1990 Lincoln Town Car

Usually not. Only Chrysler has been able to make an engine run right with just a MAP sensor but the engine will still start and run when it is defective. The clue is the engine will run, (poorly), as long as the gas pedal is moving up or down.

Other brands of cars use a mass air flow sensor to measure the weight of the air entering the engine. Those cause a lot of running problems including stalling. There could be a no-start if the fresh air tube is disconnected from it. If your engine doesn't start or run, first check for spark and fuel pressure. If you have spark but no fuel pressure, check the inertia switch to see if it needs to be reset.

Do you have fuel pressure? Check to be sure the fuel pump is running.

You have a pickup coil inside the distributor. If that failed or if there was corrosion on the electrical connector, you wouldn't have spark.

If you have spark and adding fuel doesn't work, you might suspect a jumped timing chain. Be sure the spark is present at the plug wires too, not just at the coil wire.