I'm going insane over here! I can't eat or sleep! I don't know what to do! As most of you know my baby is a 1988 5.0 EFI Bird with about 120k on her. She has new tires, front and back brakes, rear shocks, front struts, water pump, alternator, serpintine belt, coil, TP sensor, EGR valve and sensor, idler controle sensor, engine coolant sensor, A true dual exaust conversion, intake manifold gasket, valve cover gaskets, PCV valve, and as of the other night a tune up with top of the line parts, (v-power plugs, Blue streak cap and rotor, Fram air filter and fuel filter, 7.5mm plug wires, and a PCV valve.)<br>To explain the start of her illness, right before, or right after I did the dual exaust on her, I did the valve cover gaskets, and to do so, I had to remove the intake manifold a little. Not a problem, I did the valve cover gaskets, and then put a new gasket on the intake and torqued it down... I wasn't sure of the torque specs at the time, so I went at about 32...35lbs. (I later found that it only should've been 28lbs...) But right around that time, she started to hic-up under regular accaleration. The check engine light would come on, up until about 2500 to 3000 RPM. Then the light would go off, but a strange rattly, clickity clickity sound would happen... I thought bad cat at first, but I just put two new ones on with the duals... So a shop told me the TP sensor, and EGR valve and EGR sensor needed to be changed. I let them do the TP sensor, and then I did the EGR valve and sensor myself. The check engine light went out, and the noise stopped, (they told me that it was spark-nock...) But the hic-ups only continued to get worse. A guy suggested I give her a tune up since it had been about 8 months. After I did that, the hic-ups got 110% worse, to the point of not being driveable. She felt like a roller coaster does only right before the fun part... So a guy suggests the idle controle sensor, and another guy suggests the Temp sensor, so I get those, and change them, but she is still barely alive... I'm running out of money, and I'm pulling my hair out beating my head against her hood begging her to get better... I don't know what to look for as the problem any more, I don't know how to make her better! Please! You gotta help me, I'm scared...

FIRST THING TO LOOK FOR IS VACUUM LEAKS. It sounds like you forgot to reinstall them or one is broken. check all the vacuum lines on the intake. Then check the seal on the intake manifold if you have the smallest leak you are pulling in air after the maf and that is throwing the computer air/fuel mixture off. did you pull the didstributer out at all or loosen it? your timing may be off by a few degrees (retarted by the sound of it) it may need to be advanced. get a timing light and test that too if you removed it. a good way to check for vacuum leaks is to take a piece of hose put it to your ear and run it around the intake base gasket and upper intake gasket. you can localize the sucking noise better if that is it.<br><br>just some no expense ideas to try<br><br>Later Black_thunder

Hey man, don't trip out just yet. IF, your car is a mass air mettered car, then take apart the mass air meter and check to see if the sensing elements are dirty. If they are then just spray them with some electrical parts cleaner and put it back together, then it should run fine. BE CAREFUL, when doing this to avoid damaging the elements. Good luck