How to Install Plug Wires on a GM Distributor Cap

The plug wires on the distributor cap of your GM vehicle need to be set up in a specific way, as the distributor routes the initial high-voltage spark from the battery in a precise order. Failure to properly install the spark plug wires on your GM distributor cap could result in the vehicle's inability to start. Thankfully, it is fairly easy to install the spark plug wires in the correct order, and the job should not take more than 15 minutes.

Instructions

1

Open the GM vehicle's hood and remove the negative terminal from the battery, using a socket wrench.

2

Use the socket wrench to make sure that the bolts on the distributor cap are tightened and the cap is loose. Check to see if the engine is a six- or eight-cylinder type.

3

Use a spark plug remover to carefully remove all of the old spark plug wires from the distributor cap. Grip the wires from the head with the remover and lift them off the cap. Make sure all the wires are removed from the cap.

4

Use a socket wrench to tighten the new spark plug wires onto the distributor cap to properly connect them. If your vehicle has a six-cylinder engine, install the spark plug wires in a counter-clockwise fashion -- that is to say that the bottom-most connection is for the first spark plug; the connection to the right of that is for the second spark plug and the connection to the left of the first one is for the sixth spark plug. For eight-cylinder engines, all of the odd-numbered spark plug wires connect to the right-side of the distributor cap, whereas the even-numbered wires go with the left-side of the distributor cap, with the first and second spark plug wires at the front of the cap and the seventh and eighth wires at the rear of the cap.

5

Reattach the negative terminal to the battery and close the hood.