Thanks very much for the reply. A vacuum leak like that sounds like it very well could be the problem... How were you able to determine that this was the cause, especially since they are so buried behind/under everything?

Did you have the same code come up in your car, and did you have similar symptoms to mine?

How many hours would you estimate for a job like that?

I have decided to put my faith in another indy mechanic... I'm bascially going to tell him that all I want him to do is check for vacuum leaks... that I don't want him to try and diagnose the problem outside of the potential for such leaks. I think mechanics in the past have been lazy on this, I want him to definitively tell me that he is will to bet his life that I don't have a vacuum leak. If we get to that point, maybe I'll let him try to figure out the problem using his own creative thinking... but at $90 - $95/hr, mechanics in the past sure have spent a lot of time "thinking" for me and not enough time solving problems...

lol can you tell I'm bitter?!?