Optispark Install Help! Timing/backfiring

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Jul 20, 2009 | 10:40 AM

#21

PLRX

Team Owner

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From: Riverside County Southern California

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Looks you have all in place. The optic should fall in place easily, do not

foce it in with the plate screws.

Did you mess around with the MSD Optic timing screw?

to advance: counterclockwise
to retard: clockwise

Jul 20, 2009 | 11:00 AM

#22

STL94LT1

Race Director

Joined: Jan 2002

Posts: 12,263

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From: O'Fallon Missouri

I've never changed a cap and rotor, just the entire opti unit. Is there a chance the rotor can be installed incorrectly?

Jul 20, 2009 | 11:24 AM

#23

CarNuub

Thread Starter

Cruising

Joined: Jul 2009

Posts: 11

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Quote:

Originally Posted by PLRX

Looks you have all in place. The optic should fall in place easily, do not

foce it in with the plate screws.

Did you mess around with the MSD Optic timing screw?

to advance: counterclockwise
to retard: clockwise

I dont think I forced any screws in so I should be good there.

I just put a msd cap and rotor on my original distributor. Is there a optic timing screw? The only thing I've done with the optispark is changed out the rotor and cap. I also cleaned the plate that sorta has a shape like a bowl. I dont think I've messed with anything other than that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PLRX

I've never changed a cap and rotor, just the entire opti unit. Is there a chance the rotor can be installed incorrectly?

I've taken a look at the optispark and it looks like theres only one way to assemble it.When replacing the rotor, there are 2 little notches, 1 big notch, and 2 little screws to ensure the rotor is in the correct position.

I am defeated. Im towing it to a friend's shop =[
I'm going look over his shoulder to learn as much as I can. Maybe I might have done a mistake. Or maybe I plug a spark plug wire correctly. I regret not doing each spark plug one at a time and then changing out the opti when the spark plugs and wires are all checked out. Those spark plugs and wires were a bi*$h to change.

I've also talked with support from MSD and they said its possible that I have damaged the sensor next to crank on the the passenger side. They said its possible that the sensor on the distributor could also be bad. They also said the timing chain could be a factor since I have over 100k miles on the car.

Jul 20, 2009 | 11:27 AM

#24

STL94LT1

Race Director

Joined: Jan 2002

Posts: 12,263

Likes: 86

From: O'Fallon Missouri

The timing chain is not a factor.

Jul 20, 2009 | 12:04 PM

#25

skybolt31

Drifting

Joined: Dec 2003

Posts: 1,493

Likes: 94

From: Westfield MA

Make sure you let us know what happens, we all learn from these incidents, that way your time and effort isn't wasted!

Jul 20, 2009 | 01:03 PM

#26

Bobwhite85

Drifting

Joined: Aug 2007

Posts: 1,672

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From: Hereford AZ

You stated " I also cleaned the plate that sorta has a shape like a bowl." How and with what did you do this? If you got some sort of cleaning solvent in the opti by way of the back seal, THERE'S YOUR PROBLEM.

A stock opti does not have a timing adj screw. A MSD opti does. If you just changed the cap and rotor you DO NOT have a adj screw.
GOOD LUCK, Bob

Jul 20, 2009 | 09:07 PM

#27

CarNuub

Thread Starter

Cruising

Joined: Jul 2009

Posts: 11

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WOOOT! Im back from my friend's shop and my car is running like a beaut. Funny thing is, my friend did nothing different from what I did. The only thing I can differentiate from the procedure that I did and what he did is he-

-Put the shaft on the opti first before installing it
-Installed the opti without the cap
-then rotated the crank to check to see if the rotor would spin ( it did)
-put the cap back on in that position

Other than that, I can't really imagine what I did differently. What I did was assembled the optispark before installing it. Other than that, I dont see what I did differently. Im guessing I might have incorrectly put the shaft in. I also changed out the water pump because it was leaking bad. I finally fixed the sputtering when my car starts to heat up. My friend only charged me for the water pump, and no labor. =]

Thanks again everyone =]

Last edited by CarNuub; Jul 20, 2009 at 09:10 PM.