I'd like to hear from anybody that is, or has used the MSD Optispark dist. on their C4. I had an MSD 6AL on my Mustang and thought it was OK. I used it as a reliability failsafe, just to take the load off the falure prone ignition module that was stock on that car, but really found no performance advantage. I was wondering how acurate and reliable these new Opti's are and if their durability is far enough beyond the stock one on the LT4 to justify the cost difference.

 

 

 

I have not used one personally, but I hear it's far superior than the Accel Opti. That's the one to stay away from.

 

Ask these guys, they're the word on opti-craps.
www.dynaspark.net

 

I havent used an MSD opti but i am afraid to try using it with the fact that i have had nothing but bad luck with failing MSD ignition components

 

I can recommend the DynaSpark.

Be well,

SJW

 

My son-in-law just installed one on his 92 to replace a failed factory unit, it is running great so far but has just been installed so the jury is still out on durability. He was impressed with the quality of the piece visually for what that is worth. If I hear any failure stories I will post them here, I will be paying attention since my 93 has more miles than his and still has the original Opti so I know there is one in my future.

 

done a few installs here in the shop... no problems, and a lot of satisfied clients.

Getting ready to outfit a '57 Chevy with one, as a matter of fact.


(yes...it's got an LT1)

 

Holy Moly what an engine !! I guess you ( Racer X70CC ) must be the guy to ask "What's this thing do?" It looks like you have put a few things together.
I've heard nothing but good things about the Dyna spark guys and I've heard a lot of storys about bad electronics in some MSD products. I always suspected my intermitten ignition problem on my old Mustang was my MSD-6AL but I could never prove it because It always tested OK. The problem never lasted long enough to track down.
I'll keep a watch on this posting for a few days and see how many more people chime in with storys of praise or condemnation, before I decide weather to buy another MSD. Especially one that I'll have to live with like deep on the nose of my LT4's buisy engine bay.

 

The guys at Dynaspark are 100%. Honesty goes a long ways in my book. If it was me I'd go with the Dyanspark. They stand behind thier products.

 

I considered the MSD, but ended up putting a new OEM Delco back in. A kid here in town put the MSD on his 94 Camaro, and he thinks its just pretty sweet. His had a vent kit that he was able to get it up near the top of the engine.

 

 

I too am impressed with the build quality of the MSD unit.

 

I've used, sold and installed MSD products for 25 years and can honestly say they have no competition... I use only their stuff, period. I've personally had only 1 (one) component failure in all that time (a bad Multi-Step Retard box), which was taken care of promptly and courteously by MSD.

Here's another personal story... I bought a used crank trigger setup and distributor from a racer for my Chevelle, and the distributor had the shaft twisted severely at the bottom (a result of a catastrophic engine failure). I called MSD for a replacement shaft, and they told me to send in the distributor to have it replaced (wasn't a service part to endusers). The cost to me would be $38.00 maximum. I told them I wasn't the original purchaser, but that didn't matter. I sent it in, and 5 days later got a BRAND NEW distributor, not my old one back. I called to see if there was a mistake, and they informed me it was not. Being as I was not a shop owner at the time, just a racer...that sold me on MSD. I've seen a lot of iginition systems in my time, and for me anyway...MSD is my only choice. As a shop owner, my policy is not to sell a client something I wouldn't use myself, (unless they really really insist on it), so you'll find MSD products on 99.999% of cars out of my shop.

FYI, when I add an electric water pump to my LT1, at that time an MSD Opti will find its way onto my personal Vette... (no time for my own stuff... clients come first).

 

I installed a MSD distributor on my 92 a few months ago and have a couple thousand miles on it so far. It is still running great. I bought it mostly for the vented opti feature. Only problems I had was that the connector on the unit was different than the one in my car. I think 92 was the only year affected. I installed an opti connector from a 93 and I was in business. Installing the O-ring was tricky also. Other than that a very good unit so far.

 

Good to hear this from a pro who sees a lot of different products and vehicles. My future plans are very similar to yours and will go the electric water pump MSD opti route unless I hear some very bad news from my son-in-law before then. What brand electric pump will be your choice if you don't mind my asking?

 

You know, I'm surprised Mallory doesn't offer an Optispark module. They've been building race and high-performance ignition parts for decades.

 

It's good to hear from pros as well as civialians about the good responses to any MSD problems and their commitment to customer satisfaction as well as product reliability. Usually if someone is satisfied with a product they might tell a friend or two. If somebody gets ripped off they'll tell everybody!
I too was a little surprised that Mallory does not offer an Opti distributor of thier own. The best old distributor I ever had was a dual point Mallory. It had more adjustability than anything I've seen since.(Variable advance curves and adjustable rotor indexing for high RPM use) It outlived two engines before I replaced it with electronics,(points for it got harder to find and $$$)I've had nothing that responsive since.
It seems to be Dyna spark and MSD as the best quality with OEM being the dependable but less expensive route.

 

Good conclusions, but when I was looking for a opti MSD wasn't up and running. They had one on thier site but not one in the box.

Optis are problematic, no matter who makes or re-invents them.

Lets see, sealing them didn't work, so lets un-seal them and see if that works? Of course it didn't, and another bad idea from GM faded into memory.

As you know distributors need service and its not a good idea to put anything that needs it in a hard to get to area.

I would think that most of the optis problems are from a lack of said service, and even fewer folks who can really work on LT1's.

You know you can cook fish but it still stinks.