Hi , I’m a new guy to the forum! Just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Bob, I work in QA for Stratus computers in Maynard MA. :seeya
I purchased a 1992 Quasar blue convertible with 17k miles on the clock about 2.5 yrs ago after a fairly long search. I purchased it from baystate motorsports in Mass. I knew it was my car as soon as I took it out, it looked and drove brand new. It also had every thing I was looking for except the color, I really wanted admiral blue. I’ll post a picture soon.

But I’ve had a problem, which I found disappointing; my optispark has gone for the 3rd time! But this last one is a little different. I went out to go to the store in the morning after having just ran fine the night before. It cranked, but didn’t even sputter. Not one pop! Pulled codes sure enough 16! Damn opti again!!! So I bought another and converted it to a 95 style vented cap.
Now it cranked over but still no “fire”. I figured maybe its flooded and held the peddle to floor. Yup it starts popping! Then nothing again! Pulled codes again this time 42. after checking factory manual for tests, looks like ignition module or the optcrap outputs are shorted. I replaced the module now it cranks, still no start.
I pulled a plug soaking wet!(fuel) Im gunna replace plugs this weekend.
Any other “common” issues I should be looking into? Am I missing something? Or is this opticrap really this bad?:confused:
Oh and I really didn’t find the opti that hard to replace. The vibration damper pulley came right off with a little tapping. The most difficult part was getting the stupid water pump snaked back in..other than that It is pretty simple and only took a few hours..

Bob

 

Hey Bob, welcome to the :party:

You should get alot of input on this one. I also have a '92, and yeah, it's not that bad changing out the opti. I went ahead and changed the ignition module, coil and a few other things while I was at it, but you have a lot of fuel getting in and flooding the plugs? Have you checked the fuel regulator? Just guessing, you can't always be sure from the codes, specially when dealing with the opti etc........... 3 opti's in how many miles???? Something not right there?

 

thanks for responding so fast! but yes this is my 3rd opti! in 17k miles. Acually Im guilty of 'killing" the first one, i figured the engine compartment would look nice if i pressure wasshed it..big mistake! i thought nothing of doing it because i had a 95 camaro with opti and washed it no problem.
The 2nd one i think i was ripped off by a local corvette shop which happily is now out of business. I usually do all my own repairs as i have a good size heated garage with all the tools . but i just didnt have the time to do it.

Bob

 

Oh, then you might not have an issue there. You might want to check the injectors also. How many plugs are flooded?

 

I only pulled one plug that was easily accessable. I'll replace all of them this weekend. I'll also clear the codes again to see if the 16 and 42 are still there after. It's just pretty discouraging as i did pay a good "premium " for a low milage car and seems like i cant trust it to run more than a few k miles before it leaves me stranded. i have been pretty fortunate thou it seems to like to die close to home or home..LOL Also i heard the water pumps dont last too long either. I had that replaced with a new GM unit about 12k miles ago. is it ok to reuse it?

 

If you don't see any signs of prior leaking, (at the weap hole) I'd re-use it. They last alot longer than 12k!!! And they aren't cheap either. I wouldn't get to discouraged about your car selection, not over this stuff. This is common stuff with these cars. Once you track down the real probem, you should just have fun with it. At least it's breaking down close to home right?

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

:seeya welcome aboard!

I am not a fan of the "low mileage" trailer queens... at least not in the vette kingdom... I have found they atrophy at a much faster rate than other cars. kinda sad, really.

I donno... you have done most everything correctly... but you have ask why the opti is shorted out. check the harness. make sure the wires to the opti aren't crossing somewhere.



[Modified by bogus, 8:37 AM 1/8/2004]

 

Yup breaking down in driveway isn't all that bad.. :lol: this breakdown is kinda a blessing in disguise. I had the oil leak at the front and rear intake manifold (TSB) so i fixed that while i had the opti out.

I love driving the car!! My first summer with it was awesome! I bought it for me on my 40th birthday (june) and drove it all the way to end of Sept with top down 95% of the time.. Very fun ride! could use a little more pwoer though. i have contemplated the lt4 upgrade for next winter..

 

HI thanks for the welcomes and responses! I agree about the trailer queens. It's definitaly NOT a trailer queen for me. i bought my vette to drive it. But i wanted as "new" as possible. As i knew i would have it for a long, long time. And really wanted very little issues as possible with it.As you know hi milage is not just on the motor. Milage takes its toll on the car as a whole. Engine , trans,clutch,interior, bearings,seals,ect,ect...
It also took me quite a while to find "my " vette , as i want very specific items/options. I was told by corvette city to just either stop looking for that vette (drop some options) or order a new one(c5)NOT! I have a freind that has a c5 . he let me drive it several times, nice car but i still like c4 better. I tried many , many vettes and wanted a c4!. I wanted a 92 to 96 , convertible with black sport leather interior,6 speed, either Admiral blue or alternatly quasar blue, bose CD/tape deck and power seats.I finally found one! and it had climate control !bonus! but it was the alternate blue ,oh well.
This car spent 90% of its life in a garage in RI ,because the man who owned it before me was an old guy. He ran into very bad health just after he bought it. the documents i recieved with the cars shows he drove it about 1100 miles .Eventually he ended up selling it off. This one only had 17,300 miles on it and sat so long the tires were dry rotted (not real bad but enough not feel safe at 100+mph :lol:) I put more miles on the car in my 1st summer than it had seen in the last 10 yrs!
Anyway i just get real frustrated with "major design" errors and think all car engineers should have to be a mechanic for atleast 1 year before they can design cars. let them run and work on a few so they use common sense at the CAD screen. :cheers:
Wiring to opti is fine.I looked that over when i removed Opti as i was getting the code 16 Initially.The book says it could be the optical pick-up outputs are shorted internal. I'll check for a good output this weekend if the plugs don't help. I just wanted to be sure i wasnt wasting time trouble shooting another "common" failure that you guys could clue me in on.. Thanks again...

