Best opti's as of 2016?
 

Hey guys, new member here so don't beat me up! Lol. I know this has been discussed many times over, but, I searched this in the lt1/lt4 section and didn't find much after 3-4 pages. BTW, what is the best way to search this forum? My opti search shows the most recently discussed, not most recently posted. Currently, as of 2016, what are the better options for a replacement opti, and what are those reasons for said recommendation? I have researched this before and have come to these conclusions thus far: Best opti is a stock replacement Dephi or A/C Delco or some shit. GM and MSD are hit or miss, accel sucks, and so does everything else. Also, is there a more affordable, RELIABLE option than the $300-$400 oem unit? I read before about a Chandler Motorsports opti for $150 or something that seemed like it worked well and had a lifetime warranty. Some guys were complaining DOA, some praised it, and the vendor himself was on ls1tech defending that the "DOA" complaints were another problem that they weren't mechanically inclined enough to find, and just blamed the opti. Thoughs? Advise? I probably just need to fork over $350 for an oem huh? Damn, I could buy pacesetters for that... :( :bs:

Same as all the other years, AC Delco

Thanks for the reply. My biggest problem is that I have 2 cars that definately need one each, and possibly a third car as well! :eek2:

MSD or AC Delco.

It is my understanding all "AC Delco" Optis are now 'remanufactured". Not saying that is bad but they are no longer NIB

Delphi is "new" but it has been years since I bought mine.

I still run my 17 year old GM "AC Delco" opti with a MSD C&R

Op, I would consider a MSD C&R for your existing AC Delcos if the shaft bearing is good (assuming the optis are good otherwise)

So is the MSD cap and rotor a recommended upgrade to a oem unit then? Basically both my cars run like crap whenever it rains, so I know it's the opti. The one car I even have a manual fan switch on, and if I flip the fans on high for 10min it will dry out and run great after runnning like crap. Both run great during dry weather, and shitty during moist weather. It is my understanding that the seals are worn out and the unit just needs replaced; but are the msd c&r a "performance" upgrade, or do they just improve the oem unit or what? I believe both cars are on the original opti's, both at 130k so I'm sure their time is up. Just a new c&r wouldn't solve my issues would it? My undestanding is that the seals wear out overtime and start allowing moisture into the unit and cause the symptoms I have, no? Is there any way to rebuild a stock unit once the seals are bad?

while rain can induce a opti to act up, there are other factors than can be the problem. ICM or coil being a few

The MSD C&R is considered a "upgrade" vs stock more in terms of the quality of the C&R and the fact it has one more hold down screw location for the cap. Just like any distributor the C&R is a wear item and needs replacing, certainly at or over 100k mi.

The MSD cap seals basically the same as OEM Optis using a large rubber "O" ring. Putting dialectic grease on the "o" ring helps.

If the shaft bearing is still good (no wobble) and you clean up the inside of the Opti if it does have some form of oil/moisture/crud inside a new C&R is all you need

also put a new o ring on the spline shaft of the Opti. Most replace the WP drive & Opti seals on timing cover when doing a C&R. The FelPro TC gasket/seal kit has everything (and more) you need and is about $10 at most auto part stores. Both those seals install dry (don't use grease or oil) and the WP drive seal can be tricky to install as the inner lip wants to fold over which will result in a immediate oil leak. A "tool" is required which can be several forms of homemade or one you buy. do a search on wp seal install if you have not done one. Not hard to do, just need a tool, socket or sharpie pen body or even the spline coupler itself to slide the new seal on.

It helps a lot if you use the advanced search, then Sort Results by: "relevency", rather than "last posting date"

Thanks for the info, I may try to rebuild one. I plan on putting a ewp on both though when I do the opti, so will I still have the same difficult water pump drive seal or will this no longer apply with an ewp?

Cool, thats what I was looking for, I'm a :newbie: lol.

