How To Test The Distributor Pickup Coil (1991-1995 2.5L Caravan And Voyager)

TEST 2: Making Sure The Pickup Coil Is Getting 8 Volts

If in TEST 1 the pickup coil is not producing an ON/OFF voltage signal, then there's a good chance that it's not getting 8 Volts.

The wire that supplies these 8 Volts DC is the orange (ORG) wire of the engine wiring harness connector.

In the photo above, I've labeled the ORG wire with the number 2.

Verifying that these 8 Volts are being fed to the distributor pickup coil is a piece of cake.

These are the test steps:

1. 1

   Disconnect the pickup coil connector from its engine wiring harness connector.

2. 2

   Connect red multimeter test lead to the orange (ORG) wire.

3. 3

   Connect the black multimeter test lead to the negative (-) terminal of the battery.

4. 4

   Have your helper crank the engine.

5. 5

   Your multimeter should read 7 to 8 Volts DC.

Let's take a look at what your test results mean:

CASE 1: The pickup coil is getting 8 Volts. This is the correct and expected test result.

Now that you've made sure the that the ORG wire is feeding power to the distributor pickup coil, the next test is to make sure that it's getting Ground. For this last test go to: TEST 3: Making Sure The Pickup Coil Is Getting Ground.

CASE 2: The pickup coil IS NOT getting 8 Volts. Without these 8 Volts the distributor pickup coil will not function.

Although it's beyond the scope of this tutorial to check for these missing 8 Volts, your next step is to find out why it's missing and restore it.

TEST 3: Making Sure The Pickup Coil Is Getting Ground

For our last test, we're make gonna' make sure that the black with light blue stripe (BLK/LT BLU) wire is feeding Ground to the distributor pickup coil.

In the photo above, I've labeled the BLK/LT BLU wire with the number 1.

IMPORTANT: Ground is provided by the fuel injection computer on your 1991-1995 2.5L Dodge Caravan (Plymouth Voyager). Be careful and don't connect this wire to 12 Volts (battery power) or you'll fry the fuel injection computer. The multimeter voltage test I'm suggesting below is a safe way to test for Ground in the wire.

OK, these are the test steps:

1. 1

   Disconnect the pickup coil connector from its engine wiring harness connector.

2. 2

   Place your multimeter in Volts DC mode.

3. 3

   Connect the black multimeter test lead to the black with light blue (BLK/LT BLU) wire of the engine wiring harness connector.

4. 4

   Connect the red multimeter test lead to the negative (-) terminal of the battery.

5. 5

   Turn the key on but don't crank the engine.

6. 6

   Your multimeter should read 10 to 12 Volts DC.

Let's take a look at what your test results mean:

CASE 1: The pickup coil is getting Ground. This is the correct and expected test result.

You can now conclude that the pickup coil is defective if you have:

• Confirmed that the pickup coil is NOT producing an ON/OFF signal.
• Confirmed that the pickup coil is getting 8 Volts DC.
• Confirmed that the pickup coil is getting Ground.

CASE 2: The pickup coil IS NOT getting Ground. Without Ground the pickup coil will not create an ON/OFF signal.

Although it's beyond the scope of this tutorial to check for this missing Ground, your next step is to find out why it's missing and restore it.

More 2.5L Dodge Caravan And Plymouth Voyager Tutorials

You can find all of the 2.5L Dodge Caravan and 2.5L Plymouth Voyager tutorials in this index:

• Chrysler 2.5L Index Of Articles.

Here's a small sample of the articles/tutorials you'll find in the index:

• How To Test A Blown Head Gasket (1991-1995 2.5L Caravan And Voyager).
• How To Test Engine Compression (1991-1995 2.5L Caravan And Voyager).
• Ignition System Wiring Diagram (1994-1995 2.5L Caravan And Voyager).
• How To Test The MAP Sensor (1991-1995 2.5L Caravan, Voyager).