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Well, replacing the ECM was the right move! Plugged the used one in and filled with fresh fuel................pushed the button and behold.............engine noise! A quick test ride showed all to be operating well and as it should be, so it'll be making the trip to Sturgis this year.

Word to the wise, if you do over adjust the idle cable, it fits into the DFI body itself, goes thru all the way and contacts a tang on far side of the throttle cable cam. Rotate to the right to idle up, left to idle down.

Bob

Does anyone have an easy way to reinsert the threaded end of the idle adjustment cable into the DFI cable cam?
I over adjusted mine and can't quite find where it needs to go.

Interesting, I'll have to check my Female pins when I put the new one in to be sure. Here's hoping it works.

One more thing: is there ANYONE out there who has had to replace an ECM? If so, please contact me.

Well, I found a compatible ECM, (21175-1064) and ordered it. It is used, but contacted the seller and this did come off a stock, well running bike.(99 Drifter W/28,000miles) for considerably less than the Partzilla/or Kawasaki OEM stores. I've had it to a local Yamaha dealer who does work on Kawi's, and gave him my shop manual to use. They said all the diagnostics are good also, and they think it is the ECM. ($300.00 for 3hrs of shop time and a set of plugs!!!!) So, we'll see what we can see and what a different ECM does. Otherwise, it's load it up and trailer it 100 miles to spend some more money. There might be a project Drifter for sale soon.............too bad......I love this bike!!!!

Just got off the phone with Head Mechanic at Kawasaki Dealer closet to me(100Miles). Bucko, he agrees with your findings that the correct ECM for 99-05 Drifter is Part# 21175-1064. There are no notifications listed that show any number replaces or supersedes that number. He seems to think I'm looking in the wrong direction, since the bike runs but only on a burst of Ether........not on its own. I told him I've done every diagnostic in the manual.......Fuel Pressure is good, Injectors have a good spay and pattern. All fuses and relays test good. Flow charts indicate the ECM as faulty.
I'm not a "parts replacer" type mechanic. I believe in diagnosing the problem and fixing it rather than throwing parts at a problem and hoping you get lucky, but I'm at a loss with this one!  I've had about 4 different opinions, all make sense, all are plausible but none make the damn thing run!!!!

I'm checking units advertised on E-Bay. I've got two that came off a 99 Drifter with different numbers(#1  21175-1066, #2 21175-1064) and one that came off a 01 Nomad(21175-1066) Now this shows me that there indeed may be a part # difference......but they are interchangeable. I'm aware of the possible tuning differences, but I think they would be negligible. I'll investigate further.

I've checked actual part numbers on two ECM's, 1 from a 99 Drifter was the same as one from a '02 Nomad. Tomorrow I will check the numbers on my ECM in the bike and compare all together. I think they will interchange with no issues.

What would be the differences between a 01-05 Drifter 1500 ECM and a 1500 Nomad 01-05. I've seen both and the connections look to be the same and both are the same engine. Reason I'm asking is that I can get a used  ECM, which I need, from a Nomad for $179.00 vs. a new one from Parzilla for $515.00

Yea, I do this when I have to......They do it everyday so you would think they would get a little further than presenting me the bill.  I think I'm going to throw an ECM at it and see what happens(so much for leaving it alone till spring). I can Wget a used one for about half the cost of a new one, plug it in and see what it does. If it works, great, if not..... I'll re-sell it. It hasn't had any fuel controllers hooked up to it, all bone stock......................................................so we'll see what happens

I think I'm going to take a break from it until Spring when I can work on it outside. I can get a used ECM for about 1/2 price, which is still about 300.00. My last trip to the shop cost 300.00 just for 3hrs of diagnosis with no results. Sure wish I had a place to work inside where it's warm.  I could've spent some time this last Summer, but.....there was too much good riding to be had. I just hope my 1600 Nomad or Softail don't take a dive.   

