i'm back. fixed the fuel problems. have proper pressure and good flow but 1.7 d-jet from hell wont start now. have 12 volts at the coil and i think all the grounds and connections are good. put a wire in the spark plug wire ( as an extension) to check for a spark. saw a small one once but then it was gone. is there a better method and where do i go from here?

Don't quote me on this, but I'm pretty sure when you're checking the spark, you remove the sparkplug, plug it back into the plug wire. You'll ground the edge of the threads to the block or other ground, then crank the car. That should show you spark from the actual plug electrode.

o.k have a spark. points seem o.k saw them open and close and spark. but still not starting. tried spraying starter fluid nothing. pumped the gas 5 times out of frustration and didnt smell gas in the cockpit like usual. am i back to a fuel problem? fuel guage at the rail takes about 10 seconds to get up to 31 psi and stays there after i turn off the pump. i'm lost.

Look for simple stuff first like electrical connectors that may be loose or were knocked loose during repairs. You should also test all the electrical relays on the relay board (well mostly the FI one), put them on your headlight motors and see if there is any defective one.