I am in the process of changing out my distributor caps and rotors. There is a cylindrical sleeve with an o ring that appears to freewheel behind the follower. The reference diagram I have calls it a cover. The one on the drivers side is broken and appears to have been this way for awhile.

I have not been able to find it on any of the online parts catalogs. Is there any other name for this piece? Is it essential?

That is "static guard" for the ignition system. MB part number 119-158-01-88 with a list price of $104.

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I believe it is essential. My thought process would as follows:

a. $104
b. doesn't really take much stress, hard to imagine how it broke
c. there are some terrific glues on the market, e.g. gorilla glue

Thanks for the answers. It was probably broken the last time the distributor cap was replaced since some of the pieces are missing. I know some of the pieces are gone because glueing it back together was the first thing I thought of. In going over the engine, there appears to be a number of small items like loose screws, disconnected lines, and miscelaneous screws and small parts left on the intake manifold. Could be attributable to some sloppy prior maintenance.