2001 Jimmy, 4WD 315,000 miles

Replaced distributor cap and rotor, plug wires, and plugs today. When I started it back up, I could hear rubbing from inside the dist. cap, as if the rotor was rubbing on it.

Took it all off and reinstalled, but had the same issue. Put the old cap back on, and the rubbing stopped. So I took the cap back (it was a BWD) and got a Mastercraft, just to see if the BWD has a screwy tolerance. The Mastercraft did the same thing, but being a POS Mastercraft product, the plug wires didnt want to seat properly so I returned it.

They didnt have an AC Delco in stock, so I got the BWD back. If both off brands were rubbing, I figured the AC Delco wouldn't fix the problem.


When I move the rotor, or take the rotor off and move the metal piece it sits on, there is about 1/4 inch of vertical play, and it will rotate a small amount CCW. Took a video but my phone won't send it. I'm not sure what kind of free-play should be in a distributor, so I'm not sure if this is the issue. Seemed weird that the old cap didnt run at all.

Possibly related problem, my lights (and dash display/lights behind gauges and dials) pulse when idling. When accelerating, the pulse speeds up enough to be unnoticeable. I got the alternator and battery checked, and they're both good. This issue was there prior to replacing the components, as well as after.


Any advice?

 

Bad distributor.
No cap is gonna fix it, it will leave you stranded one day soon on the side of the road!
It's easier to fix now then after it destroy's itself and you have to get the timing back right.
Mine did this about 3-4 months ago and didn't mess with it until it imploded.

 

There have been issues with the bearing in the gear at the bottom of the distributor shaft going bad. I took mine out & if you held it & rotated it you could see a wobble. Just imagine that wobble at 3000rpm. You have to be very careful to position the shaft back in the exact way it came out. There are bearing rebuild kits for them but I replaced the entire distributor, shaft n all. Also make sure the bolt holding the distributor down is tight. It may have worked loose a little.

 

Replacement distributors come with plastic or aluminum housings. No brainer here, get the aluminum one along with an AC Delco cap & rotor, (lose the BWD stuff).

 

Real common issue. Wore out distributor bushings. Had the same issue on my 97 Blazer.

 

Sort of what I was figuring. Wasn't sure if the old one has just rubbed enough to not make noise, or if the cap was defective.

Looks like I can get a Delphi for less than AC Delco. Rarity.

 

I know this may sound crazy, not to sound foolish though,, The old cap and rotor, what brand were they? Do you still have them? Is there any signs of wear inside the cap showing any rubbing/gouging? The reason i`m asking is normally there is only one way a rotor can go back on. Theres normally pins that pop into the top of the dist shaft, or each end of the rotor will have a diff look to it to sit properly onto that shaft.. I hope this helps a little bit with determining what could no be sitting right. Put a little bit of die-lectric grease on the dist shaft to prevent it from sticking, make sure the plates with the springs move back and forth freely...

 

I didn't check the brand, but I'm assuming its OEM (Delphi).

Rotor was put on in the proper position. It's gotta be an issue of the shaft being screwed up.

 

Very common for the shaft bushings and the drive gear to wear. Both will cause excessive radial play. When the shaft rotates, it wobbles and causes the rotor to contact the cap, destroying it and the rotor. Get an aluminum housing distributor and it will outlast the truck!

 

I'm willing to get any brand will out last this truck. How it's still running is beyond me. I'm hoping to retire it at 350k, and go blow it up on the sand dunes or something