Well, I finally I finished wiring it. I ended up making a new yellow starter trigger wire, eliminated the old original ballast and ran a new brown wire to the new ballast for a 'cranking 12v', ran a new blue 12v run wire to the VR and one from there to the 'run' side of the ballast. It really cleaned up the engine bay. I crimped, soldered and heat shrinked all the connections and it turned out pretty clean. I didn't use any butt connectors and used all factory colors, so trouble shooting down the road will be easier. All I have left to do is buy some sort of braided loom or tape to cover the wiring. Is there a product you guys recommend??? I just hate electrical tape because it just makes a goopy mess.

More importantly, it fired right up and seemed to idle a lot smoother now that the coil (+) wire is only going through one ballast and the ECU is seeing a true 12V. Of course, the popping and voltage drop at higher rpms was gone as well.

After taking it for a spin, everything seems to be working as expected. It gets a little warm for my liking, but that may be cured by a simple thermostat change. It seems a little gutless as well, but I'm sure bolting on the set of Dougs headers I have and the RPM Air Gap will help; as will a good convertor.

Thanks again for the help guys. I really do appreciate it. This has been such a great learning experience.