I've got an `85 IROC 5L TPI I'm working on. The internal distributor connections are toast. I need to replace the harness that connects the 7-pin control module to the harness that goes to the ECM. I can't seem to find a source for a replacement. I'm also having trouble even locating the proper distributor for the F code engine. I want to keep everything as stock as possible because it's a 1-in-205 built. I've included a pic of the distributor wiring for reference. Any help or ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

Kevin

 

When I did mine there was only one thing I couldn't get new, is the harness that goes into the dist with the plastic seal in lower left of the picture. Found a low mile part and used that.

 

Eliminate with extreme prejudice. Join divorced coil Legion of Doom. ???. Profit.

 

I've seen that harness somewhere. Can't recall where. I'll keep my eyes open.

Distributor builders / rebuilders get em from somewhere as well.

There's nothing particularly unique about the TPI distributor, except that it's not as tall, so that it fits underneath that little cover thing in the back.

I wouldn't be quite so concerned about "originality", if the car doesn't run. An "original" lawn ornament on cinder blocks is still … a lawn ornament on cinder blocks. The value of "1 of 205", plus about $2.50, might be enough to buy you a cup of coffee. Not saying you should butcher it or any such; but at some point, ya gotta do the math.

You could always do the small-cap conversion; or, go buy a NICE NEW distributor that you CAN get and strip all the NICE NEW parts off of it, including that one, and move them over to yours. Think of ways to GET IT DONE, as opposed to complaining about why you CAN'T.

 

The capacitor (condenser) harness is available most everywhere. I looked for the ECM/EST harness but couldn't find anything. Cut and splice or wrecking yard?

After searching for a while, I got the impression that the internal coil distributor with the 7-pin ICM is an odd duck

 

No, the 7-pin thing was used on all the computer-controlled motors from 80 or 81, whenever they started it, through 86, In 87 they went to the small-cap divorced-coil setup. So there's LOTS of em around, or at least, were. The TPI version of it, both Vette and F-body, was shorter, so it would fit under the cover that's at the height of the plenum. Not sure whether the shaft is shorter or not, seems like it would have to be though. But the rest of the guts is all the same.

 

Never mind , I was thinking of the non computer version

 

But if you wanna see the very first big cap HEI in a camaro pre computer days , here ya go

 

In 1978, my girlfriend (wife now) bought a 74 Monte Carlo. Triple black, bucket seats, MAXED OUT car. BEAUTIFUL car for its day. Had a 400. That was the earliest car I know of that came with HEI.

The computer version of it appeared in Camaro for sure by 81. I had 2 79 Z28s; one 4-speed, one auto. In fact I traded the 4-speed one in for the 83 L69 car I still have. Those both had "traditional" Q-Jets and HEIs. But I had an employee I guess it was in 82 or 83, that had a 81 350 Z28 auto, his had the computer stuff, so of course it would have had the 7-pin type distributor.

The 7-pin module and associated goodies is pretty much required for the computer setup... 2 for the coil and the +12V; 2 for the pickup coil; and 3 for the ESC.

 

Sofakingdom,

I appreciate your offer to "look around."

BTW, I didn't realize I was "complaining." I thought the whole idea behind the forums was to have a place where fellow "car guys" could connect to ask for and offer solutions in order to resolve sometimes difficult problems.

I've been working on this restoration project for a while now and I'm not so much in a hurry to GET IT DONE as I am to seek out the first choice of doing it "right." If I have to make a compromise somewhere, that's my contingency plan, not my first course of action. I am in contact with a distributor rebuilder who may be able to track down the connectors for me but if that falls through I would like to have other options.

As mentioned by one of the other contributors, this 7-pin is indeed an odd duck. I've also discovered it's hard to find a distributor specifically designated for the 85 VIN F engine. The few aftermarket and performance options are pricey. I'm retired/disabled and on a limited income so I have to stretch every dollar. If I can track down a couple connectors and save a couple hundred dollars or more, that's the SMART thing to do. Not "complaining", just stating a simple fact.