If you are going with an EWP, you will need to plug or fill the hole in the timing cover that the water pump drive used to go through. Some people use a quarter and some JB weld, some weld it shut, etc.

if your existing WP drive seal is not leaking....you can just leave it alone. With that said sometimes when removing the WP drive coupler, especially if it is stuck on the drive splines and takes effort getting off, the disturbance can then cause a previously non leaking WP drive seal to now start leaking.

You DO NOT need to remove the WP drive gear/spline itself if going to EWP. You can if you chose to but you will need to plug the hole in some fashion...

I have had my EWP since 1999 with the OEM drive gear still installed, no issues.

IMHO just leave it on (it is no small job to remove and plug). Should you ever need to go back to mechanical WP you can. Lets say your EWP craps somewhere on a trip and you don't have a spare EWP to replace it with without ordering one somewhere as they are not available at auto parts stores. Mechanical WP's can be had anywhere so you could replace it should you need to while on a road trip. With this said some, like me, keep a spare EWP in the trunk. Should it ever die changing it takes a few minutes and can easily be done on the side of the road should that situation occur. My spare has been in the trunk for about 17 years now....

My intentions for going ewp are mostly for the hp/tq gains. I have seen that they dyno about an 8hp/12ft-lbs gain over the stocker. With that being said, wouldn't you want to remove the wp drive to maximize the performance gains? I understand that means a hell of a lot more work, removing the timing cover and such. And can you remove the whole thing including that large gear in the back, or just the shaft? I'm just wondering how much of that 8hp/12ft-lbs is lost by leaving the drive gear and shaft on. That assembly itself is larger than the propeller and shaft inside the stock water pump, so I have to imagine that half of the gains are from removing the water pump drive as well, no? What do you guys think?

to take TC off you need to drop the pan some in front...

The drive gear itself just spinning....it "may" draw HP...but IMHO somewhere in the .0xxx range. Given the amount of work to remove it AND plugging the TC hole so it won't leak is just not worth it to gain .0xx, if any, HP

The 10 hp (or whatever has been dynoed) gain is because the engine is not mechanically driving the WP which by itself is a drag on the motor mechanically. And the argument the 135 amp alternator will further drain HP as a result of running a 7 amp EWP...please, file that under the sky is falling crap

I went EWP 17+ years ago because the mechanicals kept weeping killing Opti's. All were under new car warranty but when my warranty ended I chose not to continue the BS pattern of crap AC Delco WP. I have not had that problem since. Did I pick up HP, sure but that was not my reason for doing it

Make sure you wire a good relay & fuse for the EWP. BS wiring=failed EWP

Holy shit, thank you! They must own their own dyno lol. Great info thanks a tun. :cheers:

Yes I read about the alternator draw and I agree it's irrelevant; you pick up more power than you lose from the extra amps needed. And yah, my water pump is dripping on my opti lol. Any suggestions for a relay and fuse, or wiring? Which ewp do you use? I hear a lot about the meziere pumps, but I don't want to have to cut up my fans so it will fit. Is there a good one that doesn't require trimming? What do you run? And thanks for all your help btw.

I have a brand new msd billet vented opti for sale. Shoot me an email for details: jon@lt1boost.net

I use the Meziere HD 118 EWP but I have a B-body so there is not a space problem like F-body.

You can use the standard flow 118 which is shorter than the HD and from my understanding "minimal" trimming of the fan shroud may be needed. NOT the fans themselves

Back when I did mine I just bought a painless wiring fuel pump relay/fuse and wired it up myself to key on +12v power

There has to be several write-ups on EWP wiring for a F-body, do a search

Ok, I will do a search sometime. I just though I'd ask you what you did since you have been so much help, and you have been using a EWP for many years. Thanks again man. I'll look into the standard flow.

Personally I'm going with a MSD because Ive had bad luck with remanufactured stuff... Plus you can get them for a steal on Craigslist if you look had enough. Getting a barely used one and wires for less than $200!

Check out Sac City Corvette web page they sell AIP electronics Opti with a 2 year warranty the unit is made in the good old USA, many road racing teams use this part