Engine revs fine in park, but not in neutral, lunges, loses power

B_WILL

MEMBER
2008 NISSAN ALTIMA
2.5L
4 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
200,000 MILES

1. My car has started to completely lose power when you accelerate too quickly. Engine won't rev, no acceleration. I can turn the car off, let it set for a few seconds, and turn it back on and it's fine. 2. Sometimes when you accelerate there is very little power and then it lunges, but it won't hold a steady speed. Turn car off for a few seconds, turn it back on, and no issue. 3. I can rev the engine when it is in park and it is a smooth acceleration form 1000 rpm's up to 3500+ rpm's, but if I put the car in neutral and start accelerating, the tachometer starts to bounce around 1,500-2,000 and never stabilizes. It doesn't matter how far I have depressed the accelerator.

3 Replies

JACOBANDNICKOLAS

MECHANIC
109,771 POSTS

Welcome to 2CarPros.

Is the check engine light staying on when the engine is running? If it is, then you need to scan the computer for diagnostic trouble codes. That will point us in the right direction,.

Here is a quick video showing how it's done:

https://youtu.be/YV3TRZwer8k

I realize most people don't own a scanner, but often times a parts store will do it for free or lend/rent you a scanner. If the light stays on, that is step one

Now, is there anything that you can think of that may induce this to happen? For example, does it do it only once the engine warms up?

Let me know.

Joe