Slider9751

iTrader: (1)

Hey everyone,
how do you know if your opti is failing? same question for your waterpump? car is a 95' z28

LopeyZ

iTrader: (2)

Generally the pump will leak out the weep hole at the bottom of the pump when the bearing starts to fail. When the pump starts to leak... it will tend to leak all over the opti. A wet opti is a bad thing so you want fix a leaking wp as quickly as possible. The way to test for a failing opti is to test for spark. If you have a random misfire then the opti is usually the source. Unfortunately it's difficult to look at an opti to diagnose it's bad like you typically can with any other distributor. Now if you were to take it apart to examine the cap and rotor then you could reasonably make that determination but most guys don't... they just get a new opti. There are discount dealers out there... do a search for Jason Chromer (sp?). You can purchase a genuine OEM opti or any other LT1 part for well below what you'd find locally.

02v8ta

iTrader: (8)

Two very different parts to be asking about. What's the car doing? Like stated though the water pump can dump on the opti and you wont know until it's to late!

Slider9751

iTrader: (1)

First off im having some overheating problems. I replaced the radiator and one of the hoses because it was cracked and was spewing coolant everywhere once the car warmed up. Then after driving it the car would creep up in temp till it hit the red and i would have no heat in the cabin. Then it would suddenly drop right down below the middle line and i would have heat. So i replaced the thermostat, drove it again and it worked great. The car will not overheat when being driven but if i let it warm up in the driveway it will just keep goin up in temp till it hits the red and i shut it off, and i have no heat in the cabin again. The car has 197xxxkm, and my step dad suggested that the water pump could have failed. But Because there is no coolant coming from the weep hole, i guess its ok.
The milage is also the reason im asking about the opti, the car feels as though it is down on power but it does not burn oil or show signs of major wear. I have time to work on the car at the moment so if im going to replace the opti now would be the time.

Thanks for the replys

SS RRR

iTrader: (2)

You can pull the pump to see if the w/p coupler is still in good condition and not stripped. You also need to do a coolant pressure test. No heat in the car reads like either a clogged heater core or lack of coolant in the heater core which means it could be leaking which means you could have a blown head gasket. What I would suggest is bleeding your cooling system thoroughly and doing a coolant pressure test. You can rent the testers at any parts store and it should come with instructions. I would take all the plugs out and do the pressure test. If it is confirmed you are loosing pressure then do the test a few times and then rotate your engine by hand and see if coolant starts spilling out of any of the plug holes.

02v8ta

iTrader: (8)

You properly refilled and bled the cooling system when you did the work? Your heat coming and going would make me think air in the coolant system, right guys. Hopefully it wasn't driven when it reached the red mark And your head gasket is still alright. If you bled the system and BLED IT AGAIN then rent a cooling system pressure tester from your auto parts store and make sure it's holding / no obvious leaks. Then I'd begin testing your head gasket. Good luck.

Slider9751

iTrader: (1)

Well i ran the car yesterday without the rad cap and kept it topped up while it warmed up. there was a steady stream of small bubbles coming up to the top and when the thermostat opened there were a bunch of big bubbles and it stopped. so i put the rad cap back on and ran it for another 10 mins and the needle on the temp gauge didnt move a millimeter. So that problem is fixed. thanks everyone helped alot.