Opti-spark and water pump install (part 1) - Pictures within...

[LT1*FUN]

A little background story:


A few month's back, my '92 developed a very strange "hesitation" problem which would show up a few seconds after the car started running - only to last a few seconds - then disappear all together. I couldn't figure it out and needless to say, it drove me nuts.

Even though the car drove just fine after the initial stumble, I was determined to figure out what the problem was and fix it even if it was just a minor annoyance. Over the next few month's, I purchased and installed a new set of Bosch III injectors. A Walbro 255 High Performance fuel pump. New filter and a new fuel pressure regulator.

The problem remained.

I then turned to the ignition system and replaced the coil and module and still no dice. The car had new plug wires and O2 sensors put on a few month's back the same time I installed my long tube headers. I'd run out of ignition parts to replace...

Except for one that is...

From the get-go, everybody told me it was my opti-spark, but I was stubborn and didn't want to hear any of it. I've had plenty of experience with opti-spark failures in the past with other LT1 equipped vehicles I've owned and while the "hesitation" symptom was indeed a common tell-tale sign of a bad opti, the fact that this stumble only lasted a brief few seconds only to disappear until the next day left me thinking the issue had to be something besides the opti-spark.


Well, after running out of ideas (as well as parts to replace) I bit the bullitt and went out and purchased a new Delco opti-spark. It occurred to me at that point, that since I had to remove the now 17 year old water pump to get to the opti-spark, I may as well buy a new pump to go along with it. No sense in doing things half-@ssed, I always like to say.

After doing a bit of research, I decided to go with an electric water pump instead. The Meziere HD electric pump to be exact. I honestly didn't expect it to be worth much, (if any) horse power, but the idea of having a pump being able to circulate the same amount of coolant throughout my system regardless of the RPM I was at, I found very appealing.

The factory mechanical pump doesn't circulate coolant very well at low RPM. My Vette has always run a bit hotter than I'm comfortable with, especially when sitting in stop-and-go traffic. Although I'm aware the LT1's were designed to run at higher temperatures, I still didn't like seeing my coolant temperature rising to 210' in traffic. The electric pump in my opinion, would do a better job at cooling my engine during "real world" conditions (aka: stop-and-go). If I could manage to pick up a few more horses with the electric pump, all the better, but it's not the reason I decided to go electric.

Anyways, after getting all the parts, I slowly began the project. What was originally supposed to be a "Saturday afternoon job" ended up turning into a month long project. Work was hectic and I'd never have enough time to get to my car. An hour here. A few minutes there.... It just seemed to take forever.

I managed to snap off a few pictures each time I'd get a chance to work on the car and figured I'd post them up for all of you to see. I used to always document the work I did on my car's over the years but most of the info I recorded has long been lost/deleted over the years as I went from owning one car to the next. (I wish I still had all that info)

Hopefully, some of you can use the information in the following posts and make use of some of the pictures I've taken for future projects of your own.

So here goes...

Let me know if there's any interest in further updates, otherwise I'll save myself the time and keep this stuff for my self :leaving:


OPTI-SPARK & WATER PUMP INSTALL (PART 1)

[LT1*FUN]

[LT1*FUN]

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That's all the pic's I have for now. I'll upload the rest hopefully by the weekend...

Feel free to post any comments or ask any questions about the install.

Hopefully some of you may get something out of this thread

- LT1C4

[LT1*FUN]

Reserved for upcoming updates...

[Formula383]

That's a very nice write up and I'm betting a ton of people will find it useful. I have one suggestion. The text on several of the pics is very hard to read. If you placed the text directly in the post or even put a semi-transparent dark background behind the text it would be a lot more readable.

Good job and thanks for sharing!

[CamaroGirl]

VERY useful post! thanks for the write up! hopefully i dont have to do this in the near future, but when i do, i will definately use this as a reference!

[bigcarl79]

ok this post is great i have 94 Caprice classic does this apply to it?? also car will crank but wont fire. all fuses are good getting fuel. iam down to optispark pls any help would be most greatful. thanks

[monster81]

subscribing,

[mrbadlt1]

nice write up, and very good work

[chevymec]

Nice and informative write up!!