Mitsubishi Repair: Car Died!!!, question thanks, junk yards

Question
QUESTION: I was driving about 3 months ago to the store and my car died. I thought it was perhaps bad gas or a fuse went bad. Come to find out, some plug that connects onto my distributor broke off while I was driving?! How does this happen I have no clue. I am never rough on it or anything of that nature. Now, I need to know what to do. I've looked all over the web trying to find out if I can buy the part or i if I have to replace the whole distributor. Please help!

ANSWER: Timothy: If your car has a distributor it can not be that new of a car, so my guess would be that you will have to replace the whole distributor. Do you do this work yourself or do you take the car to a shop? If you are doing the work yourself, go out and buy yourself a repair manual for your car. Most parts stores have them for around $20.00 and well worth the money. That manual would walk you through what you need to do and what you would have to replace to fix this problem. But things do get old and they do break. When you think of all the heat coming off that engine, so things must be replaced from time to time. Oh if you do buy a repair manual for your car, try to get a Haynes one; as they are best. Hope this helps and God bless: Linda

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks Linda. I ordered a Haynes Manual last night from the web and it should be here soon. However I will not be able to do this work myself from having a lack of tools. Maybe you might be able to suggest a place to get a distributor? Everywhere I've looked has been around 400 dollars and I think it a bit much and with labor included I'm looking at around 6-700 dollars to fix a car that is now 14 years old! But maybe I'm looking at all the wrong places?

Answer
Timothy: I know what you are saying but gee they really charges for some of these parts for these cars. You could try calling around to some junk yards, my son used sensors off a junked car when the dealerships wanted over $500.00 for two sensors that he needed. And he has had good luck with those sensors. So try checking at a junk yard you might be able to buy that at one of those. I really wish I could help you more, but that is the same thing my son said about those high cost sensors because his car is 18 years old.Oh hey Timothy, you could go out and buy some tools too. Well just an idea, some shops and dealerships are very high on their labor costs. I mean the part might not cost so much but the labor it to put it in is nuts. Well just an idea on my part.  Hope this helps and God bless: Linda