Numerous problems happen to your vehicle’s engine and faulty sensors, and your car won’t accelerate past 60.
If you can not name the causes of this phenomenon, this writing will provide a list with full details below.
Consider the indicators and take up the relevant solution if you are in trouble with poor acceleration.
Why My Car Won’t Accelerate Past 60: Causes And Solutions
If you are driving on your way and realize that the vehicle is losing power once you accelerate, the most common reason is the fuel decrease due to the dirty fuel filter, bad gasoline, or faulty fuel injector.
Besides, the second one is the lack of power and some technical issues that need expert care.
1. The Quick Fixes
Altitude
The higher the altitude is, the lower the air density becomes. When it comes to the uphill or sharp inclines, there will be a great obstacle causing your car not accelerating past 60.
In particular, there is approximately 20% of engine power loss due to the decrease in nitrogen, oxygen, and other elements in the air.
You can minimize the strain on the vehicle by keeping its fuel injectors and air filters clean.
Something Under Gas Pedal
When there is accidentally something dropping down, pull it carefully to ensure it will not touch your brake and gas pedals.
Or else, when this stuff works its way under the vehicle’s pedal, it will be hard for you to control the deceleration and acceleration.
Emergency Brake Engaged
When the emergency brake is partly or fully engaged and presses the brake pads on the rear tires, it will begin to drag. In this case, you should disengage your emergency brake.
However, it is better to take your car to the mechanic to check the rear brake pads, wheel drums, and bearings.
Guarantee that high temperatures and friction did not warp these components. Or else the car will not go over 60 mph.
Car Fuel
Once the fuel in the tank is nearly used up, there is not enough power required for your car’s acceleration.
At the same time, bad gasoline may be formulated with debris or dirt, which clogs up the filters and lines.
There are even further issues caused by gas at an inappropriate octane for the car.
Then, your car will not accelerate past 60 due to fuel issues. Thus, remember to have the tank refilled with relevant types of fuel.
2. Dirty Parts
Spark Plugs
The bad ignition coils and spark plugs will lead to misfiring issues. Once the spark contacts the combustion cylinder at an irrelevant time, the engine offers no function.
When this process keeps on causing a lack of misfires, serious acceleration problems will happen.
Air Filter
An air filter takes responsibility for providing clean air required for the air-fuel mixture. This mixture will then be sent to the chambers of combustion for burning.
Once the air filter gets clogged or dirty, the air can not flow throughout the system as expected.
Therefore, you should replace this component based on the advice of the mechanic to avoid clogging issues.
Fuel Filter
The fuel filter’s function is to save the engine from debris, dirty flakes, or sludge that would form buildups in the gas tank.
If the fuel filter is clogged, the liquid can not be transferred to the rest of the vehicle.
Besides, the dirt and foreign particles also damage the components.
It results in bad acceleration performance, and your car won’t go past 60. In this situation, alter the dirty fuel filter to deal with this problem.
Fuel Injector
The function of a fuel injector is to supply a proper fuel amount to the car’s combustion chamber.
However, if this element is clogged, the fuel flow is inpaired, causing poor engine performance and accelerating issues.
You can clean it by using a fuel injector kit or adding some cleaning additive to the gas tank. In case you are not skillful enough, take it to a professional for analyzing and fixing.
Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF) Or Oxygen Sensor
The mass air flow sensor measures the air mass that enters the fuel injection and sends the recordings to the car ECU.
Thanks to this information, the engine will receive a relevant amount of fuel for burning.
When the MAF sensor or the O2 sensor goes wrong or gets clogged, it produces incorrect reading, which will then affect the acceleration and your car wont go over 60.
The typical signs of its malfunction are abnormal power jolts, poor fuel economy, lean idling, or black fumes released from exhaust gasses pipes.
3. Technical Difficulties
“Limp Mode”
Once the “limp mode” is activated, your car wont accelerate past 60. This mode is also known as a limp home mode acting as an element for preservation.
Its function is to take you home, get to the mechanic, or safely off the road without engine destruction.
This element is accompanied by a check engine light and can get triggered by numerous things. Most of those cases need to be analyzed by qualified professionals.
A Bad Clutch
A clutch system of a modern vehicle has a durability of more than 100,000 miles.
When the clutch does not function well in engaging the engine with transmission fluid, there will be acceleration problems happening.
Once the vehicle speed varies with no deceleration or acceleration during heavy carriage or uphill driving, it results in either low levels of transmission fluid or a bad clutch.
The slipping clutch also overheats the surrounding parts, and the car wont go above 60.
Problematic ECU
ECU stands for the Electronic Control Unit, which is the vehicle’s brain.
This component calculates all the information and readings transferred from the sensors and then adjusts the fuel as well as the energy output.
When vehicle sensors are out of order, the air intake or pollution identification readings will go wrong. It is time you take your vehicle out for a professional check.
Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) Malfunction
The TPS, or Throttle Position sensor, has a great influence on the engine intake system.
It monitors the valve opening angle of the throttle valve controlled by the accelerator pedal. The data after detection will be sent to the engine ECU of the vehicle.
When the TPS fails, the accelerator pedal can not control the speed of the engine properly. In this case, acceleration will not help the car reach a higher engine speed.
Timing Belt
The timing belt is one of the key components in your engine. When one tooth is off or misaligned, the power level will decrease, and the acceleration gets affected.
Besides the problems of misalignment, the malfunction of a worn-out timing belt hinders the accelerating process.
Bad Catalytic Converter
The catalytic converter functions to guarantee the exhausted gas is eliminated from the engine. Thus, the gasses are trapped in the vehicle engine housing when the converter malfunctions.
The blocked gasses produce great pressure leading to the power loss of the engine.
Under more serious circumstances, it can catch fire. Thus, turn off the engine immediately when the engine has a thumping noise or releases a sulfur smell.
Compression Issues
There are vacuum lines designed to support clean fuel and air delivery to numerous parts of the vehicle.
When the compressor or at least one of those lines is failed or broken, it causes the malfunction of the engine and the acceleration.
Particularly, it is likely that the car wont go past 60. In these cases, the best solution is to take the car to a mechanical shop for careful analysis and repair.
FAQs
Should I Ignore Acceleration Issues?
Although acceleration issues are not extremely serious, it does not mean you should ignore them.
If you do not make any adjustments or repairs, the problematic acceleration will never be removed; instead, the mechanical issues worsen and increase the chances of accidents.
Most drivers do not equip themselves with professional knowledge and skills for analysis and fixing.
Thus, pay attention to the signs of failed acceleration and take your vehicle to an expert as soon as possible.
Do I Need To Take My Car To A Professional Mechanic When It Doesn’t Accelerate?
To new or amateur drivers, it is recommended to ask for help from an expert when your vehicle does not accelerate. As mentioned above, there are a wide range of reasons causing acceleration problems.
Although most of them include common wear and tear issues, do not drive too slowly to prevent accidents or financial fines.
Why Is Driving Too Slowly Dangerous?
There are minimum rates of speed offered for drivers to prevent impeding traffic. Based on certain law firms, slow driving is considered a non-crime traffic violation as it poses a danger similar to speeding.
Slow driving forces surrounding vehicles to adapt to your speed, leading to increasing accident rates.
Conclusion
If you can not recognize and diagnose the faulty condition timely, your car won’t accelerate past 60. Once you can locate the root of the malfunction, it is easier to solve the problem.
Try to have a permitted speed even when you have accelerating issues to guarantee the safety of yourself and surrounding drivers.