Okay, can't bench test the ECM away from the bike/Harness so............it's haul it to the nearest Kawi dealership in Rochester, MN. about 75 miles away. Man! I hate this crap! I talked to them and they seem at a loss also, but will be willing to look at it. Oh well, it's only money!!!!!!!

Here's the latest diagnosis of the no start condition/Tested pump pressure and regulator, both were within spec........Pulled injectors, tested same-spray pattern good, Tested continuity to injectors.....NONE.............disconnected fuel controller, continuity to injectors restored. Still no fire.  Will be taking ECM to Kawasaki Dealer to be bench tested.  Any other adivice?

Bob

Okay, thanks for all the help and advice. I'll strike out in that direction and check for injector pulses. I DON'T have any Mitsubishi Noid lights, or at least they aren't labled as such. I guess I'll just test each one and see if any fit and work.
Thanks again. I'll  let you all know what I come up with

Bob

It DOES have a Cobra 2000FI Fuel controller. I did not install this, came on the bike.
I DID disconnect the Fuel Controller and ran thru the whole start/run sequence again......with the same results. I DO have some Noid lights for checking impulses, but I can't be sure if mine will fit as they are for Automotive use(Bosch and the like).
So, I have to leave the tank on the bike, prop it up to gain clearance, and find a Noid that works in an injector without damaging it......correct?

Okay, since I don't have a pressure testing setup, I took it to a shop..............not a Kawasaki shop but the closest to me that handles fuel injected Japanese bikes. They could not find anything, and said they thought it was the ECM. I doubt that since the bike WILL run on an outside fuel source, and will continue to run until the fuel source is taken away.

It is a 2002 1500, no it will not keep running, yes I can hear the fuel pump energize for at least 2-3 seconds when I turn the Ney on
No, I did not check the voltage at the ECM. I DID talk to a 16 year Kawasaki Mechanic at a nearby dealership and he seems to think it is the fuel pump also. He asked if I could hear it running while cranking the engine and I said I could not. Do you have any other suggestions?

I would like to add to my situation something that I did not find in any of the other posts regarding this issue. My bike WILL start with Ether  or an outside fuel source, which to my way of thinking discounts the idea that it is an electrical/fuse/relay/ECM problem. 3 things must be present for an engine to run, AIR-FUEL-VOLTAGE. Since I provided the fuel outside of that triad loop, my obvious direction is a  fuel delivery problem. I was just looking for someone who might have used an aftermarket pump and what type of experience they had.

Thanks for the reply, I see several aftermarket kits available, so I'm assuming it is possible and at considerably less cost than the single unit, but we all know what assume can mean. Well, a kit is 30 bucks so if I spend that first and win.........great..............if not a win...........then I guess I chalk it up to learning.

Has anyone ever replaced a fuel pump as an individual part instead of the whole tank base plate unit, and if so what problems if any did you encounter?

The "Boys" call my Drifter the Pretendian.

Most of my Harley friends rib me good naturedly about my Drifter, then admit that they like it better than they like their own bikes sometimes. I just bought a Yamaha Royal Star Tour Deluxe at a great price, something to carry mama around in comfort and I decided I would do Sturgis this year(Haven't been in 20 years)At the Shop today the comment was made about having the "old Man"(me) riding in back on the way out so as not to get in the way of all those screaming Harley's. One of the fellas, who rides a '48 Panhead out there every year comes back with, "No, Bob is back there with the most reliable bike to pick up all the parts that fall off those screamin'  Harley's  LOL.

Troll, no I haven't. I would think if it run on a spray of ether mist that they are working..........or am I wrong?

The fuel pump cycles for the requisite 2-3 seconds when I turn the key on. The FI Light does not stay on after initial startup mode. The only thing that stays lit is the oil light, after the engine cranks, so apparently there are no problems with the DFI, or so my manual says. I grounded terminal 37 to the battery ground and got no codes or flashes of any kind.