Mazda Repair: 1992 Mazda Protege, mazda protege, toggle switch

Question
Hi Al;
Thanks for the reply but it doesn't really help as the car starts with no problem so a mechanic can't be of help there.  The problem occurs randomly once I've been on the road for awhile and often while I'm in motion.  The car just quits.  

Do the seloniods have anything to do with the distribution of gas etc?  The part I mentioned before - is it possible that this is what it was?

I appreciate your expertise.

Sharon



Unless I had a mechanic with me at that time
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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
Hi,
I've had this car into the shop a few times but the mechanics can not figure out why my car dies suddenly  while I'm driving or sometimes when at stopped and I step on the gas to go.  The car will always start again but sometimes I have to leave it sit for 3-5 minutes, sometimes it starts right away.  Sometimes it won't do this for quite a while and sometimes it does it frequently.

I purchased the car from a mechanic 1 1/2 yrs ago and after a month it started to do this.  He repaired it and left a used part in my car which unfortunately I must have gotten rid of.  He said it was a common problem with this car!  The part was about 1" x 1 square metal piece with a toggle switch on top (not sure this helps).  Anyways, he seems to have disappeared and I'm at a bit of a loss as the car doesn't warrant much more cost going into it, but I can't afford a new one at present.  

Do you have any suggestions?  I would appreciate any help - maybe share it with my current mechanic.  Thanks,

Sharon
-----Answer-----
not sure what that part is, you should ask your mechanic if the the plugs are getting spark when it wont start. i've seen alot of bad distributors causing starting and running problems

Answer
the part your talking about my be whats called a ignitor' it's part of the distributor, when there faulty they will shut off the engine randomly  they seem to do it more after they get hot. if's that what was changed and it's doing it again i would replace the distributor with only a mazda reman unit, there's other parts in it that can cause the ignitor to fail prematurely