how to change distributor o ring

[minime3]

Hi

Does anyone know a quick and easy way to change the distributor o ring? Any tips on changing it without throwing the timing off? thanks. Pictures would be greatly appreciated.

95 camry 4 cylinders.

[thisisntjoew]

Just mark the distributor and the engine head where the Distriutor is currently and put it back in the same place. Its not hard at all. Worst case is that youll have to buy a $40 timing light to time it if it gets WAY off. I wouldnt worry about it.

[GrkBallaG]

I dont know about the 95 but on my 96 you cant adjust the timing by distributor, the hole is not slotted. But i have done one on a 93 or 92 and it was slotted, so yeah, just mark it and youll be fine.

[minime3]

thanks guys

[alltracman78]

IIRC 96 has a crank sensor too, so the ECU automatically adjusts timing.
I don't think the 95 did [crank sensor is required for OBDII].

IMO get a light and check if if you pull the dist.

But your leak is most likely the inner seal, not just the O ring.
Toyota doesn't supply just the seal, only remanned dist.

You can buy the seal aftermarket, but might not be a job you want to do yourself.....

[minime3]

can u please elaborate on this "inner seal", i am not familiar with this part.
What is everyone else's thought on the inner seal?

Thanks.

[alltracman78]

Um, it's a seal inside the dist shaft.
Hence the inner seal.

90% of the time this leaks as well.
Trust me, I see these cars every day.

You can replace just the O ring and see if it still leaks.
It's a pretty easy job.

[minime3]

You mentioned earlier that this is a job better done by 2 persons or not alone. How would you go about replacing this inner seal? I dont think this seal is commonly talked about on this forum unlike the distrib o ring.

Thanks.

[1996camry]

I have 1996 Camry LE 4 Cylinder with oil leak around distrubutor... do not buy O-Ring from autozone because it looks the same but it will leak again for you... because I did on my 1996.... the leak is still....then I went to Toyota dealer to obtain O-Ring distrubutor...the problem fixed. when you ready to take off th distrubutor...mark with ink on distrubtor cap and on the position that go in... all you have to do, put a little oil on the O-ring before you put it in....to help easy slide in the distrubutor.

[tarbasd]

If the inner seal is leaking, you will find oil in the distributor. Just take off the cap and see if there is any oil inside.

I have the same problem, and I actually bought the seal set on-line from a Canadian store, but when I took apart a broken distributor (just to see how it looks like), I realized that there is no way I could replace that seal and put the distributor back together properly. The seal we talk about is stuck on the shaft, and I couldn't even remove it. (Is it simply held on by friction?) Anyway, I decided that it is much cheaper to top off the oil every few weeks than a new distributor, so that's where I am now.

BTW, I almost bought a distributor from a junk yard once, but I took off the cap, and - guess what - oil in the distributor.

[minime3]

Thanks 1996camry, it never occurred to me that one should also consider the replacement part a culprit if the problem isnt fixed. This is not the first time I have heard of autozone sellilng inferior parts. I guess that is why so many people just go straight to the dealer.


Tarbasd, thanks for the heads up on diagnosing that problem. I hope it's only the o ring problem and not the inner seal. But now I will also take the rotor apart to check for oil inside. Now I understand why Alltrac said it might not be something one can easily do.

[ChevelleSSLS6]

it's leaking on my 88 3sfe... so is there a o-ring on the distributor shaft... how would I replace it without stretching it around the dist. drive gear?

and there's an internal seal? what? Is there a cheap fix (anyone use make-a-gasket stuff?)