My MAF fails in like 1 second. Ive cleared the code while driving before and it fails and goes back to SD before the engine dies

 

Driving it fails quickly on mine too. Some reason it's just a start up thing for mine. Always has been.

 

Being that valve covers are easier to get to than the spark plugs I'm going to measure lifter preload first. What the max depth on stock lifters??

 

Probably 0.125" or so. A better ideas is a compression/leakdown test to see if the valve is actually open or not.

 

Compression & leakdown test > measuring preload for the problem you're describing.

As for preload, I find it best to stay between .060 and .090"

 

Well if the valve is open then I won't have compression. Getting that damn fitting in the passenger side of the motor is a mother!! The turbo mani is in the way and those hoses don't like to bend very easy. If preload is over max depth for the lifters then I know the valves are open and by how much. The motor just seems too easy to turn over to have any real compression. I know that no valves are touching pistons though. I rotated everything through after I torqued the rockers. It turned over easy with no binding. I didn't have plugs in it when I did them.

 

So I took the coil packs and harness off the brackets to paint. My son put one back together and put the harness on 180 out. Grrrrrr. Fired right up. He had an old one to copy, but I should have looked at it better.

 

That's why I always stress checking the basics first!

 

Yeah it had that 180 out sound to it. I was like "there is no way it's coil in plug". So I said screw it and pulled out my old set to compare. Sure enough the driver side harness was flopped. Fired up first shot. But just to make myself feel better I checked the preload. .082.

 

Good to hear. Now shoot some video!