In most cases, you will have to replace the distributor cap or rotor (or both). Before we get into the symptoms of a bad distributor, understanding how the distributor works will be helpful in ...

Let’s start by looking at the evolution of the GM High Energy Ignition (HEI) system. This system became available as an option in 1974 and was standard in all 1975-and-later vehicles, with the ...

If there is a standard in the world for a stand-alone electronic ignition distributor for GM engines, it has to be the High Energy Ignition or HEI distributor. This large cap distributor first ...

Note that these larger distributor caps also typically incorporate enough ... The first is to obtain a good salvage-yard replacement. Remember, the 1974-1980 HEI distributors used the same advance ...

If you have storage space, keep the old distributor cap with a label as to make, year and model so that you can match the caps again if you eventually need a replacement.

Where distributor caps and rotors once needed replacement, electronic ignitions typically keep on firing. In new vehicles, spark-plug replacement intervals are often around 100,000 miles.

No matter, because points still wear out and require periodic adjustment or replacement ... like with a points distributor. Instead, it's built into the HEI distributor's cap, making for a ...