What's wrong with my car now?

Tiny
DUDENAMEDRIC
  • MEMBER
  • 1999 MAZDA PROTEGE
  • 4 CYL
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 136,000 MILES
I've had a squeal in my belt for months, but no money to get it fixed. About 3 weeks ago, the battery light began coming on. Again, no money to do anything about it. So, about 10 days ago, I was driving home (about 3 miles total trip), and the car seemed to be accelerating very poorly and all the lights on the dash were dimming and brightening. I got it home, but checked it later and it was dead. I had my brother come by and look at it the next day, and found that the ignition coils had gone bad and were sparking. As a result, the alternator was burned out. So my brother fronted me the money to get a new alternator, new ignition coils, and new belts. All were replaced, battery was charged, and I was back on the road. Now, however, the car jumps and accelerates even slower. It seems it takes about 5 seconds to go from 0-10mph, and the RPMs go up to about 3 with a steady climb unless I ease off the gas. Also, at about 45mph it starts jumping every few seconds. Can anybody tell me what the deal is? My own theory is that I need new spark plugs and wires. I replaced them about 7 months ago, but I was wondering if the ignition coils going bad may have caused the wires and plugs to go bad as well. Also, the EGR valve was replaced before I bought the car. I guess there was a recall on them and the previous owner had it replaced. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Wednesday, October 19th, 2011 AT 3:11 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
MHPAUTOS
  • MECHANIC
  • 31,937 POSTS
The coils will not cause the plugs and leads to fail, but they may be well due for replacement anyway, also fit a new air & fuel filter and check for any unresolved fault codes, most larger parts stores will do free scans.
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Friday, October 28th, 2011 AT 8:36 AM

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