Nigerian naira
What causes a car to lose power when accelerating
What causes a car to lose power when accelerating
What causes a car to lose power when accelerating
Most vehicles are developed to produce maximum power when accelerating to make sure the engine delivers the required speed. Because of this, when your vehicle loses power when accelerating, then it’s something to worry about.
Note that there are other things that can cause power loss, which ranges from issues with the engine and its components to an exhaust problem. Today, we will show you what causes a car to lose power when accelerating and some possible solutions.
Here are what causes a car to lose power when accelerating
Remember that there are a few different causes between gas and diesel engines. However, below are what causes a car to lose power when accelerating:
- A Low Compression (Gas & Diesel Engine)
For any car engine to function well and provide adequate power, there must be good cylinder compression throughout the combustion process. But if the compression is low, then the power of the engine will below. A low cylinder compression diagnose is the next step toward a solution.
- A Clogged Fuel Filter (Gas & Diesel Engine)
Your fuel filter is located between the fuel injectors and the fuel pump. Your fuel filter is responsible to screen the gasoline for any impurities which may exist in it. Whenever the fuel pump sends the gasoline into the engine, those impurities won’t be there.
If this happens, the engine will eventually lose its power and the overall functionality of the vehicle will reduce. The solution here is to replace the fuel filter.
A Bad Air Filter (Gas & Diesel Engine)
Before air can enter the chamber, it must pass through an air filter that screens out bugs, debris, etc. Once these impurities get into the engine, they could cause severe damage.
Replacing the air filter should be the best solution.
A Clogged Exhaust Pipe
We have two filters in an exhaust system which are the muffler and the catalytic converter. Catalyst converter is responsible for cutting down the amount of pollution generated from the exhaust gasses.
So if the exhaust pipe or any of its filters were to get clogged, it would weaken the functionality of the engine by decreasing its power and making the vehicle drive slow when accelerating.
The MAF Sensor Malfunction
Mass Airflow Sensor duty is to measure the amount of air that flows inside the engine and report this amount to the Powertrain Control Module. Meaning, if there were to be some sort of malfunction with the sensors, then the engine’s performance would decrease.
A Bad Fuel Injectors
The fuel injectors are vital management component of a vehicle’s engine. It’s located within the fuel system of a vehicle and its duty is to spray fuel inside of the engine.
Its the computer of the engine that controls the fuel injector and the specific time intervals it does its job. This way, the engine can perform the best that it can under different driving conditions. When this happens, engine performance problems will occur since the fuel injector is a crucial part of the fuel system.
- A Bad or Weak Fuel Pump
It’s the duty of a fuel pump to take fuel from the gas tank and transfer it into the vehicle’s engine. So if something goes wrong with the fuel pump, then there would be acceleration problems with the vehicle. This would make the performance of the engine to ultimately be jeopardized.
A Bad Spark Plugs
Your spark plugs are a vital component of a vehicle’s internal combustion motor. Every time the ignition coil sends an electrical signal to the spark plugs, signals are transmitted to the combustion chamber. This is to make air and fuel mixture to be ignited by an electric spark.
Meaning that when spark plugs fail, then the engine’s performance would diminish and eventually fail altogether.
- A Bad Ignition Coil
Your car ignition coils serve as an electronic engine management element that is responsible for converting the 12 volts of power generated by the vehicle into 20,000 volts.
So if the ignition coil fails, then the vehicle would be unable to accelerate and would lose its power.
Conclusion on what causes a car to lose power when accelerating
Remember that a vehicle that loses power when accelerating can be disappointing. This means your vehicle will not provide the speed that you need. However, this can make your driving boring and can also put your life and other road users in significant danger.
Even as dangerous and annoying as this issue might be, the good news is that it is easy to fix. You only need to identify first the underlying causes. Sometimes these causes will range from faulty components such as spark plug and fuel injectors to a clogged exhaust pipe. So ensure you get a professional mechanic to easily fix the problem.