My 94 Del Sol d16 I believe (whichever is the single valve) with after market vtec among other upgrades sounds like a lawnmower and accelerates like one too right now. It also smells like gunpowder burning when it shuts off. My first step is to give it a full tune up, spark plugs are looking iffy and two ignition coils came apart when being removed so why the hell not. If I'm moving in the wrong direction or anyone has any insight or other ideas, all is appreciated.

 

Well describe what it's doing. You sure it doesn't sound like a weed wacker?
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sounds a misfire/shitty converter situation. what is "aftermarket vtec"?

 

The alternator may be overcharging the battery.

 

Id guess the coil is cooked

 

Check if the previous owner installed a fart cannon exhaust.

If he did get a decent Vibrant muffler or something else to replace it with, also consider getting a resonator welded in too. Both would help with drone and that obnoxious ricer noise.

Test the alternator, and I'd actually also suggest checking the distributor timing if the spark plugs look really white. If the previous owner tried to advance it without any sort of measurement/tune that could cause some issues.