Gunter

Ignition caps by Beru are significantly cheaper than Bosch caps.
Paying extra for the Bosch name?

Beru has been around for a long time and the plug connectors on a 993 are Beru (as were the plug connectors for SC's and turbos)

My experience with Beru connectors has been good but I never tried the caps.

Any concerns or comments or experience with Beru caps?

Thanks.

Steve Weiner-Rennsport Systems

Bosch ones are far better.

nile13

OK, a related question. Who else makes caps for 993s? I haven't had good luck with Bosch electronics generally and caps specifically on other cars, although Steve's words are a great assurance in this case.

IXLR8

The original ones on my 993 are still fine, both mechanically and electrically.

I just had mine off recently when I made up a new set of ignition cables, they looked and felt like new after I cleaned off the dust. Good quality!

911PERVY

Bosch ones are better made of that there is no doubt, do they "work" better than the Beru ones...........i dunno......

IXLR8

OK, to those who said they are better or far better, what makes them better...lets see some actual data!

911PERVY

I said they are made better, you can see they are better quality

Gunter

A couple more thoughts:

These days parts are made who knows where.
Even though it says Bosch Germany, doesn't mean it was made in Germany.
The blue junk coil for SC's made in Brazil is an example.
One new Bosch cap for my SC developed a clean crack half-way up after only a few months.

Beru plug connectors on 993's and SC's seem to hold up fine.
If they're good enough for Porsche to be used for so many years, why not the caps?

I'm looking for some comparison data like wear or flash-over build-up between the 2 brands.
A cap only has one real contact point and that is the spring-loaded carbon pin going to the rotor.

I'm thinking Beru caps with Bosch rotors.

Steve et al:
What exactly makes the Bosch cap better?

Alex:
Are you using Bosch rotors with Beru caps?

jdistefa

Gunter, I have some barely used Beru plug wires off my 993 (I'm switching to coils). Located in Ontario. You can have 'em for half price of new. Lemme know and I can ship out via Canada Post before they go on strike

IXLR8

Sorry Günter, my mistake. I'm getting over jet lag and countless liters of beer sitting in Germany.

I thought ignition wire caps are being discussed. Repeating myself, Beru ignition caps at the distributor and spark plug ends are top notch in quality. Mind you, they are original and there are only 72K kms on them. That is why they were reused when making up new wires.

As for the distributor caps and rotors you are talking about, the orignials on my 993 are Bosch. Not being in bad shape, I cleaned them up and they are being kept as spares.

The replacement Bosch caps and rotors that I got from AutohausAZ aren't nearly as nice as the original German made items. Although fully functional I would think (quality stanards to some level need to be maintained), the replacements are made by Bosch Spain.

I cannot comment on the Beru caps and rotors...haven't actually seen any to judge.

nile13

Distributor caps that I've seen fail in one of to ways. One is obvious, contact points corrode and/or wear out. The other type is cracking of the plastic itself. Which leads to moisture getting in and the car coughing and sputtering in the wet weather until it warms up and moisture is evaporated. Which was fairly common on Bosch caps I've seen for other cars. Although, as mentioned, they were made in random places in the world.

Gunter

That's what I mean.

Do Bosch caps from Spain justify the much higher price compared to Beru caps?

Anyone with opinions/experience with Beru caps?

Good? Bad?

nile13

Opinions I have Experience with Beru distributor caps - not so much.

Of the two I'd go with cheaper one as Bosch name just does not carry any premium for me. Not in autoparts, not in anything else they manufacture. Although Steve's words make me think pretty hard about this.

If the caps were easier to change (if rear bolts were in plain view), I'd go with cheapest alternative and not worry about things. However, like anything else in a 993 you have to think about amount of time and bloodletting involved in replacing things when they break.

Gunter

Do Bosch caps (made in Spain) justify the much higher price compared to Beru caps?

Anyone had experience with Beru caps?

Good? Bad?