Need A Spark? The Distributor Delivers!

There are several car parts that are so crucial that without them you are going nowhere. A vehicle can drive for awhile without an alternator using battery power; it can run on fumes when it’s out of gas, or function reasonably well with a leaky radiator or belt slippage. But take away the distributor and your car may as well be a decorative yard ornament. When it comes to your engine running properly, the distributor provides the spark of life.

Used car parts can be categorized under essential and non-essential and the distributor is definitely essential. How does it work? Pretty simple really! The distributor “distributes” high voltage from the coil to the cylinders. The coil is connected to the rotor, which spins past a series of contacts (one per cylinder); as it spins past each contact a pulse of electricity jumps to the plug wire, igniting the plug, and if all things are working properly your engine will then start.

Sounds simple but there are a number of parts involved. A quick list would include the coil, cylinder, cap, rotor, camshaft, contact breaker, capacitor, carbon brush, and a vacuum advance unit. There is no reason to go into the function of each of these parts at this point; suffice it to say that these parts will wear out eventually due to heat, vibration, and general wear and tear since they are involved constantly when your car is running.

So how much does a distributor cost? As with all used car parts, it depends on the make, model, and year of your vehicle. The cost range is anywhere from $150-$500, and you can find one at any auto parts store that sells quality used parts. Of course, you can always go to a salvage yard and experience savings of up to 60% if you want to do the work yourself, and the good news is that replacing parts on a distributor just isn’t that big a deal.

As a society we seem to have moved away from self-service; it takes too much time, it’s not convenient, it’s a dirty job! All are the standard excuses in today’s society. We would rather pay the money and have someone else to our dirty work rather than get a little grease under our fingernails. Well, that may have been the case five years ago but today every penny counts and car repair is coming back in style for many drivers. Why pay a mechanic $60 an hour to do something most anyone could do?

Toss away the old conceptions, slip on some coveralls, go pick up a used distributor, and do the work yourself. Let the distributor put some spark back in your life and at the same time you can feel like you really accomplished something.