How does one know if a rotor button needs replacing?
My EL XR6 has one and the ticking sound is very noticable, the car has done 175000km. The position of the distributor makes it impossible for me to actually open it up to look. Does a worn one affect performance in a noticable way?

Any advice would be gladly appreciated.

Just replace it, they're only about $10, replace the distributer cap also.
If they are original they are well past their use by date.

The ticking that you can hear may be the injectors firing. You can use a piece of pvc pipe or hose to isolate the noise. They can be quite loud at idle and sound like they come from the distributor area. Generally a dodgy rotor button or distributor cap will cause all sorts of electrical problems and misfires. I replaced mine last week after doing a head gasket. I also had to replace the distributor base as well, as the plastic was cracked and brittle. All up about $30 to fix. It was very easy to fix with the inlet manifold off but a complete pain in the butt with the manifold on. If you buy rotor,cap and base at the same time you'll be glad that you have to do it once. New leads would also be the go,

sincere regards,

take the air box out

reach right in and grab the thing. and save you many skinned knucks and a s**t load of time

Great advice Fifty-One. Thanks for the tip.

sincere regards,

nps mate. hope it keeps some of the hair on your head

if the dizzy is ticking, it might be time for a new dizzy. eventually the rotor will break and the car will stop. new dizzys have gotten cheap lately.

i paid $35 for my new dizzy off ebay.. it looks totally aftermarket but looks identical to the bosch/ motorcraft series,

havent had a chance to test it out yet as the engine isnt in my car yet but im confident

At 175K, the bush in the dizzy might be buggered, and the noise ( with hearing for myself ), could be the reluctor polling out.