something got wet...

[SafeAirOne]

Umm. Yeah it really is quite handy to have around when the need arises

...Making me wonder if you might have a different use for silicon lubricant in New Zeland than we do here in the States... something "root"-related...

[albersj51]

HA! Never thought id start a convo like this on a Land Rover forum!! I Definitely picked the right car!

[Q]UOTE=SafeAirOne;60514]...Making me wonder if you might have a different use for silicon lubricant in New Zeland than we do here in the States... something "root"-related... [/QUOTE]

[disco2hse]

...Making me wonder if you might have a different use for silicon lubricant in New Zeland than we do here in the States... something "root"-related...

Well if you know what kiwis do...

[bmohan55]

couple questions

And, just to add my 2 cents---When I had a vehicle that had a distributor, I always carried a spray can of silicon lubricant. It REALLY displaces water and is pretty safe to go crazy with. I also used to smear a good thick bead of dielectric grease on the bottom of the distributor cap, then install it. Same with putting some in each ignition wire boot before installation. You'd be amazed at how well that keeps the water out of the ignition components.

Newbie question(s) on the highlighted part....I was under the impresion that the dizzy had to "breathe", wouldn't the grease seal it up too much?
Also in the middle of a rebuild now and plan on going Pretronix when it's back together, is it more water resistant than points?

[SafeAirOne]

I was under the impresion that the dizzy had to "breathe", wouldn't the grease seal it up too much?

I should clarify: when I say "When I had a vehilce that had a distributor", it was a 1969 Jeep M715 5/4ton military truck with a 12v civilian distributor fitted. It didn't need to breathe whatsoever.

The 2.25 distributor may have different requirements, I don't know. It's been decades since I've owned a series rover with a distributor.

Anyone else know??

[Jeff Aronson]

The distibutor does not produce the kind of heat that requires a "breather." Regardless of the type of distributor you choose [I favor the Lucas points one] moisture or water inside the distributor will result the very symptoms you encountered. In your case, you said the coil was bad, but possibly, you just had moisture in the distributor housing/spark plugs or coil wires, and that the failure was coincidental.

Dialectric grease is the goods for helping to make all those parts more water-resistant, and WD-40/ Silicon spray/PB Blaster will all help displace moisture/water to enable the voltage to produce the requisite spark.

It's worth considering new wires and distributor cap, too, if moisture/water continue to create running problems like these.

Jeff