Sorry some times i ramble!:chevy
Bob

 

welcome :seeya and good luck... :thumbs:

 

hm... I am baffled... 3 opti's... in such a short period of time... there must be a cause. Check the entire circuit. Make damn sure there is nothing on the way to the opti that is grounded out. one bared strip of insulation, and bad things can happen!

Is the ECU ok? could it have taken a crap?

grounds are problematic in Vettes... make sure all the grounds are GOOD. This may require going to each terminal, loosening it a bit, hitting it with white grease and reattaching. Something to consider.

I agree 100% about the need for engineers to work as techs for a while... I don't think they have a clue at times. All they care about is ease of assembly, maintenance be damned. I have found that Honda is excellent for repair... a lot of consideration goes into the designs.




[Modified by bogus, 9:02 AM 1/9/2004]

 

Actually when i removed the last "bad " optispark. i opened it, it looked brand new. I had my doubts at that point about it being the opti gone bad again. But it was posting a error code 16 . could the ECU cause a issue like this? I'm going to rig up a "test cable" to look at the output of old optispark just to see if i do indeed get the low and hi res pulses out of it at all.
But so far all i have done is.
1) replaced opti with a rebuilt unit. :skep: Forum claims rebuilts are junk i was unaware of this at the time of purchase. (ebay $92.00) it looked un-used when i got it.
2) checked the cabling to Optispark. it looked OK, no opens or shorts.:thumbs:
3) replaced the Ignition module because of code 42
This weekend i'll change plugs.And check for pulses from opti (old And new opti).
But the fuel pressure regulator was mentioned about the flooding issue. I'll check pressure also.

Bob

 

for point of reference, the optical pickups were made by Mitsubishi. They are good parts with a long service life.

 

Hi Bob, Welcome to the forum. I've been following your thread here. I, too, have a 92 LT1 and I replaced the opti about 5K ago. I started out fixing an oil leak in the front of the engine (behind the water pump at the seal for the water pump drive). While I was in there, I opened up the opti and found rust, moisture and dirt. :eek: The whole saga is in tech tips, Tools>tech tips>C4>meziere coolant pump install.

If you are going to take it all apart, again, would you think about an electric coolant pump? It has a lot of advantages, better and constant flow, eliminates the driven shaft and seal-possible oil leak area, and replacement is a 30 minute job if it fails-should last for at least 2500 hours, and it frees up some HP (not much but some). As far as the opti, NEVER PUT A REBUILT OR AUTOZONE/PEP BOYS OPTI IN YOUR VETTE! JUST AN AC DELCO NEW ONE or go with the Dyno Tech Engineering's Dyna Spark. And I'm glad to hear that you vented your opti. Also, put a bead of silicone around the opti's cap/distributor base and around the opti plug in. Keep after it and show us some pix. :cheers:

 

Hey I got a 92 quasar blue vette also a great choice!!!
Now on the opti, dont buy a rebuilt unit, the quality is not very good get a new unit from superior chevy http://www.superchevyperformance.com/ and they will get you a great price, also dyno tech http://www.dynotech-eng.com/dynaspark.htm has a replacement opti unit ,a little pricey but should be the cure
good luck. :steering:

 

and then you have the best solution... LTCC!!! http://www.bailey-eng.com/LTCC.html

I have it, and it ROCKS!!!!!

 

Ok, this morning i changed out all the plugs, cleared the ECM and cranked it. Nothing absolutely nothing. pull codes ,,,16!:mad
BTW doing the plugs on this car is a chore by its self! Then I came in and read the forum again , and what do I see :rofl: Don't use bosch platinums!! I just got through putting those in...Oh well i have to remove the Opti again anyway ! So I'll pick up some AC delco plugs too!
Looks like my "deal " on Ebay was just a rip off. Lesson learned. I'll order on online. I'll check out the places you guys have recommended.
And i did such a good job of venting the "new " opti too! :rolleyes:
I did "rig up" a test harness to test my other opti's, using a voltmeter the Hi-res pulses are present but i get nothing at all from the lo-res signal on any of the 3 failed optisparks that i have.
I wonder why it seems to be always the low res signal that fails? (16) Anybody ever look to see if it's the receptor or the LED thats bad? Any opinions on why always the low-res and not the hi-res ? It looks like an identical circuit. :confused:

Thanks again for all your input(s).
The funny part is , I only need the car running at this time so i can fix my other cars! :rofl:

 

Sorry to hear about the Opti problems, I have an almost new extra Opti if you are looking for one... Send me an e-mail if you are interested (since I now have an 96 I can't use the early style one) :cheers:

 

thanks! I'll keep it in mind.
I'm going to call dynaspark today. Anybody have one of these on their car?599.00 seems kinda steep but if it cures the problem , I guess it's worth every penny. :)

Bob

 

It seems like a very good part... however, it still has the basic weakness of the opti...

you may want to consider, ultimately, the LTCC conversion - http://www.bailey-eng.com

I have it and it ROCKS. :thumbs: