Not necessarily. Remember this thread starting with a complaint of weak spark. I still believe it prudent to check the voltage at the bat terminal just to make sure he doesn't have a bad ignition switch.
I've had my car sit in the garage for two years in between starts and the gas was still "good".
But, I tend to agree that the timing chain is suspect. If it were my car, I would pull the timing chain cover just to visually check it. The engine has a lot of miles on it.
Yeah, but this car hasn't been sitting. It's his daily driver. There was a point made last page that when he tried burning some of the gas from the car it burned with what the OP believes to be more smoke than usual for gas. That could indicate something in the gas that shouldn't be there like diesel. However, that could cause some drivability issues. But I've driven cars from the same era with diesel in the gas and not had this much trouble. So I agree that the chain does need to be checked.
By BAT terminal you mean the power lead at the distributor, right? That's another good idea.
