the noise is not a shriek/squeal, its more like a knocking sound. but its not evident the entire time its (or was) running, only at startup or when you revved up the engine. it sounds like its coming from the passenger side of the motor, where the pulleys are located.

also, as stated before, we had the coil packs checked at autozone and they said they were fine.

i also made sure that the plugs were secure at the coil pack and at the plug itself. im stumped. i cant wait for the fsm to arrive so we can check timing and such.

by the way, thanks for the suggestions guys, all help is greatly appreciated!

About the only way the ignition timing can be off is if the 3x portion of the crank sensor went bad while you were changing the gaskets.
Did you change the plugs yet?
Did you change the intake manifold or just the gaskets?

Knocking on startup= plug wires crossed SOMEWHERE.

yes, i have changed the plugs, and it didnt help any. did i mention it doesnt start up now?

the only thing i changed was the lower intake manifold gaskets, i put in the on aluminum ones that i got from the dealer. i also swapped out the coolant elbows. im wishing now that i only swapped the elbows, because i think i screwed something way up by taking the whole top of the motor off.

we can get a diagnostics check done at a local shop for 50 bucks. hopefully it will tell us exactly what is going on.

we checked the wires like a total of 10 times. on each coil i have which cylinder the plug goes to, so unless i labeled something wrong, the wires are not crossed.

in the event that i do have the coils labeled wrong, would a diagnostics check find that? im kind of skepticle that a diagnostic would tell us anything, as i have never had one done. i guess i kind of look at it like checking the engine light, where it just points you in a direction and hopefully you get it.

do you guys think its worth getting one done?

just got the fsm. after a daignostics, this should help out tremendously. i will keep you guys updated

fsm?

Regarding a diagnostic, if your mechanic uses a Tech II it will report just about any malfunction your Bonne is capable of reporting. Those things will even tell you the RPM of each individual wheel while rolling. Get the idea?

Here'* a pic showing the correct location of the coils, just in case.
Thanks for reminding me that it'* no longer starting. Here'* three things I'd like to see you check before spending money on a scan & maybe towing.
1 - Spark at each of the three front cylinders.
2 - Fuel at the injector rail.
3 - Fuel injector pulse.

yes, fsm (factory service manual) all i want the mechanic to do is get the codes so i will know where to start. now that ive got the fsm, i'll know exactly what to do.

i wish i wouldve got the message a little sooner as i have already had it towed to the shop. :( . it was free though, my father -in-law has triple a, so they'll tow anything he has anywhere for free! at the worst i'll be out 50 bucks for a diagnostic.

so... i'll keep you guys updated on what the mechanic says at the shop. plus you can tell me if he'* giving me a load of bs.

i got my car back yesterday, after leaving it at the shop for what i thought was just going to be a diagnostics test. come to find out, my father-in-law had them fix it, and he even paid for it! while i would have liked to find and correct the issue myself, i didnt get the chance. oh well, i didnt have to pay for it, so i'm happy.

from what i could gather it had something to do with a couple of very dirty fuel injectors. they must've gotten dirty when i sat them down after removing the fuel rail? thats the only way i can think they got dirty.

but anyways, thanks everyone for their input, and read my other post to find out what i discovered when i got the car back!!