5500 RPM power dropoff. Help Please!
 

I have a 92 hatch 5speed. With no mods. and about 120,000 miles on it.

I am having a problem when the car gets to about 5500 RPM it starts to fall on its face (at least in the first three gears), I can stand on it all day @ 6100 RPm and it won't go any further. and the car idles rough and tries to stall once you engage the clutch to go to stop.

I have set timing, replaced cap, rotor, wires, plugs, o2 sensor, fuel filter.
I have cleaned to TB,
pulled the cat to check for clogs, it is clear.
replaced a cracked pcv (pvc) hose, tightend a lose vacume line. (right under where the stock intake runs into the TB)
cleaned the MAF with "lectromotive" spray.
I don't have any error codes being thrown from the ecu.
the fuel pump is putting out more pressure than it is supposed to (I don't think the gauge is acuruate{40psi +-5}]
compresion tested the motor (160 to 175)
The air cleaner is okay.
replaced a bad ground batt cable.

A little history

The car was a one owner car when I bought it a couple months ago.

The car had a blown head gasket before I bought it. The head was planed and appers to have been repared correctly. Also the speed will jump 10 to 20 MPH when cruising at a constant speed, as well as being about 20 MPH off (high). The starter sometimes wont engage (bad clutch switch?} and the timing chain guide is rattling under the valve cover.

Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. I am running out of Ideas. I am thinking maybe the throttle isn't opening all the way or maybe a vacume leake? Please help. I am about to pull my hair out, swap the motor(damn! not enough money) or sell the MF.

For some reason I think you car is out of timing!,I think the timing chain needs to be put back on timing ,It might be wrong but js giving u something to work with since I have a friend in Acura that have the same problem ,the difference was the the car could hardly go over 2,500rpm-5,000rpm ,but it could accelerate past that almost normally.

When we timed it, my friend couldnt get it to go to 20 btdc. he could get 19 of 10 (we left it at 19). If the chain is off, that would exsplaine why we couldn't get it set at 20. Is 20 right? The chiltens book said 20, but the guy at the parts store said it was suposed to be at 15 or something near there.

I really don't feel like tearing the timing stuff off, but I might as well do the chain while I'm in there since it (or the guid) is loose.

According to the FSM and l2aine ,the timing is supposed to be at 20 degrees ...ask him he might be able to help out better on this since he got some more hands on this deparment :rolleyes:

if im not mistaking. i ahve heard of something like this before. excpet i tihnk it was 6500 rpm. i was told by some one to shift about 6500rpm's because the 240 motor losses power after that. i could be totally wrong but i thought i read that on here. i know it doesnt help your problem at all, but it something do with it anyway

Thanks.