re: altenator and distribution cap

1993 TOYOTA COROLLA

135,000 MILES

HB74

MEMBER
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Hi:

Please forgive me in advance if I'm asking a really stupid question
I recently repaired the altenator in October 2010.
When my car was having issues again this week, my distributor cap and the ignition wire set were replaced.
Is this a repeat of the repair in October 2010? Or are they different?

Mar 15, 2011 at 2:58 PM

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CARADIODOC

CAR REPAIR CONTRIBUTOR
34,308 POSTS

Totally different. The generator, (alternator is a Chrysler copyrighted term), recharges the battery after starting the engine and it provides the electrical power to everything else on the car while you're driving. The distributor cap, spark plugs, and spark plug wires are all parts that are normally replaced as part of a tune-up. They are part of the system that fires the spark plugs to start the fuel and air burning. A problem with the generator CAN cause similar running problems because low voltage from the battery running down will cause the spark plugs to misfire.

Mar 15, 2011 at 6:18 PM