered. If you got the main TSS jumped at the plug shouldnt need it though. You really dont want to get inside the throttle contol housing unless you know what your doing. Everything soldered in there. That 4 prong plug down by the chain case thats part of the main harness. Unplugged like that you have the voltage reg out of the system. Possible why tach dosnt work?

 

The plug down by the brake I never touched to get it running. I unplugged the one in that first picture and jumped that to get it running.

 

Could anyone post some pictures of theirs so I can compare some of the wiring?

 

Forgot to post. Got it running until the carbs run out of fuel. Ordered some parts so I'll rebuild the fuel pump now and replace some hoses. I just disabled the safety tether and left the kill switch by the throttle connected.

I'll post this in here instead of another thread. I took the seat off in what appeared to be the first time in years. Well most of the bolts broke. Also found a spare key. Do I have to remove the seat cover to replace them and then restaple the seat?