97SS0594

my opti crapped out 2 days ago (no spark what so ever) i ran all the tests and all the results indicate the opti... what kind of results are people getting just replacing the cap/rotor and leaving the optical unit? ive never done this, i always just replace the whole thing, but now with child support, house payment ect... my budget isnt as fluid as it once was. so what would you do if you where in my situation?

RamAir95TA

I'd replace the entire opti it with an AC Delco unit. Anything else and you're taking a chance. More expensive than the cheapo knock-off stuff yeah, but far more reliable.

shoebox

It really depends on what indications you had, what tests you did and what results you got. If you have trouble codes, a cap and rotor won't fix that.

pizzi-man

You should inspect the opti before making a decision. In my case I had a lot of corrosion on the posts in the cap and on the rotor but everything looked good as far as not any oil or crud in the rest of the unit. That was 5 years ago and I got by with just a cap and rotor.110,000 then and 140,000 now.

97SS0594

just picked up a used cap that came off one of my best friends cars that he parted out, i know its good, so im gonna replace the cap and rotor on this before i toss it in my car. and i used the opti test method on your site shoebox, ive used it before and it was spot on diagnosing a bad opti on my old SS... i checked the ICM plug and the 2 wires read 10VDC key on, and the white wire read 2vAC while rolling it so the PCM is good, coil tested good, only things it could be is the ICM its self or the opti.. and how it died id say its also the opti.... or my 6AL box

Injuneer

Did you scan it for codes when it died? If it was the optical section in the back 1/2 of the Opti, it would have set codes.

97SS0594

i could go scan it with my laptop.. but my check engine light is always on due to me running speed density.

97WS6SCharged

Doesn't matter, it should still store the codes for the opti. I've never had any luck just replacing the cap & rotor personally. LTCC FTW!

Guest47904

There are no ignition items that are supposed to get 10 volts. The only thing that is less than 12 volts DC is the 2 feedback signals from the distributor. You need to look at why the battery voltage going to the ICM and the coil is only 10 volts.

Is the battery down or bad? Check the voltage at the battery. Is it different than the 10 volts you read at the ICM/coil? If so, why? If not, why is the battery down to 10 volts? Even a bad battery should read 12.6 volts. Is your meter on the fritz?

After your battery voltage gets ironed out, you need to check the green wire from the ICM to the coil to see if it is pulsing. If so, after that is bad. If not, it may be the coil or the aftermarket ignition box.

I would at least remove the ignition box and go back to stock. Too many folks here have a problem with aftermarket ignition boxes.

97SS0594

my cars stock iginition will not sustain my car alone. ill be blowing out spark like crazy, the car before all the new bigger better more well built stuff made 600WHP. and i now run over 20PSI with my F1.

and this snippet is from the "diagnosing optispark issues" from the sticky above.
and the green wire doesnt pulse its the white wire

Disconnect the ICM connector. Leave the coil connected. Turn key ON engine OFF. Check for dc voltage at harness terminal "A" to ground and and also "D" to ground. You should get 10v dc or more on both terminals.

and they where both getting like 10.8VDC roughly i just rounded down. my battery in the car is getting run down from running tests but 10V is plenty enough to run that ICM.

calaban

I bought my '95 in December '02. In January I stalled out hard at a stop light showing off, embarassing right? Anyway I started back up and about 1/4 mile down the road it started missing and sputtering, then finally cut off. I coasted to the side of the road and nothing. Wouldn't fire at all. I called my dad with a dolly and pulled it to the shop. Knowing only the Opti stigma that is associated with these cars I jumped on the bandwagon. After pulling the Opti I hear something rattling around inside. Take it apart and there's the tip of the rotor that had broken off lying there. Went and bought a new Cap, Rotor, and water pump (weep hole had signs of coolant.) Installed and, knock on wood, it's still running strong. It has 120k on the odometer when it happened, and has 179k on it now. No issues.

moparman

There have been posts on here about the rotor coming loose. It happened on my Formula. Don't know how the car was running, as the rotor was about to fall off. Use Loctite or something on the rotor screws to hold them.