Lastly, I've gotta say, your response to my post came off as snarky and extremely condescending. I know how to do the math, I now the value of a cup of coffee. i also know the value of keeping a limited production collector car as original as possible. And I'm certainly not stupid enough to gut a NICE NEW distributor just for the NICE NEW PARTS.

I'm an old fart and probably had/seen/worked on more cars than you have dreamed about. IMHO, you're a "supreme member" and shouldn't talk down to others in the manner you do. When you do that you come off more as a troll than a helpful contributor. Just sayin...

 

TTOP350,

Yeah, that's exactly the part I'm having trouble finding. Unfortunately, we don't have any wrecking yards near us that deal with older vehicles.

 

You made the milk come out of my nose, and I'm not drinking milk.

"a limited production collector car" Huh, wait, wut? We're still talking about a run of the mill 85 Z28, right? There were 32,000 85 Z28s with the LB9. How are you masturbating that number down to 205? What insanity is leading you to believing a 85 Camaro anything is a limited production collector car? Unless the car has extremely low mileage (Unlikely or it wouldn't need a new distributor) it's not even on collector's radar.

You would not remotely hurt the value by plugging in an adapter harness and running a divorced coil distributor. The divorced coil distributor is even more common than dirt. Keep an eye out for the piece you need while actually driving and enjoying the car. When one turns up, finish rebuilding the original distributor, toss it in a box on the shelf, when you're ready to sell to the dipstck collector that will only settle for a super duper rare limited edition collector car with the original style distributor, 'you know what you've got', you can pop that junk back in and ride it all the way to the bank.

One private island please, do you accept 1985 Irocs as payment?

 

Looking at the photos of your distributor, that's pretty much what you need; as you yourself said...

which seems to state rather clearly that you are entirely willing to purchase one, actively searching for it even. So don't get all bowed up about a suggestion of buying a distributor you DON'T have trouble locating.

Changing out just that one part might, just maybe, get it back running again. OTOH the connector on the primary harness (3 wires; pink, black brown) is broken too, and the wires are kinked, possibly with broken strands inside them or ready to split open and create shorts like the ECM one. The connector that plugs in right next to the one you're asking about, for the pickup coil, is made of the exact same material and has been there for the exact same length of time subject to the exact same conditions, and is therefore likely to fail the exact same way as you reassemble it. The pickup coil itself is made of the same stuff as well, and is known to fail that way. And so on...

A "nice new distributor" is around $100. You could even buy one that says "Delco" or "Delphi" (the GM spinoff that owns the Delco brand name) on it, and spend an extra $20 or whatever, if that's what you want. You can take ALL of those fragile, worn-out, deteriorated plastic, and otherwise no longer reliable parts off and move them over to yours, and with careful disassembly and reassembly, (in particular, filing the burrs off of the end of the shaft and cleaning it so it comes out easily without damaging the bushing) have in essence a nice new 85 TPI distributor WITHOUT having to actually find one, rather than a time bomb. You could probably even knock the bushings out of the housing and transfer them over, with a little ingenuity.

In any case, be reasonable and practical, and not all nose-up-in-the-air and sand-in-your-crack about how "special" your car is, and you'll get ALOT more cooperative responses from people.

 

It's 8 hours later, and I'm sitting here thinking about the hosts of Barrett Jackson blubbering over finding a high mileage 85 Z28, and losing control of their bowels because it's got the original distributor ("ZOMG! LOOK AT THAT!") or likewise the wind falling out of their sails because it's got a small cap distributor someone swapped in, which completely destroys the collector value. BJ is ridiculous, and dumb, but that'd be ridiculous and dumb even by BJ's skewed standards. It's hording TP because a flu is going to end the world level ridiculous and dumb.

 

Pretty soon we'll all be using tree bark and $1 bills to wipe with

 

H.E.I. was standard on certain '74 models,optional on other '74s.I would never swap a proper big cap HEI to small cap-I have two small cap dizzys in use,'90 G30 and '98 K15-both have been trouble due to ozone buildup under the cap causing moisture and rust,plan to ventilate both to reduce the ozone once I get some other details done Small caps have a large gap between the rotor tip and the contacts-I think that is a big factor in the ozone problem with those.