Charleston Business Daily

What is an automotive disrtibutor condenser and what does it do? the condenser, not the distributor?

most automotive distributors , or at least the older ones had a coil and a condenser. What does the condenser actually do?

Public Comments

1. Also known as a "capacitor", it minimizes the sparking across the points contacts to make them last longer and makes the current flow more efficiently through the points as they continuously open and close as the distributor rotates.
2. The condenser acts like a capacitor and stores and boosts the spark until it is sent to the spark plug.
3. the condensor is a coil of wire inside a metal canister that has the function of capturing voltage spikes or surges that occur when the breaker points open and close. When the breaker points are opened by the cam inside the distributor the open the primary circuit of the coil that allows the electromagnetic field that has transformed the battery voltage to over 15,000 volts to collapse and be transferred to the spark plugs through the rotor. After teh spark plugs fire and while the breaker points are open there is still a residual voltage in the circuit as the primary circuit begins to recharge. That could result in a spike in voltage through the primary circuit of the coil when the points close so the condensor is used to absorb that spike and channel it back to the primary windings after the points close. the primary reason the condensor is used is because those voltage spikes occur in a frequency that can be picked up by the radio, particularly the AM radio band. The result of a bad condensor is a clicking noise that is heard through the radio when the engine is revved up. hope that helps
4. Stores a small charge that is released when the points close, this results in a faster discharge of the coil resulting in a hotter/longer spark. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignition_system#Mechanically_timed_ignition
5. Sorry Bobweb, you got it wrong. The condensor, or capicator, stores the EMF discharged by the coil when the points open, and the collapsing force field generates a current in the secondary winding of the coil. Without the condenser, there is no spark when the points open. When the points open, the condenser is charged by the collapsing field i the coil, then the capicator discharges back through the coil, and this is what creates the voltage in the coil, which fires the plug. A secondary benefit is keeping the points fro arcing, but since the engine will not run without the capicator, it does not really matter if the points arc while tryit to start the engine, the battery will be gone before the points are. Granted, this is a rather simplistic description of how a battery/points/coil system works, but should give you an idea as to its operation. Tomcotexas.
6. A Condenser ( AKA Capacitor) is an electrical storage device. When used with the old points type ignition it stores a charge opposite of the discharge across the points. this action reduces the removal of material from one side of the points and prevents it from being deposited on the other side. (ie.) makes the points last longer. A condenser may also be incorporated at the distributor to prevent radio noise form being generated in the distributor due to the gaps that must be bridged by high voltage inside the distributor.