Cant solve sluggish problem

[ranismo]

Hey guys, i bought this car from 1st owner. 10 years ago, he did not know what was wrong with it when it didnt want to start, someone told him it needed a new engine, so he put it in his garage, until now. Anyways, it was overheated and resurfaced heads, new gaskets, water pump, etc. Cleaned out fuel tank, new fuel pump, new filter, replaced spark plugs, wires, cap n rotor, starter, alternator, MAF. I replaced alot of things. Car has 118,000 original miles. When i go to start it, starts right up, but when i place it in 1st gear, it wants to bog down while im pressing the gas. It drives, but lacks big time power. I rev engine in neutral, and it seems perfeclty fine, so i know its not the engine. I can't seem to find the problem, ive tried everything. It seems like there is something clogged. Only thing i can think of is that car has stock exhaust and cat (i know, i have no money right now). what do you guys think? I would appreciate any help.

[Klits562]

is it an automatic?Check the timing and check the spark plug wires to make sure they are in the right firing order on the distributor.When the motors running pull each wire from the spark plug individually to make sure each cylinder is firing. When you pull the plug the idle should change a lot, if nothing changes then you know that cylinder isnt firing.also what year is the car and does it have the single cam or twin cam?

[ranismo]

Oh, its a 91 Twin Cam Manual. Hmmm, so maybe the timing still isnt right? It seems like something so simple too. I can't be the MAF can it? Cuz it drives, just lousily sluggish. When i pump on the gas right before i go into each gear, it will burst with power once i let go of the clutch. Oh, and smoke starts coming inside the car, when i do that. Thanks

[Klits562]

check the firing order on the distributor i had the order wrong and it was very very sluggish and when i put it in gear it would bog down and die unless i kept on the gas.If the maf was bad you wouldn't be able to rev past 2500rpm.

Smoke is never good to have inside the car no matter what.... what does it smell like?

[ranismo]

Ok i will check the firing order. thanks. smoke smells like gas. it is the stock exhaust system since 91. guy stopped driving it in 98. Do you think i should change the exhaust cat? Maybe there is a leak.

[Azrial]

A bad cat usually smells like rotten eggs. Or they will just make the car sound really funny. Make sure your spark plugs are gapped correctly as well. Since you will be pulling them out to check if they are firing. Inspect them and see if one is wet. Since you are getting a gas smell you may be flooding it.

[ranismo]

Ok.. Well, first off, i checked compression, timing, spark, gap, firing order, fuel pressure. I switched out the fuel pump (under warranty) because to me, the issue still seemed to be fuel related. fuel pressure was at 40psi engine running. Its supposed to be at 43. It was a little low. Well i figured its ok if its a little off.... come to find out, its not. it has to be at 43psi. I replaced the injectors already. I always try to figure things out myself, but i was so stumped that i asked my mechanic dad. he said to clean out the fuel lines, especially since it was sitting with same fuel for 10 years. So i disconnected both lines from fuel pump, and both lines from engine bay. Placed a white towel on one end by the fuel pump, specifically the send one that goes to fuel filter, then blew some air through the fuel pump side of the line... And bam! a whole bunch of junk came out! so all it was is that the fuel line was clogged and dirty. Such a simple solution, but yet so effective. Engine responded waaay better. It still didnt pick up very fast, like it was still clogged. My dad said that the fuel injectors might be dirty now, since ive been running it with dirty fuel lines. So i slapped on some new rubber, got an alignment, put in a flowmaster 60 series, and i am ready to roll. Replacing the muffler did the 240 well, since it was the stock muffler and had a hole in it. It sounds very deep and throaty. So next think is to replace fuel injectors again. I hope my experience has helped some of you out. Thanks for all your input!