My Car Feels Sluggish — What Could Be The Cause?

Does your car fail to pick up speed even when you've floored the pedal? It is an indicator of a mechanical problem. Unless you see a mechanic immediately, you should brace yourself for harm. Any vehicle that is well-tuned and whose system receives fuel amply should pick up speed as expected. However, sluggish acceleration could be an indicator of one of the following mechanical malfunctions:

Dirty Air Filter

Your car engine's air filters trap debris from the air that enters the engine for efficient combustion. When the air filters are clogged, the air is insufficient in the engine, and the air-to-fuel ratio is incorrect. The condition results in improper combustion and annihilates acceleration.

Misaligned Timing Belt

An engine's timing belt is linked to the camshaft and crankshaft and helps to manage the engine's pistons. A slight misalignment of the timing belt causes acceleration problems because of improper timing of the opening and closing of the engine's valves.

Troubles in the Fuel System

The fuel system is the heart of a car's engine because it is the major contributor to the spark that engineers the movement of the crankshaft in your engine. A slight problem with the fuel system would starve the engine of fuel and jeopardize the efficiency of the car's acceleration. The following are the causes of troubles in a car's fuel system:

1. Dirty fuel filter: a fuel filter's function is to screen out dirt and rust particles from the fuel. A dirty filter would result in less fuel getting into the engine and sluggish acceleration.

2. Clogged/faulty fuel injector: fuel filters have tiny passages that deliver fuel into the combustion chamber. Over time the passages become clogged by debris and suppress the fuel delivery resulting in an overall sluggish acceleration.

3. Faulty fuel pump: an efficient car's fuel pump pumps fuel from the gas tank to the engine. However, when the fuel pump is faulty, the fuel supply to the fuel injectors is jeopardized and causes sputtering and an eventual sluggish acceleration.

Negligence of your car's trouble indicators is the genesis of more mechanical damage. A mechanic's repair shop should be next in your itinerary whenever you feel a slight malfunction in your car. If you need vehicle repair or diagnostics, give Nortex Lube and Tune a call today!