Keaton944

putting a fresh rotor and dist cap on my silver car while its all apart. The contact points in the cap were all burnt up and the rotor was pretty ruff too.

My questions is should or do y'all normally replace the coil too? It's kinda expensive so i was considering passing on it.

Oh i just found test procedure on clark's I'll be sure and do that when i get home to gauge it's condition.

But, I'd still like to get some opinions on the matter. Do y'all do much coil replacing or what are your thoughts on this part?

Regards,
Keaton

John_AZ

I havn't replaced mine on either car.

But, what condition are your spark plug wires in?

What brand and type of plug are you using?

The amount of arching and wear you mention is not normal unless it has been a decade since last change.

There is also a gasket behind the cap if yours is missing or flakey. Maybe some moisture got in?

GL
John

Keaton944

gasket is in place, it was not* flaky but it does look old. Anyone know the part# to replace it, i couldnt find it when i was searching parts.

I replaced all the plugs and wires myself about 5-6months ago b/c when i got the car the wires were in such bad shape it was like a light show under there and defiantly a fire hazard waiting to happen. I know how Bosh plugs and wires, i forgot the exact plugs but there were the pretty decent ones, not the top of the line but middle of the road i think.

Here is a picture i took last night, hope it's worthwhile, i took it in the dark with a headlamp and phone camera.



ok so the pic turned out pretty bad, but what i was trying to show was the burnt contact points where the rotor hits. I didn't get a pic of the rotor but it was all ruff where it would make contact with the points.

Keaton944

as far as i could tell from the outside condition of the cap it is either the original (prob unlikely) or hasn't been replaced in a very long time.

oh random thought i needed to ask, does anyone know the part number or proper terminology for the thing (sorry i should have had a picture ready) that holds the wind deflector thing in place when you have the top off. there is one on each side, and they are black with like a copper colored pin or something. Sorry if that is just too random and vague info i'll make another post with pics later.

Dryslick13

I think this is what you're looking for. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/PORSC...Q5fAccessories

Keaton944

Thanks that looks like it.

jcslocum

It's hard to tell really but I can tell you I have seen much worse! The rotor never does make contact with the cap. The spark muct jump the small gap while rotating so it will always look a bit burned on the contacts.

The bigger issue is the black-ish line between the contact areas. If it's bad enough the spark will follow this carbon track and fire more then one cylinder at a time.

The coil is a very robust part and will last a good long time. I would not replace it.

John_AZ

If your wires were as bad as you said, the cap and rotor held up well.

The reason I asked what type or brand of spark plugs you use is that the cheap $2 or less single copper tip works the best on our cars. Platinum does not conduct electricity as well as copper. If you wanted the best of tips go with the titanium tip plugs.

Roof hinge:

$20.75 each L&R=TTL $41.50 set on Pelican ---roof hinge

http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...FILTER_944M2=7

GL
John

Keaton944

thanks everyone. I went and found my old order for the plugs and wires. The description for plugs is

Spark Plug; SuperPlus Heavy-Duty; Yttrium Electrode

they were 1.52 a pc at the time i ordered them, part# 7900 from Autohaus AZ. The wires i got were 94460901501 and just changing the plugs and wires made a night and day difference. I cant wait to see what replacing the cap and rotor will do seeing the shape they are in now. No wonder the red one seems twice as powerful as the silver one.

In a strange way that I'm sure only y'all could relate, I'm kinda glad that tension roller failed. I have learned a lot and hopefully it will be a smooth re-assembly and I suspect it will be like a whole new car once she is back together. New cap, rotor, O2 sensor, AFM, I'm so excited. Can't wait till next week when the parts will start arriving.

jcslocum

Have fun!!!

And good luck.

ernie9468

[QUOTE=Keaton944;7921366]gasket is in place, it was not* flaky but it does look old. Anyone know the part# to replace it, i couldnt find it when i was searching parts.
Migth as well look for a needle in an haystack & a very small one at that .They call it distributor sealing sleave (don't know why) part # is 944-602-257-00 approx $10.oo try Automobile Atlanta on the sponsors site.

ernie9468

# 28 price at $6.95 at (Auto Atl)

Keaton944

wow awesome Ernie, thank you!

odurandina

changing out rotors is important because they can eventually fail and bust the cap and you're stranded...


the cap can go for a long time.