Ok, took the big manual....
One step says unplug MAF.
Once I did that car actually started and ran for like 5 seconds then died.

 

Okay....
got the car running....
Replaced the oil pressure switch.
Took some cranking but she fired..
Since the oil pressure switch is a backup for the fuel pump relay, as far as I understand, it must be related to that.

Car stays running if I keep my foot on the throttle. If I take it off it drops to a low rpm and dies.

Just to keep her running and from looking at it, I have to turn out that little screw on the throttle body and open the butterflies a bit. I assume it works just like motorcycles. And I would assume I have to set the tps again after doing that?
I also replaced the IAC but saw that there is a procedure afterwards, which I haven't done yet.

Another step closer...

 

you may want to check your iac valve, that's what controls your idle. if you can try and get a scan tool that capable of reading your iac steps.

 

Yes, I will do that next.
i found a step by step procedure on the forum and will go through them.
So not play with butterflies for now and just focus on IAC?

 

Man, replacing that oil pressure sensor was a pain. Had to pull distributor which then meant I had to set engine TDC again etc etc.
​​​​​​Hot Rod Roy's tip with distributor initial setting is gold...

 

It's the little things that get to you when working on cars.

 

Ok.
was a struggle to do all by myself but figured it out.
Got car running, barely, and got idle up. Engine started pinging. Timing was way off. Set it right, to 8, which then increased the idle.
So I had to go through the IAC adjustment all over.

Car is better now, idles by itself etc. Still not too happy bit it's a start. Idle is at 7k steady. Still too high but I'll take it for now.
Here a quick video

 

Oil pressure shows 70-80.
Seems a bit high, not sure if this will settle.

Anyway, I'll start her up once in a while to get things moving again. Been months.
No leaks so far

 

Ok, cold starts are an issue.
Took some cranking and once running the rpm were all over the place. 10, up to 25, down to 3, up again to 7 for a few seconds, 20, down to 4 etc.
Might be 9th injector related and need to check that out.
But then again, it's not cold out, have around 70 today. Just the engine is.

Think it's a big vacuum leak, I can hear the hissing. Just difficult to pinpoint.

 

Ok, first... It's not a good idea to smoke cigars at 7am. Kinda dizzy now.
anyway, found a massive vacuum leak.
Hooked up a hose, blew cigar smoke in and have smoke coming out on driver side lower runner area. Still can't see where exactly it is coming from.
I know the gaskets are in there correctly because they have the sides stamped on. Maybe from 9th injector.

So i sprayed some soapy water in that area and can see movement coming from 9th injector.

glove with one finger cut off to feed hose. Works like a charm.


​​​​​​

 

I think I found the issue. This part is bent which most likely made the injector sit crooked...
I'll straighten it and put it back in and we'll see how that goes.

 

Bent back into shape and installed. Gentle blow and got pressure. So far so good.
added tiny amount of sealant. Will let dry and start in morning.
Will report back...

 

Haven't started car yet. Getting a longer positive battery terminal bolt today and didn't feel like playing with battery now and again later today.

In the meantime I started ​​the door panels.
Driver side was broken in several places but I found a good used one.
Cleaned it up and swapped over good parts. Carpet is on but still drying. Next is passenger side.

 

While you have it off, I HIGHLY recommend that you go ahead and paint the vinyl unless it's in very good shape. It will make it look brand new. SEM Landau Black paint, you can get it at O'Reilly's and it's a perfect match to factory vinyl.

 

I was actually thinking about this but haven't researched yet. Thanks for the tip. Vinyl is still good, just some paint chipping in two corners that nobody will notice without looking for it.

​​​​​​
edit: Just ordered a can... Might as well do it.

​​​​​​

 

Just picked up my new tires.
Wheels are new to me and will look nice on the car.

 

Rear shocks replaced. They were dead as well.
New wheels put on.




Also started her for first time since I fixed the vacuum leak...


After warming up she idles at a steady 900.
I will bring down the idle a bit and redo the IAC and TPS.

After that I think she needs fresh oil and a good drive.
I'll see how she behaves afterwards.

Edit: still have a small vacuum leak somewhere in the tps area. Definitely not the two hoses going into the throttle body. I capped them off and still see smoke (I just cigarette smoked into the system).
I tried an unlit torch in that area but did not see an rpm increase.
I guess the search goes on...
​​​​​

 

Leak seems to be from the throttle shaft. See smoke from where tps is and on other side.
Pulling TB now and see what the manual says regarding parts etc.

Update: I ordered a new throttle body this morning.

 

New throttle body is in. I got a BKK 52mm, same size as the one I pulled.
Installed it, started car and hear loud air hissing. The accordion looking plastic piece was not tight because the new TB has a slightly smaller diameter. For now I put some sealant around it as a temporary fix.
Haven't started the car after to let it dry.

I did however do a cigar smoke test again. The new throttle body is also leaking air through the throttle shaft ends. Got smoke out of return spring and TPS side.
I am not sure if that's normal or not, any advice there would be appreciated. I will use some propane gas tomorrow in tht area to see if it increases idle.

The car itself idles ok. It's still a bit jumpy but it's all with 200rpm. I am trying to set the timing to 6 btdc, it is currently at 8. Not sure if it makes much of a difference but can't hurt to try.

The next thing I noticed is that when I give it a lot of thottle, it almost stalls before catching on and rpm go up.
If I increase throttle slowly I do not have this issue.
Tps is set to 0.54, I even replaced it to be sure.

I do know that it already did that when I drove the car home months ago. But it's something to check and figure out because it makes driving stick shift a bit more challenging, especially when leaving a traffic light/sign.

I still haven't driven the car yet. Wanted to get it as close to running smoothly as possible.

 

This morning I thought 'screw it' and took her out for 15 mins. OMG this was so much fun...
Ran well, was responsive. Just need to fix a few more things as mentioned in the above post. But she's definitely a runner.

Gonna take her to my friend's shop next week to lift her up and see what's going on underneath. I noticed the left rear wheel has a tiny bit of side to side play. The other side is fine. Also want to replace all fluids and probably run an additional ground cable from engine to frame. Easier done when the car is up in the air.