Hi Guys I have been writing emails and speaking with the sales manager at Procom due to the damage I assed using their CDI BOX. I told her that others on this site have had the same problem and its due to the CDI advancing the timing. She told me to let others know if they had the same problem to email her about it. They are willing to give me a replacement but I'm a little hesitant to try another CDI box. Could any of you guys whether it be from a Procom or other CDI unit please drop her an email for me. You can tell her I sent you. (Derek Freyberger)
Here is a copy of the emails I have sent her. *****Please read from the bottom up.****

Hi there. This is the first case that I have heard of that has had these problems. The problem is that our engineers will not look into a problem unless others email us to tell us that they are having problems as well. There were some adjustments made on that model about 6 months ago, but I cannot tell you for sure if they have fixed what you were having a problem with. You are welcome to return it and we can exchange it for you. If you would like to try the CDI Box again you can. Thanks and I do apologize for the inconvenience.

Procom Engineering
Attn: Jennifer
23151 Verdugo Drive
Suite 113
Laguna Hills CA 92653

Thanks!


Jennifer Kobuki
Sales Manager
Procom Engineering, Inc.
(949) 837-8183 (wk)
(949) 837-8433 (fax)
Jennifer@procomengineering.com
www.procomengineering.com
----- Original Message -----
From: Derek
To: Jennifer@procomengineering.com
Sent: Monday, July 11, 2005 11:37 AM
Subject: Fw: Procom CDI Box Problem


Hi Jennifer. I was wondering if you had looked into my problem as of yet. I also was thinking do you sell another CDI (new improved) box that would correct the problem I had. If so I would please ask if I could send the original CDI box back to you for a replacement. I still have the original box I received it in. It says on the box PE-C-B650 03-04.

If you don't sell another CDI box would you at least be willing to exchange it for one of your
High Performance Regulator /Rectifier.
I have not heard anything bad about these. They are half the price I paid for the CDI but at least I wont be at a total loss here.
I want to thank you taking the time to email me back and I will await to hear from you again.
Sincerely, Derek Freyberger



----- Original Message -----
From: Jennifer
To: Derek
Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2005 7:31 PM
Subject: Re: Procom CDI Box Problem


Hi Derek. I do apologize for the inconvenience that you have had. I will be looking into this and I will email you in a couple days to let you know my findings. Thanks!


----- Original Message -----
From: Derek
To: Sales@procomengineering.com
Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2005 4:18 PM
Subject: Procom CDI Box Problem


Hi. I just thought I would drop you an email to let you know that I purchased a CDI box from you about a year ago. It made by bike sometimes start funny. I found out on ATVconnection .com that a lot of people were having the same problem. The reason your box causes a problem is that it advances your timing causing the motor to backfire at times when starting. I am now going back to the stock CDI as this is the only way to correct the problem. Do get me wrong with your CDI box in there was a huge difference. My Quad ran excellent. I hate to go back to stock but after bending a gear in the motor and wiping out the sprag clutch I would not dare put the ProCom CDI box back on the quad. It cost me over $500.00 in parts from the dealer to fix my Quad and I did my own work. It would be cool if I could send the box back to you for a refund but I guess that's out of the question. The real aspect of me emailing you is hoping you can develop a CDI box that will not advance the timing causing damage to motors. If you yourself go on ATVconnection .com, click on bombardier and do a search on CDI box you will see all the problems people are having and they all result in the same damage I assessed.

 

When were these e-mails sent, the timeline makes a huge difference because I talked to Jennifer about this same problem back in April and got the same response:

"This is the first case that I have heard of that has had these problems. "

This was after I sent my original Procomm CDI back to them in March with a letter stating the same problem and they just sent me a new box with no reply.

As far as I'm concerned they are full of crap.
They know there is an issue but won't fix it, recall it, or admit to it.
But they are more than happy to send you a new one as a replacement.

She never did call me back after I talked to her, she was waiting for the engineer to return from vacation or something, she was to discuss the problem with him and let me know what they could do.

I hope you can get further with them than I did.
You are right though, when it works it makes a huge difference in performance on the DS.
I finally gave up and bought a Ron Woods.

