I have a 1996 LT1, with a water pump that is leaking. I am planning to change the water pump, the opti, serpentine belt and the plug wires at the same time. Any helpful ideas on how to make this job as easy/simple as posesible?

Thanks

 

Easy, no it won't be. Reserve a nice weekend, get a FSM and couple cases of beer. Soak down the back of the crank pulley the night before.
There are already a lot of good tips on this procedure, just look them up before you start. Good Luck.

 

Get a Factory Service Manual, and follow the procedure it lays out.

A few tips (I'm going from memory here, so I'll probably forget a few things):

Drain the cooling system.

Disconnect the MAF sensor and remove the air intake duct with the MAF.

Disconnect the ECT sensor and remove it from the water pump.

Remove the serpentine belt and tensioner.

Unbolt the coil/ICM bracket from the right cylinder head.

Unbolt (but don't remove) the power steering pump. This will help you to sneak the new plug wires in/out behind the pump, but may also be somewhat helpful when working on the water pump/Opti.

If you want more room to work, you can remove the radiator, but it isn't strictly necessary (I left mine in place).

The FSM will tell you that you need a special Kent-Moore puller to remove the crank pulley/damper. You don't. Here's how to get it off:

1. Raise the front of the vehicle enough that you can get under the car (it's also helpful to have it at a more comfortable height while you're working from above).

2. Remove the three bolts that secure the pulley/damper to the hub.

3. Mark the damper and hub so that you can easily see how to realign them to each other later.

4. Slide under the car with a long pry bar or hardwood dowel (I use a jumbo Snap-On screwdriver that's around two feet long) and a mallet.

5. Place the tip of the pry bar against the rear face of the damper, as close to the hub as possible (Ideally rest the tip alongside of the hub).

6 Give the pry bar a few whacks with the mallet, and with any luck the damper will pop off without too much of a fight.

You may find it helpful to apply a few whacks, then rotate the crankshaft in 120* increments, whacking it a few times at each interval (I haven't needed to do this).

It's also helpful to, if possible, shoot a bit of penetrating oil where the damper meets the hub, a day or more in advance of doing the job.

After you get the damper off, clean the damper/hub mating surfaces to remove all corrosion, etc, and apply a very thin coating of anti-sieze compound to these surfaces before you reassmble the damper to the hub. This should make it a lot easier to get the damper off next time.

Once the damper is removed, rotate the crankshaft so that one wing of the damper hub is at the six-o'clock position. This will position the other two wings at around the ten- and two-o'clock positions. In this orientation, the Opti will clear the hub as it is being removed/installed.

The Opti basically unbolts and pulls off as you'd expect, once you have the water pump and damper out of the way.

Once the Opti is out of the way, inspect the shaft seals for the Opti, water pump, and crankshaft. If they show any signs of leakage, replace them now.

When you install the new Opti, be sure to align it correctly with the cam gear, and don't force it into place against the timing cover (do NOT use the bolts to draw it into place). At most, give it a gentle bump with the heel of your hand to encourage it to pop into place.

When you're installing the new water pump, if it doesn't slip right into place against the front of the engine block, the splined drive shaft is probably not perfectly aligned with the splined input of the water pump. If this happens, pull the pump back off and turn the input shaft in the pump a few degrees, and try it again. Repeat as necessary until it slips cleanly and easily into place.

Follow the cooling system refill procedure in the FSM carefully, and you'll have no problems with this. In particular, be sure to bleed the air out of the system as it's being refilled.

Below, I've pasted in some tips I wrote up a while ago for changing the plugs & wires:

Changing the plug wires on an LT1 is not a lot of fun, but it can be done. Here are a few tips:

1. Raise the front end of the vehicle to a more comfortable working height.

2. Remove the inner fenderwell center panel on the driver's side. This will allow you to both see and do the job much more easily on the driver's side. You may also find it helpful to remove the wheel.

3. Unbolt the ASR bracketry from the frame, so that you can slide the ASR unit around to get it out of your way.

4. Unbolt the power steering pump so that you can move it forward around a half inch. This will make it much easier to sneak the plug wires in/out behind the pump.

