Hi guys,

Couple of questions:

I have a 2004 6 speed with a new engine installed in 2009. Recently my car has been lacking in power between 4000-5000 RPM and above 7000 RPM. Between 4000-5000, it feels like it's stuttering a bit. Above 7000 it feels like it stops accelerating. I haven't been hitting the red line lately (last couple of years) so it probably needs a good long run to clean it out.

Today when I got to 8000 RPM, I felt the "hitting the wall" feeling with the lack of power and noticed the "radiator light" and "engine light" come on. The "engine light" flashed on/off for about a minute and then went off. The "radiator light" has been coming on and off the last few years and I know some people said the coolant level sensor is often bad.

When I got home, I noticed the battery terminals are full of white crud.

Question 1: Does the ECU go into limp mode when the "radiator light" come on? Does the ECU think the car is low on coolant and thus cut back on the power?

Question 2: Can the dirty battery terminals account for the acceleration gaps?

Question 3: Does anybody in the Vancouver lower mainland area have a code reader to see what that check engine light was about?

Thanks for your input.

 

Sounds like the coils and plugs , how much mileage since youve last change them? The rad light wouldnt cause this neither would the battery terminals but id clean the terminals anyway so you dont run into starting issues

 

1) No. As a number of people have stated, the senor is likely faulty. Specifically if it will come on for one second and off the next. Just be sure to watch your temps incase something really does go wrong.

2) They're more likely to prevent you from starting than anything else.

3) Can't help you there, but usually when you get the flashing ECU light it's a sign of misfires. So as the other guy said, it's likely coils or sparkplugs which should be changed on a regular basis with this car.

4) Other fun possible issues. A clogged cat!

G'luck.

 

Most auto parts stores can check your codes for free if you're near one.

Ignoring a warning light "for a few years" is generally not a good idea.

 

Agreed with Rev. Go through the process of elimination and take the cheapest route.

Check your cat to see if its clogged. If it is, gut it or get a new one,
Then Reassess.

Check your coils & spark plugs,
Then Reassess.

 

Thanks for your input guys.

I do intend in cleaning the battery terminals, air filter, etc. Just gotta find time; maybe today.

@redmetalrx8: I've put less than 20K Km on the engine since it was swapped. I haven't driven much the last few years due to health problems. Mostly (95%) city driving.

@BigCajun: I wouldn't ignore a serious warning light, but I knew the radiator light was just due to a bad sensor in the coolant bottle that a lot of people seem to have.

 

No worries then.
However, I'm not sure, but seems like there was some discussion recently about bad coolant sensors possibly messing with the ECU.
I could be thinking of something else, though.
Might want to do a quick search on that, just in case.