Chrysler Repair: Distributor installation: which way should the rotor point?, crank pulley, spark plug wire

Question
I replaced the leaking valve cover gaskets on my car, and was in a rush because it was starting to rain. It required pulling the distributor.  I forgot to mark the positions on the distributor and on the rotor.  Just pulled it out to change the gasket, and put the distributor back, using the mark left from the bolt as a guide.  The car no longer starts.  Makes the normal sounds, but does not start.  I'm not a mechanic.  What do I do now?  Please... advise..

Answer
Hi Art,
You didn't mention which engine it is that you have, but what you need to do is install the distributor so that the rotor is pointing to the cylinder number 1 spark plug wire's post when the crankshaft is set a TDC (or thereabout) for the number one piston (which is of course shown on the cranshaft pulley as a slot that you position in comparison to a scale mounter on the face of the engine adjacent to the pulley). There is one trick, however, and that is that this is a four stroke engine which means that the piston can be at the TDC position for either the compression of the mixture stroke OR at the finish of the exhaust stroke. But the only way to know that is to take off the valve cover (!) and observe the position of the valves OR much easier is to try it both ways: i.e., set it at TDC and put in the distributor as I described and see if it will now run. If not then remove the distributor and rotate the crank pulley one full turn and again install the distributor which should then be correctly positioned and in synch with the compression stroke.
There is one other wrinkle if you have the 3.0 V-6 Mitsubishi engine used by Chrysler, and that is that there is an internal rewiring in the distributor cap such that the post for the number 1 spark plug wire is not identical to the location of the contact inside the cap proper. Actually the internal contact for the number 1 wire is actually the one closest to the end of the engine (e.g. the rotor should be pointing toward the driver's side of the car if the engine in question is transversely mounted in the car) when you are at TDC of the compression stroke.
Once you get it to run then you need a timing light to get it exactly timed when idling and with the coolant temp sensor disconnected, and the engine warmed up. Most Chrysler engines are based on a setting of the timing mark while idling and using a timing light to be at 12 degrees before top dead center.
Let me know if you have any questions, and tell me which engine you have, if you write back.
Roland