any car mechanics? question about distributor.

[1preppyjock]

my car's ignition distributor suddenly stopped working. some mechanics fixed it for me.

my question is,

1. what if i was driving this same car on a freeway/highway, with this bad distributor, is it possible that car will stop all of sudden?

2. and how will i know in the future when the distributor starts to stop working?

thanks.

 

[meandamedeos]

Basically the distributor is the powerhouse for you engine, it distributes power to the spark plugs which in turn make your engine run. If the distributor goes out your car could stop suddenly, basically like turning off the key. Most of the time the distributor will go out without warning, but sometimes your engine might start running badly prior to a failure. Hopefully this information helps.

 

[Lawnmowerman]

Does your car truly have a distributor, or ignition coil packs? What's the year, model and make of your car?

1. As to your car stopping all of a sudden on a highway were it to go out again, the engine would stop, and you would lose power steering and brakes if so equipped, but you would still be able to control the car, and brake and steer it off onto the shoulder safely.

2. Assuming you truly have a vehicle old enough to have an actual distributor, as the contacts become pitted, the engine would not run as smooth nor start as easily as it did when the distributor was new.

 

[racer2438]

With todays hi tech stuff, there are a few things that can make it happen but if they worked on the distributor and it's running again then the problem area is in that piece.

could have been the coil, ignition module, coil p/u, bad grounds, points/cond burned rotor and or dist cap, coil wire short, fuse in the ECM, and could incl the ECM unit, or even a PROM chip. But that depends on your type of system and age.

but age and type of system says a lot, dont know what you have.

 

[looseliam]

I need specs:

Year, Make, Model, engine size.

Some distributors have sensors in them that can go bad over time.

Some have points that go bad, and advances that don't work.

Sometimes the shaft warps.

I've found that if a distributor or related components have failed, you will have a no-start condition.

Now, if there's corrosion built-up on the rotor and cap, it can cause intermittent stalling/no-starts.

 

[seven2go]

The short answer is:
If it's a newer vehicle there's not a damn thing you can do with anything under the hood. You can change the air cleaner I suppose....... ......and check the brake fluid.

 

[1preppyjock]

actually, i just want to know.

when this thing stopped working, the car was parked. when i tried to start the car, i wasn't able to. that is why i changed this distributor.

what if I didn't fix the distributor, and i was still driving, could this distributor all of sudden stop working? i can't imagine what could have happened when i was driving on the highway.

 

[looseliam]

Toyotas of those years had igniters that would fail over time.

I think they were serviced separately. Perhaps not on your vehicle.

If you've experienced no poor running, put it in the back of your mind and go on with your day.

Try not to worry about what might happen and just roll with it if it does.