Virago TCI Ignition Module Reconditioning Procedure.

What I have found is that these units suffer from heat and vibration stress. What happens is the unit gets very hot while in use not only from being energized but from being mounted right between the engine and the gas tank (on pre 1984 models). Around town driving allows the bike to get pretty hot. After you shut down for the day, the bike then cools down. This heating and cooling causes mechanical expansion and contraction which will eventually cause some of the solder joints to become "cold" or break loose altogether. So here is what I do about that...

I begin by opening the TCI unit and cleaning the rubberized moisture protection layer off of the main printed circuit board. After that I remove several parts and replace them with new parts. The original parts are temperature rated at 85 degrees Centigrade. I replace these with parts that are rated at 105 degrees C. Next I resolder every connection on the entire board. I then clean the board again and reapply a moisture protection sealer. I also add some silicone around the parts that are sticking up from the board to stabilize them against vibration.

When I resolder the board I add more solder to the connections which will add strength to each joint. This will make the effects of the expansion and contraction much less harmful.

Click HERE for a failure symptoms page.

Click HERE to return to the main page.