Please help engine won't start (long)

[Jay Hassinger]

> My car won't start -- the engine cranks but will not
> run steadily.  The only way I can get it to run is by
> flooring the gas pedal while I crank it, which allows
> the engine to run rough.  I can modulate the pedal and
> keep it running but I can't get it to idle or run
> smoothly at any speed.

What RPM does the car run at?  What I'm getting at is this.  Does it just "hang"
around 1100rpm running like it's on 3.5 cylinders no matter if you floor it or
put it at half throttle?  I had a distrubutor go bad on my 91 and I went *nuts*
trying to diagnose it.  It had those symptoms.  Turns out somehow a coil spark
got sent back into the distributor housing and shorted something out.  I swapped
the distributor and voila...ran like a champ.

If not, it sounds like a bad MAF possibly.  Try unplugging the MAF and see if it
goes into "limp" mode or improves at all.

Good luck.

Jay Hassinger
Today it's purple, tomorrow...Orange Crush?