No optispark issues
Thread Starter
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 14,686
Likes: 753
From: NEwhere Ohio
No optispark issues
Seems like the optispark gets a bad rap.
people install a cheap $69 made in china optispark as a proactive replacement to their working-fine gen 2 optispark, and then their car breaks down on them.
or they buy a c4 that someone else replaced the optispark on (with a cheap replacement), couldnt get the car to run right, so they sold it to an unsuspecting buyer who now posts here about their problems.
or they buy an expensive $500 msd optispark (which doesnt use the mitsubishi opticAl sensor - the only one which holds up under the heat / engine operating environment) and it fails so they incorrectly call the optispark a piece of garbage.
or they have the non-vented 92_93 optispark, which will fail if seals crack /water gets inside as mine did
in 2001 with only 26000 miles. When this design flaw is fixed and a vent added, the optispark becomes reliable.
so anyways i want to report that my gen 2 OEM optispark (i converted to it) is still working great on my 1993. Theres only about 20000 miles on it, but i have full confidence in it because its OEM parts with the mitsubishi optical sensor.
no plans to get rid of optispark Thats all. I love my optispark ! I even hooked an MSD box to it to give it extra punch to light the spark under boost.
people install a cheap $69 made in china optispark as a proactive replacement to their working-fine gen 2 optispark, and then their car breaks down on them.
or they buy a c4 that someone else replaced the optispark on (with a cheap replacement), couldnt get the car to run right, so they sold it to an unsuspecting buyer who now posts here about their problems.
or they buy an expensive $500 msd optispark (which doesnt use the mitsubishi opticAl sensor - the only one which holds up under the heat / engine operating environment) and it fails so they incorrectly call the optispark a piece of garbage.
or they have the non-vented 92_93 optispark, which will fail if seals crack /water gets inside as mine did
in 2001 with only 26000 miles. When this design flaw is fixed and a vent added, the optispark becomes reliable.
so anyways i want to report that my gen 2 OEM optispark (i converted to it) is still working great on my 1993. Theres only about 20000 miles on it, but i have full confidence in it because its OEM parts with the mitsubishi optical sensor.
no plans to get rid of optispark Thats all. I love my optispark ! I even hooked an MSD box to it to give it extra punch to light the spark under boost.
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 1,359
Likes: 292
From: MA
I pulled mine apart on my 96 at about 44,000 miles because of a misfire under load and the fact that my water pump took a dump on it. The Opti was fine but the rotor screws backed out, one fell out the other was just hanging on! The water pump failure did not damage the Opti. But I did replace the cap,rotor, screws (Loctite on the screws) and seal with a GM replacement since I had it apart.
I have no complaints other than there is not much room to work on it and the balancer being stuck on the hub.
It would be nice if someone made a replacement optical sensor as reliable as the Mitsubishi sensor.
I have no complaints other than there is not much room to work on it and the balancer being stuck on the hub.
It would be nice if someone made a replacement optical sensor as reliable as the Mitsubishi sensor.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
5 Best & 5 Worst Corvette Daily Drivers
Joe Kucinski
The Headlights of Every Corvette Generation Explained
Joe Kucinski
5 Best & 5 Most Overrated Corvette Track Packages of All Time!
Joe Kucinski
Every 2027 Corvette Engine Explained
Joe Kucinski
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Verdad Gallardo
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
Race Director
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 16,097
Likes: 821
From: Dallas Texas
2025 C4 of the Year Finalist - Modified
Thread Starter
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 14,686
Likes: 753
From: NEwhere Ohio
I want to add that i reprogrammed fans and installed 160 f tstat.
coolant temps are only 170-178f. Vs stock 210-220F
i have to believe that will have a positive effect on the longetivity of the electronics in the optispark
coolant temps are only 170-178f. Vs stock 210-220F
i have to believe that will have a positive effect on the longetivity of the electronics in the optispark
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 1,674
Likes: 191
From: Shit Creek, USA
Your sample group for the Achilles Heel of the LT-1 is sorely lacking.