I am new to the LT1 game and need some help on replacing the opti. I have had my 1996 camaro z28 for about 2 months and just recently, my opti went bad. I need to replace it but was wondering if I should take it to a shop to do it for about $200 in labor alone or can I buy it and put it on myself. How difficult is it to replac? Is there a step by step guide I can look at? Where can I buy a AC DELCO opti for cheap. I found some on ebay for about $150 but I have read on the posts that these optis are bad. I have heard that they never come correctly assembled. Should I get one of these? Just trying to get my z28 running right again for the lowest amount of $$$$.

 

Go OEM ... http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku

thats on summit $309

 

Courtesy of Shoebox:

http://shbox.com/1/4th_gen_tech2.html#Dal_and_Jason

Do it yourself.

 

If you have access to some tools and a decent place to work on your car, I would suggest doing it yourself. I'm working on getting my car up & running and doing everything I can myself. I replaced my opti. It's not difficult. Although it's not absolutely necessary, I would also recommend getting some factory service manuals off EBay, or somewhere else.

 

call the guy shoebox says to... I just bought mine very cheap.

 

Can get them from Jason via the link above for around $240..do it yourself, its not that difficult....
Remove fan belt, remove balancer from the hub, remove the AIR pump, remove the wp and then its 3 bolts
May be a good time to change the wp while its off, if you do, be sure the replacement wp has a freely turning shaft and it not super tight....there were some Bosch wps that have a recall / defective bearing and have been known to wipe out the cam gear drive for them.

 

I've done mine a total of 4 times in the last month. Even if you're not mechanically inclined, you should be able to get this worked out in about 4 hours start to finish. I found that it helps to pull the pulley off of the belt tensioner also. It makes pulling the passenger side wires off much easier. The only other parts you should need are a pair of water pump gaskets and you'll be good to go.

 

Do it yourself, definitely. Opti was the first thing I had to fix after I bought my car. Just use the Haynes manual, that's what I did.

 

Is there a free online haynes manual i could look at? Does anybody have a link to where I could get step by step instructions on how to replace?
THANKS

 

The Shoebox site has the steps you need. Just copy them and paste them to a WORD document, then print it up for a guide. Since you will need to remove the water pump, don't forget new antifreeze.

I did mine with the front wheels on a ramp in about 45 minutes, taking my time.

 

To the OP - Dude, you aint gonna do it in 45 minutes. The water pump is messy, messy, messy. There is just no good way to remove it without taking a bath in coolant. Make sure you remove the fan shroud and fans - they slip out with just a few bolts and will give you copious amounts of room to work.

Your biggest fight will most likely be with the bottom pulley - it gets stuck on pretty good and a puller will most likely be necessary. Other than that it is just turning wrenches and disconnecting vac lines, hoses and wires - keep track of everything.

If you have any oil seepage you may want to consider replacing the seal for the water pump (that is a special procedure in itself - make sure you research that) even if you don't replace the pump. The opti also has a seal (easy) which is optional - but since you are there....

Check this - it will give you a little insight.

http://www.impalasuperstore.com/nais...t,seal,install

If you know which bolts to go after ahead of time the job is MUCH easier - read a lot of threads first.

 

I did all that stuff in about 3 minutes. If you count bathroom breaks, it probably took about 15 seconds of actual work time. I'm good.

I also recommend replacing the water pump & opti seals while you're in there. I didn't and had to go back in just to replace a leaking water pump seal. That took about 27 seconds.

 

Come do mine next time. Do you charge by the second?

 

The waterpump took me 14 hours

We had no idea what we were doing, and the haynes manual was no help.

My buddies and I are also impatient mechanics and took a lot of breaks.

I would set a day aside for it.

If I can do it you can do it.

 

wow