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-   -   My 95 Nissan Altima had a small amount of oil run out of the distributor. (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=540409)

  • Jan 4, 2011, 05:48 AM
    ddd453
    My 95 Nissan Altima had a small amount of oil run out of the distributor.
    The car would run for about thirty minutes then shut off. I replaced the camshaft position sensor as the ECM code indicated, but this didn't solve the problem. I thought it might be the coil. But replacing the coil did not fix the problem. Eventually it would no longer run at all. I removed the distributor cap and rotor button. When I removed the black plastic dust cover from the distributor an ounce or two of oil ran out of the bottom of the distributor. Does this indicate a bad distributor? And if so, why was there oil present inside the distributor cover to begin with? And how will a new one fix the problem and keep oil from getting inside of it? I want to be sure a new distributor will solve my problem before I replace it. They seem to be fairly expensive. Thank you for any helpful information.
  • Jan 4, 2011, 07:13 AM
    TxGreaseMonkey

    Oil leaking inside the distributor is usually and indication of bearing failure. On Hondas, the only option is to replace the distributor. This is likely the case on Nissans. When the bearing starts to fail, wear progresses to the point where internal sensors can be affected. One to two onces of oil in the distributor is enough evidence, for me, to replace the distributor. On Hondas, I only recommend genuine Honda replacements, since over 50% of new aftermarket distributors don't work. Therefore, I would go with a Nissan OEM distributor.
  • Jan 4, 2011, 08:17 AM
    ddd453
    Comment on TxGreaseMonkey's post
    Thank you for confirming my suspicion. I appreciate the timely response as well.

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