I was driving along the highway, about 1/2 mile from home when the fire went out. No stumble or anything, just bleah... dead. I looked at the gauges to see if anything was odd looking there. No.... Hmm... So from the 'Run' position, I cranked it and cranked it but no sparks...Still coasting at about 45 mph with a dead silent engine(is this what a Prius sounds like?...) I 'cycled' the key (completely off, then on again) and she fired right up. Bizarre... So.. I pulled into the driveway, shut down the engine and walked into the house, pausing on the porch to look back at the car and give her a 'what was that all about?' look before going inside.

Next morning, I go out to start the car. This time, it just cranks and cranks with no hits. I pull a plug wire off and put a spare sparkplug in the plug wire, ground it the the header, turn on the key and then using a remote starter button, crank. No spark... Phock.... So, I get out the manual and reread all the voltages, etc at the Opti Connector and at the ICM (Ignition control module) and use my multimeter to test everything. Damn it... the ICM A/C voltage is supposed to fluctuate between 1 to 4 volts during cranking but it's locked at 3.3 volts.

This opti is a Jegs low cost iteration I bought in '08. My original Opti(I bought the '96 car new in Nov of '95) lasted till 2005 so I was disappointed that this one died so quick. After reading some posts where guys said the AC Delco/GM ones are doing better than the others, I ordered a new GM one. I put it on yesterday, then took the Jegs one apart. I found that the internal seal had pulled off it's seat for some reason and oil got it from somewhere. I know for awhile, I had a power steering seal that let a lot power steering fluid fly around on the serpentine belt so maybe some of that slung up in there.

Here's the Jegs Opti with the compromised seal area showing and the oiled surface near the optical sensor...

 

**** sucks bro... Sorry about your loss!

 

Thanks
I put the new GM AC/Delco Optispark I purchased in and the car started right up.
Camp Pendleton? Are you in the military?

 

Yeah, and yes. :P Interestingly enough.
AC/Delco... I hear that brand a lot.. THey make quality products?

 

Which branch? My 19yr old daughter is in the Marines

 

hey i have a 1997 camaro z28 and i would like to know what could cause oil inside the optispark.... because when i removed it and opened it oil spilled out like the hole optispark was full....

 

There are two avenues of entry, the seal in the timing cover into which the opti is inserted(onto the nose of the cam) and the perimeter of the opti housing itself. Every time I buy a new opti, I pull it apart, make sure the rotor screws have loctite on them (I supply the loctite) and then I put a thin film of silicone sealant around the perimeter of the housing so that no water or oil gets in. There is a thin rubber/plastic seal around the housing by default but I've seen those distorted from the vendor (essentially, an area where the seal wasn't fully in place, letting oil/water in over a period of time). I've purchased 2 Jegs brand opti's and 1 GM brand (still from Jegs though). The 'jegs' brand (less expensive) didn't last as long as the GM one I bought. Just my own experience.

 

Thanks for helping Dave. Unfortunately, this same post is in 4 different locations, causing people to spend time answering a question that has already been answered.

For anyone wanting to continue the dialog with "jrips69", please use this thread:

https://www.camaroz28.com/forums/lt1...e-help-846807/

 

Oh alright thanks.... Where could I get a good opti for less and the distributor