Fixed some of the problem... And reanalyzed more
 

Okay, this morning actually felt productive. The first wrench I picked up was 10 mm. I tightened everything again.

As I was going over a few things I noticed something. The wire or tube or whatver Its called going to the heater control valve was pulled UNDER the starter cables and it was holding the valve in the wrong position. I was able to unhook the wire, pull it back through the RIGHT way and reattach it to the valve.

When I started the car, it actually started first try and ran for 5 minutes...it idled a little rough, but what do you expect with. 25 year old car.

I drove it around the block and noticed the same loss of power at 2800 rpms.....but then I learned something.

If I accelerate hard it starts shaking around 2800 rpms. When I say shaking, it's kind of like if you start in first and let off the clutch too fast and the car kind of "bounces"...hopefully you guys know what I'm talking about...lol.

So when I say hard acceleration, I mean the pedal is more than 3/4 depressed. So in any gear if I'm accelerating "hard" the car bounces And sputters around 2800 rpm....

HOWEVER (this is what I learned today) the car will easily accelerate past 2800 rpm in any gear AS LONG AS I don't go past what I call "the sweet spot" with the gas pedal...

If the car is above 2800 rpms in any gear and I suddenly depress the pedal it immediately starts sputtering....the car also died on me again at a red light after sitting for a minute or two...but that was the only time. When I pulled into the driveway, it continued running.

Does this narrow down the problem at all? With the car only sputtering and bouncing when I depres the gas pedal further? Like I said, I cab easily get up to 3500-3800 with okay acceleration as long as I don't press the pedal to far down...

So as of right now I CAN drive the car, I just can't accelerate very quickly...lol

First, try unplugging the o2 sensor to rule it out. Check that the TPS is working correctly. If the TPS is working, does it instantly go away when you floor the gas? If it doesn't, then either the WOT switch isn't working, or the problem is a little more obscure. The WOT switch will put the DME into open loop mode running off of a 1D fuel map, meaning it ignores the AFM signal and the o2 sensor. If it shapes up whenever you hit the WOT switch, the AFM resistor track could be dirty or worn out, or the wiring to it is bad somewhere. The voltage signal varied by the AFM position that goes back to the DME is the life line for correct fuel metering at idle and part throttle. If it glitches or jumps around at all, the DME can get confused, or simply doesn't inject the correct omount of fuel.
There's a vid on youtube on how to fix it, and/or you could go here. Air Flow Meter (AFM) - from "The 944 Motronic DME" by FR Wilk

Vacuum leaks are another killer if the AFM checks out. Check for oil all over the inside of the throttle body.

How do I check the tps? And since I'm a noob, I have no idea what WOT is..haha

Wide Open Throttle. :D

The throttle position sensor on the NA has two switches. One to signal closed throttle and one to signal wide open throttle. The unit is bolted to the bottom of the throttle body and is pretty hard to access without taking the throttle body off. The other way to check which is better since you'll know whether the wiring is good as well is at the DME connector itself.

Throttle Position Switch - Information, Troubleshooting, Replacement, and Adjustment

http://www.the944.com/connector.htm

Test between #2 and (pretty sure) any ground on the connector. Should read less than 1 ohm when the throttle is closed. It should repeat itself when the throttle is openned and then closed again. Same check between ground and #3 for WOT. It should be low resistance and repeat itself reliably.

You should go in your control panel and put your car info in your signature line so people know what you're dealing with, since there's a bunch of minor and major differences between pre 85.5 NA's and post 85.5.

Okay, I'm going to test that stuff Tuesday morning. (I work all day tomorrow.) Actually I may go unplug the o2 sensor now...as that's extremely easy. I really think it has to be a switch or something gone bad. It doesn't make sense for an engine to run fine, be off for 2 months and then have all of these problems with no wear and tear on the engine.

What's also really weird is this. During the day it seems to run a LOT better than at night...lol. ToDAY I drove it all over the place and it didn't die ONCE...Tonight, I couldn't get it to stay running in the driveway...and it died 3 times WHILE I was driving when I let off the gas pedal quickly.

It just seems like there's NO response to me pushing the throttle when I first start the car. However, when I look at Clarks Garage I am having most of the symptoms of a bad TPS.

1 Engine cuts out to an idle condition during acceleration
2 Poor power at various RPMs (various throttle positions)
3 Stumble during acceleration

also, what do you classify a "misfire"

Thanks,

Matt

Educated guess.
 

Hmmmm. If it behaves UNTIL you want power and refuses to give it to you past a certain point...(besides what has been mentioned) I am going to throw out Fuel filter, crimped line, bad FP connection or poor relay connection.

What I am getting at is fuel starvation past a certain flow rate. Just an idea. Have you cleaned the screen and done the Fuel filter (such a FUN job) lately?

Might be good to rule out before you crack open your TPS.

As always...Check grounds, bat connections, alternator output. battery. you know the drill.

There have been recent posts with the same problem with the MAF. Look up their posts. There is a resistor band within the MAF and over the years the part of the band is worn out. There is a good chance that the position of the gas pedal giving you the problem is the worn part of the resistor strip.

Someone on here put up a nice youtube video to repair or rebuild the MAF. It looks rather simple and many people have had great results from it. It is simply a matter of adjusting the needle that rides on the resistor strip to an area of the strip that is not worn.