No Power - Sluggish!

Hi! Am a little naive when it comes to cars, but am trying to learn, so please bear with me if my descriptions do not make much sense. My 1997 Geo metro currently with 118,000 miles has been very slow lately. At times I will step on the gas, but the car will not move. The engine will ram(sp) and after a while the car will jerk forward! This is really worrying me as I am spending so much money on a car which used to do fine. I just recently fixed my brakes after they began acting up by not holding, now instead it is the gas. It feels like it is slowing down on me, and stepping on the gas seems to take alot of power out of the poor thing. It almost feels like the car is in park and one is stepping on the gas pedal. I have given up trying to climb hills or rush into traffic, for fear of it just giving up on me. Any ideas as to what the problem could be? I do not want to throw money going to mechanics (some not all) who fix one thing and mess up another just so you can return. HEEELLLLPPPPP!!!!!!

The standard answer for lack of power is to do tune up stuff first: check timing, change rotor and distributor cap, ignition wires, plugs, pvc, etc. Check or change air and fuel filter.

However, as with any troubleshooting, you should think about when the problem started and what was done around that time. You said the brakes were adjusted. Did performance problems happen just after this? If so, it sounds like you have one or more brakes dragging. Overcoming dragging brakes really sucks down performance quickly.

loss of power could also mean your catalytic convertor is getting clogged up.

It does sound like one of your brakes are locked up. If it's just performance, do a tune up, as listed above. If it still persists, do a compression check. You also might be in need of a MAP sensor.

Thank you for all the suggestions, I'll look into it and see what else I come up with. Just one question though: how long can a well-taken care of Geo last? I would love to keep my car for a long time, simply because, it has proved very economical on gas and is actually quite low maintenance particulary for a student like myself. What potential problems can one expect as a car nears 120,000 miles? Anyone from Columbus Mississippi - reason I ask is to get suggestions on a good car mechanic. I tried taking my car to Chevy, but it costs an arm and a leg, just to have them diagnose the problem. After the last couple of visits, am also very paranoid about letting anyone work on my car, least they mess up something else. Any ideas as to great and cheap mechanics in Columbus Mississippi? What of Orlando Florida, I'll be relocating to Orlando in June and would love to know of any great mechanics out there.
Other questions:

How do you guys (and gals) know so much about cars? Is there a school or course out there that one can take to educate themselves about cars? If there is please let me know. Well, I'll keep ya'll updated on the progress of my bug. :rolleyes:

You never know - some cars seem to last a long time, others have a short life. I got my '93 Geo from my father-in-law to replace my 1973 VW Beetle. The Geo currently has 305K miles on it and I drive it every day.

Unless you do it yourself, I think the key is to find a good mechanic that you trust. Ask around at part stores, family members, neighbors, etc, and try to locate a "shade tree" mechanic - do not go to the dealer unless you like to burn money. I am not a mechanic, but I like to read the repair book so I don't appear to be too stupid when I talk to him.

Jim

Thanx geojim! Maybe, I'll get me a copy of a repair book too, to add to the info. received from this forum. Thats really the reason I joined the forum, so that I can get a clue of what the mechanic is saying when I go to him. I was running an errand today and met a friend who informed me of one good "shade tree" mechanic here in Columbus, so am thinking of giving him a try. As of today, the car seems to be getting worse, It almost feels like it is going to just stop in traffic, when I step on the brakes, they take a little long to hold and when the do, it feels like the car will switch off. When the car starts moving again it jerks first and takes a while to pick up speed, so I get the feeling it is about to die out on me. Am having it looked at tomorrow, if not first thing Monday.

Sounds like a dragging brake. Find a nice level place, get up a little speed, put it in neutral and let it coast. If it doesn't coast slowly to a stop, then a brake shoe/pad is probably set way too tight. Parking brake could also be messed up. Leave the A/C off as this can drag an engine down. Don't wait, a bad brake can cause a warped rotor or ruin a brake drum. Good luck and hope the mechanic works out. Jim

What does "coast" mean? And let me see if I got this right:
-level ground
-put in neutral
-step on gas
-let it coast :uhoh:
Sounds like a dragging brake. Find a nice level place, get up a little speed, put it in neutral and let it coast. If it doesn't coast slowly to a stop, then a brake shoe/pad is probably set way too tight. Parking brake could also be messed up. Leave the A/C off as this can drag an engine down. Don't wait, a bad brake can cause a warped rotor or ruin a brake drum. Good luck and hope the mechanic works out. Jim

No - Go to a vacant level place and drive at normal speed in a straight line. Switch the transmission to neutral, remove foot from brake petal and gas. Don't touch anything. The purpose is to observe how the car comes to a stop. It should slow down and stop by itself fairly slowly in a straight line. If it comes to a quick stop, or turns while doing so, then a brake is sticking.
Jim

Thanx jim, will try and keep you posted. :smile:

Anne


No - Go to a vacant level place and drive at normal speed in a straight line. Switch the transmission to neutral, remove foot from brake petal and gas. Don't touch anything. The purpose is to observe how the car comes to a stop. It should slow down and stop by itself fairly slowly in a straight line. If it comes to a quick stop, or turns while doing so, then a brake is sticking.
Jim