Hey Brian - I just saw this thread. As sort of already stated before:

a. Immediate diagnosis is checking for fuel and spark. If not present, or in insufficient quantity/quality, chase those things.

b. IFF (obscure nerdy acronym, not a typo) all the stuff in a. pans out, THEN worry about the scary stuff (timing chain, cam lobes, etc) and dig deeper with a compression test.


Down to just a blue car now.