cv67

Seems with every "value" thread the big deal is guys seem to run away from the Lt1 cars due to the optispark gloom and doom.

Dont want to start an argument about the optispark.

List the simplest and most comprehensive and affordable way to convert to HEI step by step?

Too many nice sub 100k LT1 cars out there going for L98 $ due to the black eye...the C5 and 6 guys are seeing the same with discontinued ecbms and other parts. Big black eye on your resale appeal

Maybe make a sticky out of it .

dizwiz24

cv67

So who has done away with the system altogether and runs a distributor or alternative ignition system?
How...and cost?

C409

….. I would think that the easiest /cheapest way would be to do the distributor hole mod to your LT1 intake like the L98 guys are doing (the ones trying to make an alternative (cheap) Mini Ram) … easy enough to fit a small cap HEI (found on most 90's GM trucks) … the trick would be to degree the balancer … not impossible (or expensive) at all …..

cv67

Wonder if you used GM stuff it could pass a visual smog test? Its CARB approved obviously so?
That would definitely have some appeal should the right one pop up in the future. They do ride pretty nice compared to the early C4s.

rjacobs

I believe at least 1 of the systems(probably more) that converts to LS coils STILL uses the opti as the trigger since the LT motors dont have a crank trigger reluctor wheel on the crank shaft like the LS motors have.

Haggisbash

Is it possible to replace the optispark or at least the sensor part with say the sensor from a pertronix type unit. Optispark is an optical trigger there must be some way to adapt something else into the unit?

C409

….. I'm pretty sure that the rear distributor mod displaces the EGR valve … so that might nix the visual inspection test …..

aklim

Here is the problem I see. You mod the car and you are hoping I agree that it is worth the extra you put in. What if I don't like it? What if I don't trust the manufacturer of the part? I sunk money into my car. Now I want to sell it for what I put into it less what I think the depreciation is worth. What happens when you don't think it is worth that much or that you don't trust the guy who rebuilt my engine, trans and rear end?

If you want to mod it for what YOU think increases reliability, go for it. If you think it will increase your resale value, I don't know. What I need is the buyer who appreciates the mods I made to my car as much as me. That shrinks down the market some and that becomes an issue for resale. So, lets say it sits for 5 years before I find the right guy who meets my price. I am paying insurance and doing maintenance, etc. So even if I do get the money I wanted, it is less because of the last 5 years of expenses and my time. IOW, I didn't get what I wanted. OTOH, if I have it stock, it might sell faster and easier than modified, I would think.

Tom400CFI

IDK how you're going to get any other type of ignition system to work in the car w/the stock ECM. It's looking for 360 signals/crank revolution....no other system provides that.

I think the fastest/easiest way would be to grab a '91-'91 engine harness and ECM and distributor and apply that to the 'LT car. Worth it? Not to me, but it would work and be cheap.

cv67

Aklim its about reliability I dont care about car resale. From the minute I buy it I know its gone....not a savings account on wheels.
Maybe an incentive perhaps to think about getting one. I had a fantastic opp awhile back. (beautiful 96 40k mi $2500) but that opti...and ac ecm...egh
Anything electricla outside a battery I touch catches fire. In fact that battery may be smarter than me. Or a piece of broccoli.

bvlvette

New owner here. Bought a 94 convertible about 4 months ago. I know the previous owner changed the opti he used a parts store brand. So far so good. But after much browsing etc... and people getting me worried about the opti biting the bullet ( which may not be as bad as it is made out to be ) I plan on changing my ignition out to a Torqhead system. Expensive yes, but well worth it to me if I can trust the car to take a long road trip with, and probably better return on investment than some expensive exhaust system. The torqhead system gets rid of all opti stuff.

Tom400CFI

I see this written a lot on these forums and find it odd. Yeah everyone is different....I know. But I drive the bejeeezus out of my car and have never had a "trust issue". I'll drive it anywhere, anytime. My wife's mom got sick a couple years ago, we live in UT...the MIL in Michigan. My wife couldn't find a plane ticket fast enough, her V was down with a blown transmission. I told her, "hop in the 'Vette and take that". She did. 2500 miles later she was back here in UT, no issues and no fears of any, in her travels. Even with "opti issues", a decently taken care of C4 is way more reliable than many other cars out there.

bvlvette

There in lies my dilema... I know that "problems/issues" are exagerated on the internet and I also know full well that if you replace a part 4 or 5 times and are still having issues the person replacing the part is either replacing the wrong part or doing something wrong in the process ( not to say that a person couldnt end up with 4 or 5 bad parts but not ussually the norm). I haven't pulled the trigger yet to get rid of the opti because I'd be looking at 2500 dollars canadian and I can replace a lot of opti's for that ( I do all work myself ) if I even ever have an opti issue. Tom400CFI you are the one person who's posts in the past have me rethinking my options, if you had to replace your opti right now, which one would you get? SAC city, or Petris ?

Tom400CFI

Like you, I do the work myself...and *I* don't feel that the labor for the opti replacement is that bad at all. In fact, I've MADE A THREAD about it. With that in mind, I'm bullish on the cheapest opti with the BEST warranty. Right now, I believe that is the SAC city unit which I think has a 2 year warranty.

dizwiz24

johno504

be aware that the MSD opti has zero core vale to the good doctor , so add $70 to the total cost and don't bother to send it to him.

aklim

I'm pretty certain that there have been quite a few flatbed runs with the OEM Opti so how is that a guarantee that it doesn't happen with NOS OEM? Regardless if whether you can and will pay for the NOS OEM, they both can land you in EXACTLY the same scenario. The question you need to ask is "Is Optidoctor AS RELIABLE AS what I can get NOS OEM?".

Tom400CFI

Everyone is different, but now you're letting fear drive your decisions. You could let the "what if's" dictate everything to the point that you don't drive the car....and for ANY problem. Right? I mean, if your reciprocating dingle arm breaks you down, at night, on a busy highway, nevermind the inconvenience - the circumstance could kill you . Distracted drivers, big rigs driving like $h1t, construction zones with no breakdown lanes, etc. You can paint "disaster" for virtually any problem that you can make up in your head, but in reality how many of us end up stranded and run over by big rigs? You could get run over by a big rig riding your bicycle, so...

aklim

I was at a parts store, someone wanted the cheapest plug that would insert in, never mind the heat range. He only wanted 3 for a 4 cylinder car and was chasing a misfire issue. That's who would not.

There's the problem. None of them can guarantee that they won't die at an inconvenient point. Best you can do is get the most statistically reliable one.