What Causes the Malfunction Light to Illuminate, Lack of Power When Accelerating, and Difficulty in Increasing Speed?
2 Answers
Poor and substandard gasoline quality, malfunctioning oxygen sensor, faulty air flow sensor, carbon buildup on spark plugs, engine knocking, and engine misfire. Below is an introduction to car malfunctions: Carbon buildup on spark plugs: This leads to poor engine performance, resulting in abnormal phenomena such as unstable idling, poor acceleration, and increased fuel consumption. Air flow sensor: It detects the intake air and converts it into an electrical signal sent to the electronic control unit (ECU), allowing the ECU to determine the amount of fuel to inject. Oxygen sensor: Since the purification capability of the three-way catalyst for CO, HC, and NOX sharply decreases once the air-fuel ratio of the mixture deviates from the theoretical ratio, an oxygen sensor is installed in the exhaust pipe to detect the oxygen concentration in the exhaust and send feedback signals to the ECU. The ECU then adjusts the fuel injection amount to keep the air-fuel ratio of the mixture near the theoretical value.
I also encountered this situation when I first started driving. The check engine light coming on and the car not accelerating is mostly due to a few common issues. For the fuel system, it could be a clogged fuel filter or insufficient pressure from the fuel pump. For the ignition system, you need to check for carbon buildup on the spark plugs or a failing ignition coil. Air intake system leaks are also common, like when those rubber hoses age and crack, causing vacuum leaks. I've seen a few cases where the catalytic converter was completely clogged—once that thing gets blocked and exhaust flow is restricted, the car immediately loses power. If it's a manual transmission car, you also need to check if the clutch disc is slipping. Last time, my colleague's car had this exact issue, and replacing the mass airflow sensor for just eighty yuan solved the problem immediately. In any case, these problems all require checking the trouble codes with a diagnostic scanner to be sure.
