LT1-LT4 Modifications 1993-97 Gen II Small Block V8

opti rotor problem

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Old Jul 18, 2008 | 05:06 PM
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Default opti rotor problem

The rotor on my opti broke and the question is if i get it TDC on the compresion stroke do i just place the rotor at the #1 part of the cap?
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Old Jul 18, 2008 | 09:10 PM
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looks like you have a 94, if its a non vented opti you have a keyed slot on the part of the opti that goes into the timing cover, you need to line it up.
if its vented you have to line up the mark pointing to 1.
if you look at the back of the opti and it has 1 and a 6 then its the vented opti.
check engineer's web site, he has picks.
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Old Jul 19, 2008 | 04:48 AM
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yes its a 94 so then it can only go in one way so i dont have to worry about the timing being messed up when i install the new one?
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Old Jul 19, 2008 | 06:27 AM
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The rotor only goes on the opti one way. The opti while it technically only goes on the cam one way people have managed to get forecful enough to put it on wrong. The unvented setup is a bit of a PITA, look closely at the spline drive and you will see the alignment piece, hard part is getting it lined up right with the cam and then getting the opti dropped over it, sort of like threading a needle by feel.
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Old Jul 19, 2008 | 02:12 PM
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It's pretty easy, actually. Mine falls right in.
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Old Jul 19, 2008 | 02:53 PM
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ok so stupid me pulled the whole opti from the block instead of just taking the cap off so i see the little rectangle piece on the opti splines so im guessing that the alignment slot. Now i have another problem. I went ahead and got the msd cap a rotor and i have the isolator on but when i screw down the rotor to it it seems to bind against the plastic and is hard to turn. am i missing something? Also going through the stuff in the box i found 2 little washers, would those be shims that go between the opti disk and rotor? the instructions didnt say anything about washers. thanks

Last edited by 94T/A5.7LT1; Jul 19, 2008 at 03:15 PM.
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Old Jul 20, 2008 | 02:33 AM
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anyone?
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Old Jul 20, 2008 | 04:07 PM
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i got everything installed and put back together and now my car will not start. it cranks and pops from the exhaust. I checked all my plug wires and they are going to the right spot and all the sensors are plugged in. Anyone have any ideas? the only thing i can think of is that the actually optical sensor is gone.
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Old Jul 20, 2008 | 07:46 PM
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check to see if you have spark at the plugs, i would also make sure you have spark at the coil.
if you have spark at the coil and not at the plugs its probably not the opti sensor, is the check engine light on?
i noticed you mention the rotor felt like it was binding and i have read that to be a problem on some msd cap and rotor swaps, if the rotor is binding thats probably the issue.
do a search for ltcc, i just got tired of having issues with the spark side of the dist and am in the process of doing the ltcc mod but am waiting on the ltcc itself to get here, hopefully will have it this week.
the ltcc mod takes the spark out of the dist and at that point the only thing you are using the opti for is the cam opti sensor.
I hate to say it but your probably going to have to re-check that rotor, that means tearing all apart again.
But check if you have spark 1st at the plugs and at the coil.
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Old Jul 20, 2008 | 07:55 PM
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you can also start it with out the wp and everything back on so you know its right before you reinstall everything again
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Old Jul 21, 2008 | 11:57 AM
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i checked and i do have spark and the coil and number 1 plug. Once the whole opti was put together and tightened down there was no bind at all and spun freely. In the box there were two little washers and nothing in the manual said anything about them. but it did say something about shims, could these be shims to shim the rotor to bring it closer to the cap?
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Old Jul 22, 2008 | 06:00 AM
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cant figure out what the two washers are. i will take a picture of them tomorrow to see if anyone knows what they are for
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Old Jul 22, 2008 | 04:03 PM
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they are probably the shims they mentioned in the instructions...that might be whats wrong?
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 01:11 PM
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alright, today im going to take everything apart again and try the original cap and rotor to see if it starts if so then im going to try those two little washers as shims to see if it will start with the msd cap and rotor. If none of those work im just going to order a new opti. I have been reading to go with just ac delco. Is this an OK deal? http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku

i tried looking through ebay with thepartsladi but no luck. thanks
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 01:48 PM
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i found one from thepartsladi and thats where i got mine. ive had no issues. $277 shipped.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/92-93...mZ170243101655
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 03:59 PM
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ok i tried starting the car with the shims that were in the box on the msd cap and rotor and it did the same thing. Then i took it apart again to try it with the stock cap and rotor and it still would not start. So is my opti gone? what does the optical sensor actually control? I have spark from the coil and from the plug wires. but it just continues to pop and back fire like the timing is off. thanks
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Old Jul 25, 2008 | 12:24 AM
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any ideas if its my opti that died on me?
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Old Jul 25, 2008 | 08:14 AM
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did you ever take the opti off? or just the cap and rotor? It seems like you could have misaligned the opti... Thats what happened to me when i did mine. It would start and run but seemed like timing was off. They say it can only go on one way but its very easy to mess up. and you dont need to force it on either. it will seem like its right but i would double check.
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Old Jul 25, 2008 | 11:17 AM
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yes i did take the opti completely off but when i went to put it in it just like fell right in with out any force. I also tried to to turn the rotor to see if it would go in any other way but it would still only go in one way.
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Old Jul 25, 2008 | 11:26 AM
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yea i highly recommend you to double check bc it just "fell" in place when i did mine and it was wrong.
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