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

msd opti....

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Old Aug 18, 2008 | 06:47 PM
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Default msd opti....

hey, my car has an msd opti on it...and cap and rotor. My car stutters at about 4200 rpm's, and it drives me crazy. im pretty sure it never did it until after the msd was installed. It still has the warranty on it,but i would rather not have to pay to have it done again. (dont have the space or tools at my house to do it...damn condos.)

Has anyone had a defective brand new MSD opti/cap and rotor? Thanx
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Old Aug 18, 2008 | 07:25 PM
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The MSDs arfe know for the rotor comming apart, my 1st one did it in the middle of a run with an SS and it pissed me off...took me forever to figure out what it was, but it's a simple fix, pop the ca off, catch the screws and put locktite on the screws....FYI: this needed to be done before it was installed on the car...Some assembly required
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Old Aug 18, 2008 | 09:05 PM
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Originally Posted by GreatWhiteZ28
The MSDs arfe know for the rotor comming apart, my 1st one did it in the middle of a run with an SS and it pissed me off...took me forever to figure out what it was, but it's a simple fix, pop the ca off, catch the screws and put locktite on the screws....FYI: this needed to be done before it was installed on the car...Some assembly required
you think thats my problem? the car runs fine until 4200rpm..only does it at WOT, and sometimes doesnt do it when the engine is cold...but when the engines cold i dont take it up that high anyways lol
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Old Aug 18, 2008 | 09:07 PM
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If you pull it apart right away you might get lucky and find the rotor just loose. Really though the MSD is not a very reliable piece.
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Old Aug 18, 2008 | 11:49 PM
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MSD here, and know of lots others. No problems yet.

I would be checking things like wires first.
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Old Aug 18, 2008 | 11:53 PM
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Originally Posted by Fixxer99TA
MSD here, and know of lots others. No problems yet.

I would be checking things like wires first.
ive checked them a few times, and my headers are also wrapped
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 12:17 AM
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Sure you dont have any coolant leaks (like maybe through the weep hole on the bottom of the water pump, leaking onto the opti)? Been seeing alot of those lately killing optis....
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 12:19 AM
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thanks for another quick reply man...i havent noticed any coolant leaks at all. it has a CSI EWP with about 3k miles on it

edit--- also, pretty much everything else on the car is new as well. only things that arent new are the o2 sensors(which need to be changed, but shouldnt affect WOT..), and the MAP sensor which i tested for voltage and it was within spec
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 01:27 AM
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Yeah, if it was your O2s it would be affecting power output all over the place not just after 4200rpm at WOT...

Dont happen to have a fuel pressure gauge or know anyone who has one that you can hook up real quick? Id be interested to know what your FP would be (as this is quite a bit easier to check first before having to tear open your setup again to check the opti).

And as someone said above, did you loctite the rotor screws on the MSD? It was common (I think they fixed it now) for the screws to back out at high RPM, but it seems like it stopped happening.

Word to the wise, most people who claim the MSD isnt a quality piece have never seen/used one. I have one and its awsome, if it was crap it wouldent be on my car. (I also encourage you to check out my thread entitled "Just picked up an MSD opti, would you like my opinion?" it has all the info you would need and MANY first hand reviews of the MSD from people who HAVE ACTUALLY RUN IT AND SEEN IT )

Last edited by Fixxer99TA; Aug 19, 2008 at 02:02 AM. Reason: 3am jibberish
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 01:40 AM
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Originally Posted by Fixxer99TA
Yeah, if it was your O2s it would be affecting power output and NOT overheating.

Dont happen to have a fuel pressure gauge or know anyone who has one that you can hook up real quick? Id be interested to know what your FP would be (as this is quite a bit easier to check first before having to tear open your setup again to check the opti).

And as someone said above, did you loctite the rotor screws on the MSD? It was common (I think they fixed it now) for the screws to back out at high RPM, but it seems like it stopped happening.

Word to the wise, most people who claim the MSD isnt a quality piece have never seen/used one. I have one and its awsome, if it was crap it wouldent be on my car. (I also encourage you to check out my thread entitled "Just picked up an MSD opti, would you like my opinion?" it has all the info you would need and MANY first hand reviews of the MSD from people who HAVE ACTUALLY RUN IT AND SEEN IT )
not sure what you mean with the overheating, my car runs ice cold...but i will try and get a FP gauge on there. It was checked a few months ago and everything was good...FPR has 3k on it, 255 pump has 3k, 42lb injectors also have 3k on them...im pretty sure there wasnt any loctite put on the screws (bought the car from a friend of mine, and he never goes on the forums so i doubt he'd know about it)..i hope its really not the opti, if it is then looks like itll be sitting for a few weeks.
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 02:01 AM
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Dont mind me, was helping someone else with the overheating problem and got that stuck in my head. That + 3am = me need sleep.

I will edit my last post so nobody else gets confused

The loctite is very important, make sure if you take it apart to check you use red loctite. Many of the earlier MSD optis came apart because there was nothing used on the threads holding the rotor in place (theres only two small screws, revving like some people do they can back out EASILY).
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 05:12 AM
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I have handled the MSD, when we put a stock opti on the car it miraculously ran again.
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 11:13 AM
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Oh my....

So that would mean my car "miraculously" runs with one then doesnt it.... The plot unfolds...
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 12:10 PM
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99 remember you have to take half of what he says and ignore it and forget the other half
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 12:26 PM
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Oh I know, believe it or not when I came back after absense I picked up this much from one of your posts
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Old Aug 19, 2008 | 01:18 PM
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I firmly believe that the MSD billet opti is a much, much, better product than OEM. It didn't fix my high rpm rotor eating engine, but I still would recommend it over OEM, any day.

My bastardized LTCC/MSD seems to be working just fine.

D has his opinions, and everyone gets to hear them, all the time.
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