So I just picked up my first turbo 7...87 all original with 71xxx miles on it. Test drove it ran fine, but on the trip home (hour and a half away) it was a different story. Started losing power then it died, popped the hood and the main cat was glowing red. Let it cool down fired it back up made it down the road (almost) to a buddy's house (had to get towed) glowing exhaust again. Put the car on the lift pulled the pipe between the cats...hollowed out the main cat thinking it was clogged, put new gaskets fired it up and it didn't want to idle...decided to try and make it home but failed....like I said I'm new to the turbo setups and any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

Check for spark on the leading plugs. A dead leading coil pack could will make the exhaust glow and the car run pretty poorly. Not a common failure, but given the age of the car they are starting to fail

 

Might check out your fuel system as well. Check for pressure, get your injectors cleaned and flow tested.

 

The car had been kept in a aircraft hanger for the last 10+ years, just started and run every so often, also he had aviation fuel in it...

 

Check for severely retarded timing or mis-aligned CAS.

 

switched plug wires?

 

Aviation fuel? As in ridiculously high octane?

Flush the whole fuel system and have the injectors tested.

Sounds like an injector is locked open or otherwise sticking.

 

Ok. So I changed the plugs and wires out (which the old ones looked fairly new) and he had the trailing and leading backwards, changed the fuel filter put fresh gas, adjusted the distributor. Finally got it to start back up drove it around the block and didn't make it back...had to tow it...temp started getting pretty hot, I think the fan clutch is out....I just don't see why the first hour of the drive home it was running fine and then it all went to sh*t?