Question Replaced optispark now wont start

[DUDBIRD113]

Optis arent really as bad as there made out to be. All i do is take waterpump off (6 bolts) take balancer off(3 bolts and a puller) and then i believe three for the opti. Takes me puttin around maybe 2 hours.

[wdmickjr]

Originally Posted by DUDBIRD113

Takes me puttin around maybe 2 hours.

Yeah, man, I know what you mean. One gets to think they are expert after one has changed out optis nearly a dozen times.

But, after using the puller on the harmonic balancer several times, I can wiggle the balancer off by hand...bad or ok thing?

[DUDBIRD113]

Its held in by three bolts so i dont see any problem. I have a new jegs hub and balancer i bought when i redid my car. The balancer slides right onto the hub

[Workman]

Originally Posted by Workman

Yea man it does seem like it is the opti spark! Im thanking God I dont have to change mine! My 95 T/A has 110,800 miles on it and runs like a champ. Im hoping to not have ANY problems any time soon out of it. Let us know what happens with it man.

Ohhhh Dang i didnt know that thank you man! I really appreciate it, yea im new to this whole fuel injected thing, Ive been doin carbureted engines with the regular old distributor.

[90rs]

So I finally got my part back from summit and had time to install it, the car fired up ran a little rough at first but runs decent now, just idles very high like in the 1500-2000 range. There is a cam in the engine but it never made the engine idle this high. Also the car will die shortly after i take it off the jumper cables, could a bad battery be at work there?

[90rs]

Any input on my new symptoms?

[steveo]

it could idle that high if your battery is really cooked; due to the incredible amount of electrical load on your alternator

a battery that's so dead the car dies when you remove the jumper cables is really bad news. usually the alternator provides enough juice to keep it running

replace the battery before going any further with diagnosis, and before you fry something else (perhaps your alternator)

[90rs]

im not suprised that the battery is shot it was new but be jumped every so often for two years and never running long enough fo it to charge and sitting for a good portion of those two years, ill throw the battery out of my other camaro in it and see what happens

[90rs]

So I swapped the batteries and it will stay running now without the help of another car, still idling around 1400-1600. Once I put it into gear the rpm drops to 500ish and if I give it some gas it dies. Also by itself, if I rev up the engine it struggles to spin faster but if its still connected to a jumper vehicle it will rev up fine. Im thinking the alterantor is also shot because it doesnt charge well (its a junkyard one so im not suprised). Do you think the alternator can be causing the problems now or could something else be up? I'm appreciating the imput!! thanks

[steveo]

you really have to test all that stuff, otherwise we're just guessing

did you remember the small plug that goes to the bottom of the alternator, last time you changed it?

with a good battery, if you put a voltmeter on the battery, you should get ~12v before starting and ~13.5v when running

check voltage @ the big wire on the back of the alternator (ground to the block), then check voltage @ the red junction block on the passenger fender; if they're different, the wire itself is suspect, perhaps where it crimps into the battery terminal itself

then clamp your jumper cable straight from the alternator bracket to the ground block on the passenger fender. does it run better?...

are your sure your battery terminals are ok? are they clean and tight?

[90rs]

the terminals are kinda shady but could that really cause a problem? I will check out the voltages

[90rs]

So i put some new battery screws in since the old ones were kinda roached out, and put the car on a battery charger. On the charger and my volt meter i was reading ~12.5 volts at the battery and the alternator so I started the car turned off the charger and the battery dropped to 9.06 volts and the car died. Also Im using an older battery that used to be in my other camaro that used to be a daily driver so I know its good. This throw up any flags to anyone? What am I missing.

[steveo]

are you measuring that 9 volt drop at the battery, or at the dash?

[90rs]

at the battery with a volt meter

[steveo]

you have some pretty insane load going on then

first check all your ground terminals..

usually what i do to identify what circuit is pulling that load, is put the battery in, ignition on or whatever causes it to drop in voltage, hook up your voltmeter, and start pulling fuses/relays.. when the voltage swings back up, at least you know what circuit is causing it