Acceleration problem

CALEBCOURIER

MEMBER
2005 KIA RIO
1.6L
4 CYL
FWD
MANUAL
150,000 MILES

Hello,

Randomly, when I try to accelerate the engine will bog down in every gear and drop about 5 mph before picking back up again just to bog down at the same speed it did before. For example 1st gear will bog down around 10 mph, 2nd gear at 20 mph, 3rd at 30 mph and so on so that the maximum speed I can reach is 50 mph in 5th gear. This will continue for a day or two and then suddenly correct itself and the car will run fine for about 6 months before it happens again. I took it to the mechanic shop I typically go to and when they hooked it up to do diagnostics they said the only codes shown had to deal with the computer whereas the problem itself seems to be something in the exhaust system such as a faulty cat. Converter or fuel filter.

Has anyone else had this problem? If so have you been able to fix it and how?

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated since I really like this car and this is the only problem I've had with it.
Thank you,
Caleb

8 Replies

TY ANDERSON

MECHANIC
719 POSTS

This seems to me to be an electrical or sensor issue. The reason I feel that way is that the bogging down happens and then it doesn't do it any more. If the exhaust was restricted then this poor running condition would happen all the time. The same applies to a restricted fuel filter because is run poorly all the time.
Do you have a check engine light or service engine soon light on? If so have it scanned by a auto parts supplier as most will scan the vehicle for free. Provide the code(s) to me to look up info on what the vehicle has found.
One way of finding out if the exhaust has a restriction would be to completely remove the oxygen sensor and drive the vehicle to see if it runs poorly. This will make a lot of noise due to the hole in the exhaust but could help you determine if the issues lies in the exhaust or something else.

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Sunday, September 30th, 2018 AT 9:50 AM (Merged)

JACOBANDNICKOLAS

MECHANIC
109,650 POSTS

It could be the filter, but there are other things that could cause it. HAs the check engine light come on? Have you checked for vacuum leaks? Have you checked fuel pump pressure that could be low due to a clogged filter or bad pump?

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Sunday, September 30th, 2018 AT 9:50 AM (Merged)

MARCOANTONIOZELEDONMASIS

MEMBER
1 POST
2002 KIA RIO
58,000 MILES

Hello, I have a Kia Rio 2002 sedan, it tends to stall or loose power after it has run over 1500rpm for a few while, if I take my foot off the gas pedal the engine seems to recover a little strenght but if I try to accelerate it gets worse until it stops completelly, if I turn off the car for a while it seems to go back to normal but after a few minutes it happens again but this time it takes less to fail. According to the mechanic the only error he got from the computer scanning was with the crankshaft position sensor, but he already replaced the fuel pump before thinking it was the part to blame so I am not that confident with his conclussions anymore. Does it make any sense to believe that the issue was the crankshaft position sensor right from the start? Or there is a big chance that after replacing it the issue will continue?

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Sunday, September 30th, 2018 AT 9:50 AM (Merged)