Injuneer

I would keep an eye on the MAF sensor reading, and the injector pulse width value. See if they drop to “0”.

sncboom2k

Thank you Fred - I'll check that tomorrow.

I just looked at the paperwork in the box for the AC Delco optispark and there is nothing stating you void the warranty if you open it up. It came with 2 pieces of paper. 1 for Optispark distributor harness installation and the other stating that this part is remanufactured FOR GM - not BY GM and contains used parts. It's in about 10 different languages.

I remembered you wanted to know what it said.

Injuneer

Thanks.

sncboom2k

I was gone but not forgotten! lol - My car is finally home and running great.

So what was the issue after all of this troubleshooting? - and thank you again to all of you for helping me along the way.

Biggest issue - The fuel pump. The brand new "ac delco" fuel pump installed by the shop who put my motor in - was crap. It was cutting out under load. Pulled it out (Did the trap door method as I am over dropping the tank) and found - not an ac delco but some crap knock off in the tank. Needless to say, the original shop and I will have some words. Replaced it with a nice racing aftermarket and upgraded wiring harness. Great - we're not cutting out anymore and have some serious fuel pressure. (Bonus - the gas gauge is correct now as well!)

Next Issue - for those who read this thread from the beginning, you know my rebuild consisted of the TPIS cam. Do not let TPIS tell you that you can drive your car fine without a tune. Nope - not going to happen. If you can handle it running rough and crappy and dying at stop signs - sure, run it without a tune. This thing requires a tune - so I got it tuned. It runs great now and all of the #'s I discussed earlier in this thread are within spec again.

Valve adjustment - the valves were re-adjusted and I was told they were "super loose". Now they are much quieter and a lot less noise at cold starts in the morning.

The car is nasty powerful now with the tune and the cam - very noticeable difference in every aspect of driving it.

Big thanks to Rob and his wonderful family at Limitless Performance for figuring this all out for me. All of the work mentioned in this particular post was done by Rob. Money well spent.

If you're in the Southern California area and need a good reliable shop for your F-Body - Look up Rob at Limitless Performance in Simi Valley. He really knows these cars. Great guy to deal with as well. (Family operated - just something nice about that!)

Signed
The Happy Again LT1 Owner

Injuneer

Glad you got it running right.

Fuel pumps are frequently counterfeited in China. Even Walbro buyers were finding out they weren't really made by Walbro, even though they looked identical. Recently a guy said he found a new, genuine AC Delco on eBay for $20. I told him it was very unlikely that is actually was an AC Delco at that price. Better off going to a reliable parts source, and paying a higher price. Sad.

I went all the way back to the first page...... glad I mentioned it really needed a tune.

sncboom2k

Thank you Fred - agreed. We knew early on a tune would be required regardless of what the TPIS rep had stated.

Sad to see fake knock offs in our parts industry - bad all the way around. (However this particular unit was said to have come from the dealership.)
I know now not to trust AC Delco Professional parts since they are nothing more than reboxed low quality aftermarket items.


I thank you for the valuable information and your time. You sir a true wealth of knowledge.

DrewHMS97SS

Not to mention the pain of getting to the pump. Saving $100 bucks on the possibility of the pump not being legit is not a worth while gamble in my mind. Screw dropping that tank