I was replacing the distributor cap and rotor on my '00 Civic EX last night. There's three bolts than hold the cap to the distributor - 2 of them sheared off, leaving the threaded portion in the distributor. It is flush, nothing to grab with pliers. Apparently this is a common problem, the two mechanics I spoke to this morning both guessed it before I was finished the story.
The third came off ok, and the new cap is in, being held on by one good bolt and two vice grips (!). Of course this can only be temporary
so I need to figure out how to get those bolt remnants out of the distributor.
I have a couple ideas. Thoughts, tips?
- drill a small pilot hole and use a screw extractor to twist the bolt out. I have not ever had much luck with extractors, so I'm not sure about this one.
- try to drill out all or most of the bolt, clean through. Replace with a longer (and possibly thinner) bolt, use a nut on the end to hold it in place.
- use a dremel to cut a slot in the bolt and try to use a screwdriver to twist it out.
The vice grips seemed to hold quite nicely during my commute this morning.
Mainly I'm trying to avoid having to replace the entire distributor. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!
jeff
The third came off ok, and the new cap is in, being held on by one good bolt and two vice grips (!). Of course this can only be temporary
I have a couple ideas. Thoughts, tips?
- drill a small pilot hole and use a screw extractor to twist the bolt out. I have not ever had much luck with extractors, so I'm not sure about this one.
- try to drill out all or most of the bolt, clean through. Replace with a longer (and possibly thinner) bolt, use a nut on the end to hold it in place.
- use a dremel to cut a slot in the bolt and try to use a screwdriver to twist it out.
The vice grips seemed to hold quite nicely during my commute this morning.
Mainly I'm trying to avoid having to replace the entire distributor. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!
jeff