Okay, here is the deal, I've got a 97 Contour GL with the 2.0 zetec that blew a head gasket(mind you, I've never heard this thing run... got it for 200 bucks and it's been sitting since about 05'. Had water in the oil and everything. Took alot of effort just to break the pistons and crank lose so that I could turn it over by hand or with the starter). After ripping it all apart and replacing all the gaskets as well as the water pump and timing belt(95% sure the timing is set correctly), and also fixing a problem with it getting no spark(was a disconnected wiring harness under the dash at the fuse box), I can finally fire her up. She pops right off... but then dies immediately. Not sure what is wrong here. Like I said, it starts right up, but the idle tends to be a bit high, and then after about 2 seconds just bogs down and dies. I can keep her running if I give her enough gas, but I'm talking like tacking her to about 3 grand. If I just try to feather the gas she just dies out. I was wondering if it were possible that I could have screwed up the intake gasket when torquing it down(would possibly explain the higher idle upon starting?), or could i have screwed up the timing? Would it start at all if the timing was off? It seems like it would run well if it would just STAY running. Any ideas anyone has would be so much appreciated. Thanks for reading and for your time.
Randy
Randy