5. Remove the serpentine belt and tensioner.

6. Use dielectric grease in the boots at both ends of the wires. Be sure to "burp" the air out of the boots after you get each of them pushed firmly into place, so that the trapped air doesn't try to push the wires off later.

Some guys report that they've had decent success accessing the Opti-end of the plug wires from underneath of the car. I haven't tried this, so I can't comment.

Take your time, work with care, and pay attention to what you're doing. The OEM replacement plug wires from your Chevy dealer are high quality parts, and will route (and fit into the wire looms) correctly. Run the new wires properly, and make sure they stay away from anything that moves, is sharp, or gets hot.

The passenger's side is not such a bad job. The driver's side is a Queen Royal Beyotch. With plenty of patience, beer and Band-Aids, you'll get it done.

The spark plugs on the driver's side aren't so bad, when you've got things apart to do the wires. The passenger's side, however, is not so easy. The number 8 plug in particular can be a real headache, but with good tools and enough patience, you can get it done. I use a spark plug socket that has a hex head on it so that it can be turned with an open end or box end wrench. It's useful to have more than one plug socket to choose from, as some will work better than others due to differences in length, wall thickness, etc.

Be sure to apply a small amount of anti-sieze compound to the threads of the new plugs before you install them. Just make sure none of the compound gets onto the electrodes or insulator of the plugs.

Be well,

SJW

 

Boy SJW nailed it! Nice job! I can add the torque on the 3 damper to pulley bolts are 60ft lbs, center hub bolt is 70ft lbs. You have to remove the belt tensioner to get the opti off, but I think SJW mentioned that. Lastly, it IS possible to install the opti out of time and please don't ask me how I know that Once you have the opti, plugs and wires on hook up the intake and MAF just long enough to be sure it will start and run for few seconds, then put everything else back together.

 

I will add my 2 cents.

1) Getting the bolts off the balancer can be tough. I used an impact gun and with just the right amount of extension on it you can get the gun in from the bottom, over the stearing, to get the bolts off. Had to use a universal on extension. Didn't think it was going to work but it did great, was not my idea will not take the credit.

2) Make up a switch assembly with a push button switch, about 3-4 feet of wire and 2 good size clip leads. Clip one on the hot wire of the starter and the other on the solenoid. This will enable you to turn the engine for different positions while you whack the rear of the balancer. I first painted the rear of the balancer, 1 rib and to the sides of it so I will never loose my location point. The switch will also let you turn the engine to put the opti shaft at 12 o-clock. And will aid in getting the water pump to line up if it does not just slip on, just bump the starter. Found that out on my fourth pump removable.

3) And last but not least change both shaft seals for the opti and water pump, $8 per. Your not getting this chance again for a while (hopefully)

 

Hey Split! I betcha feel the new power already! That's a heckuva write up SJW. I gotta put that in my library somewhere where I can find it.

 

Thanks for the kind words, aminnich and CompYell (you don't need to save it, Bill -- just let me know when you're tackling the job and I'll bring my tools).

PColt makes a good point about problems associated with getting the damper bolts loose on an automatic trans-equipped car. I didn't think of that because I didn't have that problem, as mine's a six-speed -- I could lock the crankshaft in place by putting the trans in gear and cinching up the E-brake nice and tight.

One additional point I just thought of:

When you're installing the new water pump, if it doesn't slip right into place against the front of the engine block, the splined drive shaft is probably not perfectly aligned with the splined input of the water pump. If this happens, pull the pump back off and turn the input shaft in the pump a few degrees, and try it again. Repeat as necessary until it slips cleanly and easily into place. I'll go back and edit the previous post to include this note...

Be well,

SJW

 

"Thanks for the kind words, aminnich and CompYell (you don't need to save it, Bill -- just let me know when you're tackling the job and I'll bring my tools)." sjw

Really nice offer that I hope I never have to take you up on, altho I guess if I own the car long enough......

 

SJW, Thanks for all the information, I will try to put it to good use.