Question:Can I replace the distributor cap and rotor
myself?
Answer:It depends on the engine application and your
ability. On engines where the distributor is reasonably accessible,
the cap and rotor are fairly easy to change. Two screws or a
pair of clips are all that hold the cap on. The rotor is either
held by a pair of screws or pulls off. So changing the cap and
rotor is simply a matter of swapping new parts for old ones.
There's nothing to adjust. But on vehicles where the cap is really
buried, it can be difficult to change. The latter category includes
rear-wheel drive cars, trucks and vans where the cap is at the
back of a V6 or V8 engine and is partially or completely hidden
by the cowl, firewall or intake manifold.
On certain General Motors vehicles with High Energy Ignition
(HEI), the ignition coil is mounted in the top of the distributor
cap. When changing caps, the coil needs to be moved from the old
cap to the new. There are also wiring connectors that need to
be changed, too.
CAUTION: When changing the cap and rotor, don't remove the
plug wires from the old cap until the new cap is installed. Hold
the old cap aside until the new one is in place. Then change
the plug wires ONE AT A TIME from the old cap to the new one,
making sure each wire goes in the same hole position as before.
This will help keep you from mixing up the firing order. The
correct firing order must be maintained for the engine to run
properly.
If you make a mistake, you'll know it as soon as you try to
start the engine because it will run rough, maybe backfire and
may not start at all. Check the firing order (it's usually cast
into the intake manifold or refer to a manual), then switch the
wires as needed to their correct order.
