I think it's the source of the oil leak and am curious what else I may want to change or upgrade as I work my way down to it? What will I cross along the way?

Depending on the milage you may want to change the waterpump, since it will be off. There are also two o-rings in the coupler to the waterpump to keep the dust/dirt out. The balancer may be stuck on the hub. My main concern would be removing the hub from the crank. There isn't any room for a puller, and it is not keyed. I would replace the opti with an MSD. Another thought would the timing chain, but this again depends on the milage.

These are a few thoughts in no order. I would get more input on the front hub situation too.

Think of it this way... planning a clutch swap? I would do it then, and remove the engine.

That's what I did. Also, change the oil pan gasket at the same time.

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The oil pan will cause issues too. Its not like the gen I, where you can clip the tabs on the timing cover to help reinstall it.

you can easily remove the pan on an lt1 car. just saying. its not hard on an l98 either.

All those things certainly make sense, and were things I had in the back of my mind. Especially the water pump, oil pan/gasket and the Opti.

Mileage is 110k with 65k of that being since 2001 when I started autocrossing/track days/time trials/trailering tires.

Sounds like it might be time to have the motor pulled and either do a re-build or a swap?

First, the Felpro timing cover kit has all 3 seals, cover gasket and it's cheap. p/n TCS45953 (92-93)

And you might as well do the pan if there's any sign of leaks, Felpro OS34500R, plus if you pull the cover, the pan has to be dropped anyway.

The seals can be replaced on the car but it's a bit tricky.

The only problem removing the pan is if the front brake crossover line was installed slightly forward at the factory, the pan can hit it when pulled making it harder to get out.

The seal for the water pump drive is tough to install correctly, either doing it with the cover on the engine or reinstalling the cover. The correct way is to use the GM protector tool that slips over the drive shaft. Some have lad luck making a protector out of a Sharpie pen plastic housing. I've had luck once doing it by hand and no luck other times (you can see a piece of the seal pushed out after install).

Pulling the hub is not that much of a problem if you have a decent harmonic balancer puller,BUT do not use it as you think!!! Also, mark the hub & crank (no key), I use a Sharpie then put a light center punch mark on the bevel on the front of the crank, matching marl on the hub of course.

To pull the hub, remove the bolt that holds the hub to the crank, to get clearance for the puller, pull the p/s steel line (the puller screw will fit under the line when lossened and you can get to the puller with a long extension & rachet).

You'll need a bolt that's smaller than the threads of the crank bolt to push on the crank (the puller screw point pushes on this bolt). Ihave the correct bolt length down in the shop if you want it.

Here's the full hub pulling technique, and a pic of my Snap-On puller on the hub.

http://www.lt1engine.com/tech/remove- ... nstall-the-lt1-crank-hub/

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Thanks very much for all the tips. I'll certainly plan on doing the oil pan seals and the timing chain if there is any question at all. MSD ignition will be likely too once I get a chance to read up on it.

Any recommendations for a water pump? Are there any that are built specifically for the track? I had my stock steering pump rebuilt by Turn One and so far so good. Is there any kind of equivalent for the water pump?

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There's no question in my mind about MSD, but it's always your choice.

Here's mine:
http://www.corvette-guru.com/modules/ ... id=133075#forumpost133075