Hi, I have a 98 blazer that has had alot of engine noise for several years now, but usually runs fairly well. The other night I was driving, and it started misfiring pretty badly, and started flashing the check engine light.

The distributor does have a broken cap-screw ear on it, and hs for several years. I have developed an intereting rig-job, that holds the cap down pretty tightly, and I have had probably 5 or 6 new caps on it without an issue. This is the first time I have had any misfiring.

I took it to a mechanic, and they scanned it, and came up with codes P0300, and P1345.

They said: "random misfire and cam/crank sensor position correlation. Perform pinpoint diagnostics. Found ear on distributor broken and cam sensor is reading incorrectly. Needs new distributor as a first step"

The problem is, they want $400 for parts and labor "as a first step". so I picked up the blazer, and wanted to try to put a distributor in myself. But I don't have a scan tool to set the timing retard.

My question is: Is this what you would all recommend as a first step?

Would a worn distributor cause performance problems gradually? or come on all of a sudden like it did?

The cap is still being held tight by my fix, just like it was.

Is there a way to set the timing "close enough" without the scan tool?

Any thoughts would help me out here, because I don't have alot of money to throw at this "as a first step"

thanks, Jeff

 

Remove the cap but mark the position. If you're talking a complete distributor shaft replacement you have to mark where the shaft was in relation to the rotor. It HAS to go back in the same place (rotation wise).
It will cause a lot of issues from a tapping/ticking, fouled plugs which lead to a misfire, poor economy & power & under heavy throttle it may stall of (if really out of whack) misfire so bad it can cause internal damage.

As for the CKP (crank position sensor) you have to get that reset by a shop with a high end scanner that's capable of doing a crankshaft sensor relearn procedure - possibly $50.
Take a 10mm (I believe, if memory serves me right) socket & remove it. It's the little sensor below the front of the engine by the top of the oil pan with 2 wires going to it & a small plate holding it. 1 bolt & it comes out. Look for witness marks/scrapes on it. If it's free from that then you're saving $40 for a new one. But the code still says it needs a relearn procedure IMO.
Think of the crankshaft position sensor like your feet... you don't go too far if you aren't sure where your feet are. If they're not in correlation with your brain (a blazers PCM) you're FUBAR! lol

 

Also, you can get a complete dizzy with the cap and rotor for about 50 bucks on ebay from skip white. Its called "top street performance" and it comes with accell electronics and a turned aluminum shaft. I was pretty impressed, I plan on swapping out the cap and rotor for delco at the first sign of trouble, but that hasn't happened yet...