1990 Stanza idles rough, poor acceleration, no power

[BruCru]

This is my sister-in-law's car, trying to help her out.

1990 Stanza KA24E engine, auto trans, 112,000 miles.

The car started running rough so she asked me to help. I installed new plugs, cap, rotor, and wires. While installing the cap I noticed the rubber gasket on under the distributor cap was poorly installed by previous mechanic and was torn. I repaired it with some RTV.

The car ran excellent for two days. Then back to running rough with very little power. I removed the distributor cap and the found that the RTV had come loose and was spread out within the cap. Cleaned this out and installed the cap without the seal (seal is on order from Nissan). Also cleaned off the trigger wheel just in case. There was some oil in the area near the trigger wheel so cleaned that out too. Car still runs rough with no power. Also the engine is very loud and there is a pronounced ticking noise coming from the valve train. The ticking noise was there before the car started to run bad, went away for the two days it ran good, and is now back.

1). Can this missing seal cause problems like this? Wonder if the crankcase is supposed to be relatively well sealed.

2). From experience, it feels like the valve timing is off. I will have to purchase a manual to learn how to check timing. Do these chain-equipped engines have a history of jumping teeth?

Any help you can provide is greatly appreciated.mikeEdit/Delete Message

[DaydreamDrifter]

Here is a link to the KA24E FSM http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/240sx/1989-90/

Did you check the oil for coolant?

[BruCru]

No coolant in the oil. Another interesting fact; the transmission is constantly downshifting to try to get the car moving. Engine has no problems revving to 4500 after a downshift.

Thanks for the link. I'll begin studying.....mike