cool, thanks a lot for the info!

i ran techron through a quarter of a tank, changed the oil, cleaned the oil and grit out of the sparkplug holes, and cleaned the connects. the car seems to run a decent bit better, not perfect yet...

the big difference though, was the drywall screw i hammered in between the catalytic converter and its loose heat shield. that made the car stop rattling at idle!

now there is still a slight rattle, and it sounds like its coming from the front of the block, from in the valve cover when running with the oil cap off... how do i check the chain/tensioner?

the car also "clunks" a bit when going from forward to reverse. how do i actually check the flex disks? just look for cracks/visible damage?

next on the list though, is "fixing" the cat. when running, the thing sounds like a baked potato from the microwave, you can hear hissing from the gasses struggling to rush through...