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Need distributor gasket replacement advice for a 4.0

bradleyheathhays

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Lexington, KY
Long story short, after replacing the valve cover gasket and the oil filter adapter gasket I still have a leak coming from somewhere on the old '96 XJ 4.0. Although the filter adapter seems to be oil free there's still oil dripping off my oil filter as well as oil pan. I'm guessing cause there's oil as high up as on the filter itself the leak prob isn't coming from my RMS which I'm still afraid of. Oil pressure sending unit and hex nut it ties into seem to be fairly oil free so for now I'm leaving it alone.

So now on to replacing the distributor gasket. In investigating this whole oil leak scenario I stumbled on some good write-ups or videos on replacing distributor gaskets but I can't seem to find them now. Getting everything apart and back together is simple enough. The sticky part is making sure the distributor gets back into the motor aligned exactly the same way it came out or else the timing gets messed up. Can anyone point me in the right directions for a good video that shows how to get this done right? Thanks.
 
Before you move the distributor, remove the cap and mark on the side of the distributor where the rotor (the pointy thing that points to the side of the cap) is pointing.

It is imperative that from this point forward, you do not turn the engine.

You can now remove the Distributor. It will pull straight up and rotate.

The distributor has an O-Ring, not a gasket. R&R the O-Ring.

Re-installation is the same as removal except this time you align the rotor with the mark you made on the side of the distributor. Since the gear is helix and not a straight gear, this may take a couple times to pull off, but you'll get it.

-Ron
 
Actually my 96 has a paper gasket, and it's very thin.

After installing a new distributor, I also had an oil leak.
Solution was to cut a new gasket out of thicker material,
and install it along with gasket sealer. This finally stopped
the leaking...

Follow Ron's directions to R&R the dist. When pulling it
out the rotor shaft will rotate CCW slightly. Pay attention
to how much it rotates and install it with the rotor in that
position, and it'll rotate right in.
 
Actually my 96 has a paper gasket, and it's very thin.

After installing a new distributor, I also had an oil leak.
Solution was to cut a new gasket out of thicker material,
and install it along with gasket sealer. This finally stopped
the leaking...

Follow Ron's directions to R&R the dist. When pulling it
out the rotor shaft will rotate CCW slightly. Pay attention
to how much it rotates and install it with the rotor in that
position, and it'll rotate right in.

I went way old school and used leather. I knew those old worn out cowboy boots of mine would come in handy someday.

Leather actually works well as a gasket material.

If I was popping that many leaks I'd check the rear vent tubing on my valve cover. Also poke something down the rear hole in the valve cover (gently), it sometimes gets plugged in the grommet before the tubing.
 
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Actually, best thing to do when R&R dizzy is to mark where the rotor is when in the motor, then as soon as you pull it and the rotor moves, mark that place with a different color.
 
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