So, the weather got a bit warmer and I finished a couple of things that needed finishing. This means I had a bit of time to spend on the 245 that just wouldn't die. This is the car I picked up for $500 a while ago that got hit by some drunk and that I tried to sell. Nobody bought it, although a couple of people from here looked. (Hi, Klaus!) Since it apparently liked being where it was I started fixing it a bit at a time. Some hammering and plugging a couple of leaks were done in the fall.

Over the course of last week I pulled the intake and replaced the gasket, readjusted the throttle switch, replaced the TB gaskets and the TPS O-ring (that was one petrified piece of rubber) and replaced the injector seals.

This had the effect of making it start real nice and apparently taking care of some or all of the vacuum leaks. Braking does not kill a cold engine any more. Idle is better.

The bad part is that there is still something in the engine compartment making tons of noise (alternator?) and that there was some backfiring on acceleration. Hitting the gas makes it pop a couple of times before it actually accelerates. Noise I don't care about at this point, but the backfiring and the lag between pedal and motion is troubling me.

So, where should I look next?