I have a 1995 Camaro that is going on to its 4th optispark in the last 14 months. Each time we do the optispark job we replace all of the seals around it that prevent coolant and oil from getting in there. We’ve also replaced the water pump twice. We are currently at a total loss of what could possibly be chewing through our optispark like gum. Any help is appreciated, thanks!

 

How are you diagnosing it each time? Is it a different type of failure each time?

 

Check your grounds and make sure those are are good. Check the connections on the opti harness that go to the computer and make sure those are okay. Make sure that the opti harness plug is sealed so no water can get into the plug area too. Ive been told that bad connections can cause issues and burn them out. Also considering its a 1995 is vented you wouldnt have to worry about dealing with ozone build up and shorting out the distributor but are you sure your not driving over puddles or going fast through rain ? Have you tried different brands of opti sparks ? I forget what kind im running now but even with my mechanic and all of his connections he couldnt get a genuine acdelco opti spark. Its an overall bad design and many things can cause it to short itself out.

I have gone through four in the last two years, im doing a 24x swap and I recommend you do the same.

 

the first failure was because oil was getting into it but then we replaced the seals to prevent that from happening again. The second failure, the shop failed to install the center version of the optispark (for some reason they ordered the wrong one unbeknownst to us) and it failed due to backed up moisture. We are yet to hear back about what caused this third and most recent failure, but I can only imagine it is some internal fluid rather than rain water shorting it out.

 

We have also been unable to source a proper ac delco one and have really only used msd ones. I’m fairly certain that I’m careful enough in the rain for that not to be the issue but who’s to say. Would you care to elaborate what exactly the 24x swap does?

 

I'm a little confused here. When you say they ordered the wrong one I'm guessing they ordered a vented one which is driven by the cam pin instead of the splined shaft?

Ain't one, my guy. They are the way of the dodo bird. Even if you find one that is a Delco that doesn't mean it was manufactured the same with a Mitsu opti sensor. There are no dependable optis left these days. If you're going to keep the car it would be a good idea to start considering a 24x setup. As soon as the one on my car ***** the bed this is the route I'm taking.

 

Once I heard the reman'd optis weren't guaranteed to have that sensor, that's when I went 24x. Figured it was best to do it while all my stock parts still worked so I could recoup the cost.

I wish I could've kept the opti. HP tuners isn't cheap compared to the $60 cable for OBD1 and free software.


I was always envious of the people who get like 10 years on a $60 eBay opti.

 

There's a few different ways to 24x swap. It removes the optispark in favour of a signal unit that provides a cam and crank sensor for a newer LS style PCM, and delivers spark through 8 coils.

 

I cringe when I think of all the optis which were thrown away back in the day because people thought they were automatically bad if coolant leaked onto them. Ugh... The unit I have is a Delphi which I bought more than 10 years ago, so it's only a matter of time.

 

Yeah me too. When I got my car 6 years ago I had no clue about the whole Mitsubishi thing. My oem opti was dead.due to rust inside. But the sensor looked good. But I threw it all away lol. Luckily at the time I researched, realized my mistake and I was able to get a rebuilt unit from the berryman1/opti doctor guy on eBay before he disappeared. So I will keep this one and rebuild if ever needed.

 

SS RRR has a good point, as time goes on opti sparks arent really being made anymore and the ones that are, are made with poorer quality, so add that onto an already bad design. So if you want to keep the lt1 engine, 24x is the way to expand its life. Id recommend look into doing it now and not sinking money into another opti only to be destroyed by the water pump going out.

Sure its pricey but its better than constantly replacing it and being left stranded.

 

People seem to have decent luck with optis from Petris Enterprises. Otherwise, there aren’t many reliable options other than switching to a different ignition system.

Unless something has changed, the MSD optis are known to suck.

 

Torqueheads 24X conversion is $1800... Most of these guys can barely afford the $400 Petris unit.. lmao

 

Okay. L

 

And far more if you want to get a different ECU. I spent about $1200 for the Torqhead stuff (coil brackets, hub, signal housing) + $850 for EFI connection's harness for Holley ECUs + $2500 for a Dominator. Plus I had to get a welder make a bracket so it fits in the stock PCM location. It does fit, but it's a close! Then expect to get more nickle and dimed on other stuff from Holley, like a second wideband + harness.

 

Why is this funny? I’ve seen you also mention this in another thread? Funny how?

 

Okay...? That is what this forum is for yes? To talk about relevant LTX/LSX s***..

Is it funny that you seem to be following me from post to post...?

 

Right. For the three active threads in here in a week’s time. The horror. Never answered why it’s funny there are those who may not be able to afford a $400 opti.

 

Crazy how some have their original 96 Opti and zero issues..

 

A ton of optis get called bad when the root cause is the jumper harness that plugs into the optical sensor. Those harness were a major source of a lot of intermittents and supposed failed opti's.
We kept a stack of em at shop for all the DPS and county cars with em. It's kinda like 6.5 injection pumps once you figure out where the root cause is they become a lot less problematic once the gremlin is determined