CamOnlyJabroni

So I just got done receiving my 4th revision from Solomon on getting my car all tuned in on E85. Car is really starting to run strong so I decided to take a friend for a ride before putting the car away for the night. I was going to drop the car off after doing one pull but decided to do another 1-3 run cause the damn thing is just hauling the mail. Well I run thru first, hit second, hit third, wind third all the way out to about 68-6900 rpm on the tach and the car just nose dives and shuts off. Car would not even think about firing once I get it pulled in to a industrial complex. When I popped the hood I got a faint smell of burnt electronics. Before heading to grab the trailer I pulled a plug wire and it had no spark. Once I get it back to the shop I pull the coil wire off going to the opti and there is plenty of spark and looks healthy. Do you guys think that points to the opti? I think the high RPM took it's toll and killed it. Makes me laugh cause my buddy that I took for a ride asked me if I was still going to the track this Friday. I told him before heading to pick him up that I wanted to but the car is running so damn good I don't want to break it lol. Let me know what you guys think.

Also, should I get a MSD unit or a OEM? The OEM unit is almost $700 dollars on Jegs!!!

EDIT: I don't know what Opti I saw at first but one was listed at damn near $700. Now I see one for right at $500.

ACE1252

Sounds like the Opti....but you may want to verify that all the signals are okay going to and from the unit(reference 5V, high res, low res, etc) also...are the injectors firing? Best to troubleshoot it thoroughly before buying parts.

RockAuto has an AC Delco reman for under $400. Strangely, it's not listed under the 1997 models.....only 95/96. I was going to recommend a new Delphi, but interestingly, there are no Delphi units on their site anymore.

I would go with the AC Delco reman before anything else....but reman doesn't generally sit well with me in many cases. However, it's the only option for an AC Delco unit now.

I've never recommended anything but AC Delco or Delphi, but I do wonder(in light of new supplies drying up) if MSD has finally fixed what was going wrong with their units?

Something like a 24x conversion is looking appealing, but with mine being a '96, emissions stuff could be an issue.

hrcslam

Did you loctite the rotor screws?

Also, rockauto has good prices on optis.

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

If you have spark at the coil it sounds like the opti part is working and maybe just a rotor failure. MSD cap and rotor and some loctite for $150.

CamOnlyJabroni

Alright thanks guys. The injectors are working and my fuel pressure is unchanged. I put loctite on the rotor screws and sealed the whole unit together with silicon. I do have good spark from the coil to the opti. The car got revved a little higher last night than normal due to running the E85. It just revs cleaner so I let it keep going. I am going to order the cap and rotor kit that was suggested and if it looks ok I will send it back. Sound like a ok plan? I think I am going to tear into this weekend and get it going. Don't want to hold Solomon up. Car may be done now though after the 4th revision. Feels perfect.

shbox

Rotor failure.

CamOnlyJabroni

Thanks for chiming in. That makes me feel better about buying the rotor kit that Caprice suggested which is a good idea. I didn't know MSD offered a kit like that.

CamOnlyJabroni

Took the Opti apart today after work. See any problems? Part of it flew off and punched through the side of the cap.

ACE1252

Wow, it either snagged one of the terminals or something was bad in the way it mounted to the rotor(and then just let go). I'm not sure I could tell which it was, but I don't see any bent terminals. Does the metal tip that spins over each of the terminals show any damage on the end of it? I do see a little discoloration on the tip, but that might be from voltage normally arcing.

This an AC Delco unit?

kinglt-1

iTrader: (26)

the pin/rivet that holds those metal pieces sheared off. You can see it in the first pic where there is some black residue.

hrcslam

IIRC MSD uses metal rivits there instead of plastic.

shbox

Yep, I would consider that "rotor failure".

bufmatmuslepants

iTrader: (3)

Hot damn good call shoebox

CamOnlyJabroni

It is a AC Delco unit. What Kinglt-1 said. The tabs sheared off. He looked at it closer than I did. I pulled it off and he took it apart while I finished cleaning up around the engine. I was in a hurry somewhat. I had a long day at work and just wanted to get everything ready to go back together once USPS decides to deliver my cap and rotor kit. Was supposed to be delivered Saturday. I filed a case with them last night. Solomon has my tune basically done other than double checking my AFR at WOT. I am holding his tuner up some and it pisses me off USPS is never accurate on their ship date and always slow to update your shipping status. I still like Jegs but their customer service is not nearly as good using USPS for smaller items.

shbox

96capricemgr actually called it first. I just agreed. Just about any time you are in a high RPM situation and the engine suddenly shuts off or backfires, then shuts off, it is a rotor failure. If they are going to let go, it is in that situation.

I would suspect that where the inner plastic pin is dark, it had been working its way loose for some time.

CamOnlyJabroni

The old lt1 is back in action. My bro helped me get her back together and she fired right up.

hrcslam

Awesome!

kinglt-1

iTrader: (26)

Fwiw the msd cap and rotor is far superior to the stock delco crap!!

ACE1252

I wouldn't go so far as to say that. I've NEVER had an AC Delco ABITS unit fail on me....and I've had my '96 for 16 years. I'm on my 2nd opti and the first was pulled at ~100K when I did my cam swap. Nothing wrong with it at all. I currently have it boxed up as a backup.

That's not to say they are perfect, but, to my knowledge, they have a much better track record than any other opti manufacturer to date.

kinglt-1

iTrader: (26)

I would ...look at the pics. the rotor metal contacts are just pressed on the rotor with a plastic pin. the cap contacts are just cheap metal not brass like the msd. The OP's car is on it's 3rd Delco opti's in 16yrs and the car only has 52,000mi.

Aside from that I said the cap and rotor not the base with the optics.