Ok, Dumba$$ question. Will SC distibutor fit 3.2?

juicersr · juicersr's Garage

Just got a heart attack when i went to buy a distributor cap for my new Carrera... $41???? Damn! I've got perfect 3.0 distributor lying around gathering dust... will it fit the 3.2?

the · 11-28-2006, 08:56 AM

No.

juicersr · juicersr's Garage

Thanks. How often are you guys replacing the cap/ rotor on the 3.2... same intervals as 3.0?

the · 11-28-2006, 09:27 AM

I've never replaced it on my 3.2 because I don't drive it much, but I have had several other Motronic injected German cars, and found that the caps and rotors can go a long time!

I know most here probably over-maintain, which is good for our toys. And this will likely be met with ridicule and scorn. But I've gone 60,000 - 70,000 on my other Motronic cars, and when I took off the old cap and rotor, they looked fine. Not new, of course, but still ok. After replacing, I didn't notice any difference in the way the car ran.

If you are adverse to spending the money, and you aren't having any running problems with the car, I'd just maybe pull them, take a look, if they look ok just clean them up a bit, and go on your way.

MRM · 11-28-2006, 11:17 AM

Open it up and look inside. If it's still clean and the connections are shiny keep it. If it's dirty and the connectors look rough, replace the whole thing.

rvanderpyl · rvanderpyl's Garage

$41.00? try $610.00 for an RSR cap

cbeers · 11-28-2006, 01:37 PM

I replace mine annually, driving about 12k per year.

$41 isn't even a tank of gas anymore, so to me it's not such a big deal

-Chris

juicersr · juicersr's Garage

yeah, i guess i've been spoiled by years of SC tune-ups.

dentist90 · dentist90's Garage

I recently took this out of my car, looking a bit worn so replaced it. I checked the fairly extensive records that came with the car, no record of distributor replacement. This could be the original (180,000 km)!

The reason I suspect this cap may be over 100,000 miles old is that the rotor was seized on so tight that it pulled the shaft out when I tried to pry it free:

I was having no running issues at any rpm, just thought it was time based on appearance of contacts inside. If so, these can be quite durable. As always, YMMV!