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Well last week I bought a '94 GS. A couple days later the distributor went. Not a biggy I guess seeing that it is common and the dealer will be replacing it out of his pocket. He is sending it away to WSSL in Winnipeg to get it rebuilt...costs about $500.00cnd instead of $900.00cnd from Mazda. So what kind of life should I expect out of it?? The car has 149000kms and runs like a top...185 compression all around and very well taken care of. I did some searching and I can't seem to get a straight answer...are there kits out there so I can rebuild it myself?? Ignition modules?? Any help is greatly appreciated...thanks!!

What's exchange rate? I got a quote of $350 for a brand new one from my local Mazda dealership. I bet I could go even cheaper if I got a quote at a mail-order dealership like Russell Automotive Group.

Next time you need a new one, you could try one from a post '95 car. Mazda changed the distributor (probably when the cars went to OBD2), and the new type should be more reliable (why else did they change?).

The new one requires the 3 wires in the 3-wire connector to be swapped around. See this thread .

So are you saying that this one won't last me very long and that I should be hunting around for a backup???

Originally posted by goflutie:
So are you saying that this one won't last me very long and that I should be hunting around for a backup???

I wouldn't worry about it unless something goes wrong with it. But I would call around and see which places offer a lifetime replacement warranty. If mine breaks anywhere in Las Vegas, at least I know it's not more than a 20 minute walk to the nearest Autozone to get a free replacement.

ok...so are all v6 model year distributors interchangeable?? Can I throw one in off a '95 or '96?? Should I get another 100,000kms off a rebuilt??

i had a 94 GS and my disty lasted the life of the car..its really hit or miss on whether or not you'll need to replace it.

stock one lasted till 130k then blew, got a reman from napa, that one blew in 5days, then they gave me a brand new one and that one lasted 10k miles, now im doin msd bc this is bull on how crappy our distys are, a full msd 6al used with a coil is the same price as a disty and it wont break in 10k miles