Hi, I apologize in advance for any wrong use of words to describe my problem because I do not know much about cars. A few weeks ago I took out all 7 wires that plug into my distributor cap. When I took out the main wire which had a C on the distributor cap, a bunch of white powder stuff came out. I unscrewed the cap and notice a lot of it inside the part where the main plug went into. It didn't look like it belonged there so i used sandpaper and cleaned it out. After i cleaned it my car check engine light came off and it stoped sputtering, but the white power stuff seems to build up fast and I have to clean it about once every 2 weeks or my car will run poorly. Can someone tell me what this stuff is and if there anyway to stop this stuff from forming? Also I dont clean it out completely since I dont know if its safe to put any liquid inside it. I usually just roll up some sand paper and rotate around inside which usually cleans most of it out, but I can still see a lot of it on the walls. Is there a better way to clean it out? Thanks for reading!

 

did you get new wires?

 

No, I have never changed them before.

 

you cant possibly be that pooor as to not be able to replace the plugs, wires, cap, rotor

it would be less than 50$ and should solve your problem for good

 

exactly. you should change them.

 

While you're at it, do a whole tune-up, if your distributor is in that condition it can only lead me to believe everyhting else is in the same or worse.

 

Oh, white stuff! (Homer's voice)
The white stuff is Al2O3, a wonderful insulator: aluminum oxide. The worst enemy of all ignitions. Change your cap and rotors and get new wires. Like they told you above, get new NGK plugs too (platinums are not whole lot more expensive than copper). From now on check inside of the cap every couple months and use a knife to scratch out the buildup of the magic white stuff on the contacts facing the rotor. If you do that regularly, your engine runs much smoother and uses less gas. Good luck!

 

get some dielectric grease. that should keep the moisture out....hence prevent/reduce the alum from oxidizing.

 

Ok I will probably look into replacing the parts soon, but in the meantime is it safe if i spray the inside with water or rubbing alcohol?

 

use WD40 instead. water is what caused the problem in the first place.

 

WD-40 will clean the white stuff off well?

 

it should...or else you can always get a new cap.

it'll do a better job than water or rubbing alcohol. understand that water is what caused the white stuff to appear.

get a 3 dollar tube of dielectric grease and put some in there.

stop trying to question the answers.

 

Sorry for the n00b questions I dont know too much about cars. Anyways I found a tube of dielectric tune-up grease. How should I go about putting it inside the hole of the distributor cap? Is it safe to just pour it inside then use something like a screwdriver to mix it around?

 

Hi DanNY,

where should i spray the wd-40 on the distributor cap?

 

DanNY, If I scrape the white stuff off the dist cap, put it on my toothbrush, will it prevent tooth decay?

 

DanNY, do I hold the wd-40 in the upright position or gangsta position when spraying?

 

DanNY, do I face north or south in relation to the distributor when spraying the said cap?

 

Lmao 123456789

 

jeff is one funny guy

 

ye,

Jeff is a funny guy,