Get a new ac delco opti and pump and not only should it start, you shouldn't have any of that hard starting issues anymore.

 

They are SUPPOSED to be sealed, but they still leak. The car is 13 years old. Seals dry out and rot. The big problem is the rubber seal in the harness connector tower.

Before you replace the Opti, check all the wire connection points for moisture and corrosion. If the harness connector pins are corroded, or the tips of the plug wires and coil wire are wet and corroded, its going to cause a no-start condition that may be intermittent.

Also willing to bet that when the shop tried to scan it for codes, they look under the dash, saw the 16-pin OBD-II style ALDL connector, and incorrectly tried to scan it with an OBD-II scanner, hence no codes.

 

I havent gotten the opti cover off yet, but i pulled a spark plug wire and the boot was filled with moisture. I knew why sometimes it would fire and others it wouldnt.

Alot of people recommend GM optis, what about Cardone A1 brand?

Is it possible that the opti's mechanical parts are okay and i just need to replace the water pump, wires and cap/rotor?

 

I would say cardone is a crap shoot, don't risk it. Also replacing the opti is not something that I would call hard, but it's alot of work to risk only replacing the cap and rotor. I would strongly recommend getting a new, complete, ac delco opti and have peace of mind that you should be problem free for a long while.

 

Thanks. I'll get an OEM one. But isnt the life of the opti tied to the life of the water pump in some way? If the water pump starts leaking then the opti's life is shortened right?

I mean my car has 106K on it and everything is factory so im not against replacing parts that wear.. but i just wanted to know if they two pieces will always fail together.. pump... then eventually opti

thanks for the input guys!

 

For starters, try drying out and cleaning up the corroded terminals. Moisture and corrosion in the terminals does not necessarily mean the internals of the Opti are messed up. Some Optis have gone close to 200K miles.

When you replace the water pump, consider putting a tube in the weep hole so you can route the drips away from the top of the Opti.

 

Wow, great idea with the week hole tube. You know.. i will give that a try. I'll take the cap off and see how things look. I'll post pics and get some advice on how to proceed. I thought moisture = new opti.