TBI is catching fire everytime I try to start the car. Timing light says timing is right on. New gas, no error code on the OBD1. Any ideas?

If i was you i would check for a short near the injecter units, the guy i bought the car from had the injectors catch faire and melted them a bit. They still work but they could do it again so if i was you I would check the wiring make sure you dont have a short nearby with the injecters if its not that then it might be a bent of broken push rod or a broken intake rocker stays open when the spark ignite the piston. Not sure let me know how things are coming along. Also is the fire coming from on top of the bti unit or from the ports of the throttle unit?-RevZ28

Well hopefully it isn't a problem with the rockers or push rods as this is a brand new 305 (5.0L) I'm putting in. My original engine smoked like a demon. I'll check for a short this evening. Thanks!

If its a brand new motor, you could have put the camshaft in 180deg off.

Your balancer may have slipped as well. Get the motor to #1 TDC power stroke and make sure that all the valves are in the right position and set the timing from there.

If you just dropped in the distributor, it sounds like its 180* out, pull the dissy out again, turn it 180* and put it back in, then set your timing.

Thanks for all the help. My distributor was 180 off.