How the hell do you replace this thing...I cannot it off

thanks

 

There's one screw holding it down in the back. You just have to take out the screw and pull straight up. Don't forget to mark the position of the button before you take it out. And a word of warning when you put on the new screw, when it gets tight and is torqued to spec, stop screwing! I keep going and broke the head once.

 

Ok the one that was on there was hard as crap to get off....so i got it off and replaced plugs, wires, dis. cap, rotor button and now the car will not start.....got any ideas?

 

I'm assuming it does crank anyway?

1. How did you put on the new wires? Rip them all off and then put in the new ones or did you go one by one? What I'm asking is are you sure you got them in correct order?

2. Did you get the dist cap on alright, the right way etc?

If the car started before you did this, and you haven't done anything else then just go over everything again and again until you find your problem. As a last resort replace dis cap and/or rotor with the old ones and see if that works, you might have a faulty, even though new, part.

 

As I recall, the distributor cap and rotor are both "keyed" so they can only go on one way, yes? Check that.

Wires: check that the plug wires are going to the correct cylinders. One switched pair of wires can really screw up the engine, if it fires at all.

 

you are correct about them being keyed they can only go one way.....I was very careful changing plugs and wires I have done that many times.....but like i said the rotor was hard as hell to get off!!!

I did pick up another rotor today and it looks more like the one that came off....I got is a NAPA where as the other came from Autozone.

I am at work so haven't had a change to install.

any other suggestions

 

Take your cap off and crank the motor to make sure the rotor is turning. Maybe because it was so hard to get off you damaged the dist?

 

what kinda damage can it do. I accidentally installed wires the wrong way (switched 6 with 4), and it ran like crap for about a 200yards. Then I found out, and switched them back..any long term damage possible??

 

GOT IT......Bad rotor button!!....Damn Autozone

 

Bad Rotor Button, is crucial

 

Yeah I had 1 break off too!

 

Are all of them keyed??

 

If it fires, the plug can start combustion in a cylinder when it's not "ready" for it. Usually, combustion happens when both intake and exhaust valves are closed, and the piston is at or just past top dead center. At this point, even though it's quite a little explosion in there, the energy from the blast is safely dissipated in three ways: heat, sound, and kinetic energy forcing the piston down into the cylinder (and thus turning the crankshaft, passing the energy out through the transmission and to your tires). That part of the four-stroke cycle is called the "power stroke."

If the cylinder detonates at a time OTHER than the power stroke (i.e. when the cylinder is on its way UP, just before the normal compression time, the valves are open, or in the process of opening or closing, etc.), you can bend or break valves and/or valve springs. You can bust a hole through your piston (did this one myself), bend a connecting rod, destroy your piston rings, score a cylinder, bend a crankshaft... All nasty stuff. And, all "worst case scenarios."

However, if you only went for a very short distance, corrected it, and the car seems to be running fine, you probably got away with it. Telltale signs of damage would be white or blue smoke out the exhaust, a lot of "tapping" from under one of the valve covers, any other unusual noises, overheating... Usually, if there's that level of damage, there is no "I wonder if it's OK" about it. These problems make themselves known in obvious ways.

Glad you figured out your problem.

 

thnx geerhead. i noticed that I had the 4 and 6 wires crossed after about 5 minutes. the engine was sounding really bad, and it was backfiring when I revved it up. I switched the wires, and it ran fine..(except for a lack of power...which i am still trying to figure out..this was happening before the wires)

 

Check the compression in each cylinder. I'm not sure what the specs are, but I'm sure somebody here on the 'org can.