Japanese1.6

Hi! My 93 Honda DX Hatch (1.6 Litre -2nd engine put in car) has died (won't start) twice in the last week. I hit the distributor (not the cap) with a hammer and it starts fine. (in good tune) The wires, plugs distributor cap and rotor were replaced about 2 months ago. The engine only has about 60,000 Kilometers (37,000 miles)on it. One mechanic says the gears or parts (?) inside the distributor are rusted or corroded (without seeing it) He says that if I take it apart the gears might just fall apart on the inside.

I took apart the distributor cap (as I said earlier, the rotor is fairly new.) There were some grey metal filings or shavings (quarter of a teaspoon full) inside the cap and the rotor had a very small bit of black plastic (from the cap I would guess) leaning over the very end of the contact teeth on the rotor. I took this off and cleaned out the cap. Of course the car works fine but for how long. The rotor has about a one eighth of an inch circular play in it (turning it back and forth)

Should not the distributor last for at least 100,000 to 200,000 Kilometers??
Any ideas as to what is happening here. I can still drive it but I don't like the uncertainty of being stranded. Another mechanic said it might never stop again - he did not really know.
What about the metal files in the cap - could this have caused this?
Don't want to give up the car but the repairs are adding up. A distributor is about 500 installed. With a cap and rotor about 600, taxes in.

Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions!

Bond

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Japanese1.6 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hi! My 93 Honda DX Hatch (1.6 Litre -2nd engine put in car) has died (won't start) twice in the last week. I hit the distributor (not the cap) with a hammer and it starts fine. (in good tune) The wires, plugs distributor cap and rotor were replaced about 2 months ago. The engine only has about 60,000 Kilometers (37,000 miles)on it. One mechanic says the gears or parts (?) inside the distributor are rusted or corroded (without seeing it) He says that if I take it apart the gears might just fall apart on the inside.

I took apart the distributor cap (as I said earlier, the rotor is fairly new.) There were some grey metal filings or shavings (quarter of a teaspoon full) inside the cap and the rotor had a very small bit of black plastic (from the cap I would guess) leaning over the very end of the contact teeth on the rotor. I took this off and cleaned out the cap. Of course the car works fine but for how long. The rotor has about a one eighth of an inch circular play in it (turning it back and forth)

Should not the distributor last for at least 100,000 to 200,000 Kilometers??
Any ideas as to what is happening here. I can still drive it but I don't like the uncertainty of being stranded. Another mechanic said it might never stop again - he did not really know.
What about the metal files in the cap - could this have caused this?
Don't want to give up the car but the repairs are adding up. A distributor is about 500 installed. With a cap and rotor about 600, taxes in.

Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions!</TD></TR></TABLE>

First of all you would be damn luck for a dizzy to last over 100 000km. Mine kicked the bucket at 99 xxxkm. It is very common for the dizzy to die near the 100 000km mark. You can get a rebuilt dizzy (you reuse the coil) for around $300. If you give them your old one they will give you back like 50 bucks. So it isn't that bad. Sound like you dizzy's bearing is going (very common) and you just need to get a rebuilt one. No need to pay $500 for a new one. Those metal shaving's are either you rotor or the bearing's. Does it screech like a mother ****** some times? If so, it is your bearing. If you don't want to do this yourself then it will cost you . You will also need to mark the position when replacing it or just have a timing light like me. Good luck.

Japanese1.6

Thanks a million. Will take your advice. You obviously have talent and experience. Appreciated!