 

The emails I have sent have been in the last two weeks. She claims they made adjustments around 6 months ago. My CDI I'm guessing is about 10 months old and has had the backfire problem since day one. I will try to replace it with a new one and see what happens. If it makes my motor backfire when starting its coming off immediately. Im not forking out another $500.00

Here is what Ron Woods sent me about their ignition box:

Our racing ignition amplifier box is a Rotax factory part, original equipment for the early 654 engines. It has more advance on the bottom, removes the retard that the stock box has at 6500, and eliminates teh rev limiter. Price $338.00



$338.00 WOW. I guess its worth it if it works. Eliminating the rev limiter is dangerous isn't it ?
Also would you mind looking to see if you can find a part number off your Ron Woods ignition box. He claims its a stock part.
Ron woods wanted $286.00 for a sprag clutch that I ended up getting from http://www.ascycles.com/contact.aspx for $96.00.
It would be great if there was a part number on the Ron woods Ignition box As I bet I could save $100.. dollars or more getting it from AS cycles. Thanks, Derek

 

The RWR CDI is a factory rotax part, but only available from Ron Wood Racing or from overseas. I dont know for sure, but I have my doubts if anybody else here in the USA is getting them from overseas. I havent heard of any timing problems at all with the Vortex or even the Big Gun. MSD you set yourself. Im not sure where the Alba comes from.

 

I have been running a Ron Woods CDI since 2001 and have never had a problem with a motor and i've missed many shifts and had the rpm's go sky high.

Sean

 

Mrneg9, I've got the RWR CDI and it works great. I'd suggest looking in the, "What's in your garage" thread... I found my CDI for $120.00 from a member.
J.

 

I was thinking about buying one from ebay and sent them a quetion first and asked about the problems that had been reported in the past. Jennifer assure me that they knew about the problem, had addressed them, and corrected the flaw on the new units. I don't think I saved the email, but it shows they are out to screw us.

 

I never talked to a Procomm rep but I did talk to one with Big Gun. He explained that Procomm make about 80% of all the CDI's on the market. However like with most suppliers they (Procomm) make the CDI's from a base design and then modify them to the customers specifications such as those from Big Gun. Big Gun also gives you a 1 year money back guarantee. That's unheard of in electronics...

My CDI is the newer version from Big Gun called the "Over Rev" which came out about 4-5 months ago. I have yet to have any of the problems that some have indicated with their CDI's.

With any reputable company you would expect them to adjust their design if problems become apparent. It's my understanding that Procomm has changed their base CDI configuration within the last 6 months or so. As a business it would undoubtedly be to their best interest to do so.

 

In my opinion, Procom is actually making some headway. Do I think that Procom, and its resold brand names (like Big Gun, White Bros & others) are out to screw us? - No. I see changes there for the better. I realize a lot of folks have had problems with the older Procom units in the past. It wouldnt surprise me if an attorney somewhere started a lawsuit for those that had engine damage. Its pretty clear to me that there were some timing issues at low RPM with the Procom units. I havent heard any problem with the new units, and never any problems with the Big Gun "Overrev" brand whose curves are slightly different programming than the Procom.

The only other issue is units failing. In this area I dont think there is any difference between the Procom units and those resold under different brand names like Big Gun and White Bros. Generally speaking, from reading these forums, I think that units fail much less often than they used to, but they still fail to a much higher degree than units like Ron Wood Racing and Vortex. Any dealer thats not prepared with proceedures to handle the returns and exchanges will be in for a surprise. They simply cant be handled like other CDI boxes as something sold and never seen again.

Certainly, and I know this from direct experience, Big Gun is really good about exchanging units. They have a good return authorization process, and a good turnaround time once the problem units have been returned. With these units, it would be a good idea for a customer to keep their purchase reciepts and paperwork and/or have a dealer that keeps good records and also has good return procedures. If you buy a unit from someone that keeps no records, and you dont either, there is nothing else that can determine when the unit was purchased and therefore establish a warranty period. For some, that might not be a big deal on a CDI thats just over a $100, but to others it might be more of a concern.

As far as a Big Gun rep saying that Procom produces 80% of the CDI's out there .... that seems a bit steep. That might be true with Replacment aftermarket CDIs, but I have my doubts that includes manufacturers like DENSO, that produce aftermarket and OEM CDI boxes.

 

I too have a Procom CDI that was purchased as a Christmas present from my wife. Every once in a while, I too get the loud clanking sound. Usually when the bike stalls out when starting. The Vortex was on my list too, but she wasn't about to fork over the $400. Could be a bad move if the sprang clutch becomes chopped liver. After reading this post, I decided to write Jennifer an e-mail, here's the response she sent to me:


**********Start************
Hi there. I do apologize for any problems that you may be experiancing.
What is the year of your bike? Our engineer comes back to town on Wednesday
and I will be speaking to him at that time. Thanks!


Jennifer Kobuki
Sales Manager
Procom Engineering, Inc.
(949) 837-8183 (wk)
(949) 837-8433 (fax)
Jennifer@procomengineering.com
www.procomengineering.com
**********End************

Sounds similar to SMC650's response from Procom. At a minumum, I received a response. Maybe there's a newer programmed unit. We should be able to return for a refund if the product could cause damage to the machine.