I need a couple ideas before sending this car to the yard.
*SES Light came couple times. flooring it would make the get go out. For a sec.
*Light stayed on for about a week, no running issues.
*Car suddenly began sputtering, losing power, dying at lights. The more gas you give it the worse it was-like it couldn't have the gas/misfire.
*removed Cat, checked exhaust, no blockages.
*Can I use a meter to check voltage output from coil packs-its gone through some with previous owner. I only ask because I recently had a van with a bad pack and it pull a hill either.
*There is a hint of exhaust/fuel smell in the cabin, its almost like the engine isn't flowing and its backing up into the engine bay.
*I need some ideas. Would like to save the old beast-it ran perfectly just 1 week ago. Then poof! But I am tired of throwing time and money here. Ideas-thoughts-assumptions welcome.

https://www.gmforum.com/specificatio...cks-**-278820/

you check fuel pressure? has the fuel pump been replaced lately? how about ign stuff, plugs wires etc? how about fuel filter?

Bought a spark tester and all the cyls seem to be firing.
Could a bad 02 sensor cause this much chaos? I mean, actually cause loss of power or a misfire? Guess I need to take that 20.00 Gamble.
Would like to replace the fuel filter too, where might I find that? Fuel line comes out of the firewall.

Fuel filter will either be at the very bottom of the firewall, right by the passenger'* feet, or back by the tank. The lines don't actually to through the firewall, but rather just run up it in an obscure location.

What year is your 88?

under the car in front of the rear wheels. o2s dont normally cause that much trouble. first thing for me on a car that was kind of old would be check the fuel pressure, could have the filter plugged but if thats good driving it you could kind of rule that out. then unplug the maf and see if it runs good, if so its bad. then get into ign stuff. which you pretty much just have to buy if its old

says 95 in his info

Since it is a '95, will be hard retrieving the codes, since it might be OBD 1.5....
...
Running poorly, you do the basics....

Check for spark on all cylinders...check vac line to f/p reg for gas....try running vehicle with MAF disconnected.....check fuel pressure......check for injector pulse on all injectors with a noid light? is vehicle losing coolant?

Like I said, it will be hard finding a scanner/code reader capable of reading codes in this vehicle...would help to know the code turning that light on....

You removed the cat...but did you try to run vehicle with the cat removed or disconnected? Did power return?

My car is actually a 93. And it will not scan anything. Spark test showed no problem. Yesterday I put in a new fuel filter, started up and ran like a champ (30 mile test). took it out today, started and ran great for about 5 mins. Then like someone flipped a switch, went right back to the same old thing. So I am going to check fuel pressure/fp regulator. I am happy to know the engine isn't messed up. But jeez, I am throwing a lot of time and money into an old car. Again, opinions welcome.

Try starting with the MAF disconnected?

Have you tried grounding A to B in the DLC, to flash codes?

What codes do you get when you switch to diagnostic mode? The nice thing about '93 is that it is the last year of full OBD1.