A car can be so much more than just a way to get from A to B. Most people don’t realize that their vehicle has become an integral part of their daily lives. If your car is not functioning properly, you might not be the only one facing the issue.
The jerking of the car during acceleration is a common problem. It can happen in cars, motorcycles, trucks, and even boats. We all know it’s dangerous, but we don’t know why. Here are some of the most common reasons cars may jerk while accelerating and what you can do about it.
Dirty Fuel Injector
Depending on how hard the ignition key is being turned, the fuel injectors control how much fuel is pumped into the engine at any given rate. If too much or not enough fuel gets to your engine, you might end up with a jerking car during acceleration.
This makes it difficult for some people to drive their vehicles because they don’t know what causes their cars to jerk while accelerating or accelerate slowly if this happens in them as well. Filtering the fuel and replacing it on some occasions can help you fix this issue.
Dirty Air Filters
Your car’s air filters affect how clean or dirty your fuel actually gets into the engine as well. If they are more contaminated than usual, that means more dirt will be getting to your cars’ combusting cylinders, resulting in jerking after accelerating.
Replace the fuel and air filters regularly to prevent this from happening. It can also help prolong your car’s lifespan as well if you take good care of it. If your car jerks while accelerating or driving, consider wearing a seatbelt, especially while driving long distances.
Blocked Catalytic Converters
The catalytic converters play an essential role in the functioning of the car’s engine by getting rid of any excess exhaust gases. Blocked catalytic converters lead to abnormal variations in the gas levels, leading to jerking while accelerating.
Blocked exhaust manifold porting can also cause gas pressure variations in the engine, affecting smooth and seamless acceleration. The result of this will lead to jerking while accelerating as well as possible stalling during highway drives.
Repairing catalytic converters can help you fix both issues at once because that means your air filters also get replaced simultaneously. Still, for this, you’ll need a little know-how on how to work on HVAC (heating, ventilation, etc., and air conditioning) parts of the car. This is where a specialist team of auto mechanics can make a big difference.
Damaged Acceleration Cables
A damaged acceleration cable can cause jerking while accelerating as well as reduced engine response. A cold-start issue often happens because the car sometimes takes way too long to start after a period of inactivity (but gas mileage will improve with timely starting).
Cords are prone to wear out over time and require updated or new replacements depending on how old it is; you can use your owner’s manual to learn more about the different parts, including where to locate and how to access them.
It’s advisable not to try fixing this yourself but instead seek help from an auto mechanic who knows about these repairs well and other complicated aspects related to engine maintenance.
Troubleshooting cabling issues does take some expertise in working around HVAC systems as the process usually requires connecting cables between the engine and body of your car or truck.
Worn Out Spark Plugs
A worn-out spark plug has consequences on how well your vehicle accelerates. One of them is worn out due to evaporation or ignition timing being messed up during combustion, leading to erratic power delivery and lower performance.
Not only does this cause more jerking while accelerating but also poor acceleration response time, severe stalling issues when trying to accelerate, and also refusal to start up.
Worn-out spark plugs will affect the performance of your engine and can cause all parts around it – such as the fuel injectors and power-altering systems – to break down. This, therefore, needs extensive repair or replacement with the help of an experienced mechanic.
What is the best way to diagnose if your car jerks while accelerating?
The best way to diagnose if your car jerks while accelerating is by using a mechanic or a professional who knows how to test for this issue.
There are many ways that can be used to test the car, such as:
1. Car Pull Test – This involves slowly increasing the throttle until the engine starts to miss and then immediately back off with a sharp application of the brakes
2. Acceleration Test – This involves getting on the highway and driving at a steady speed until you reach maximum acceleration
3. Zero Acceleration Pedal Test – This involves engaging the idle speed and then slowly adding pressure to the accelerator pedal until it reaches zero at which time there should be no jerking or stalling of your vehicle.
4. Throttle Condition Monitor Test – If you have a newer car, this can reveal what state your spark plugs are in and determine if they have been modified prior to installation on the engine by an experienced mechanic.
Things You SHOULD NOT Do To Your Car if you want it De-Jerk Free
1.) Don’t Race – When Acceleration Gets Jerky, ensure that your tire pressure is at its optimum level so the tires will not get damaged when driving consistently, especially during high-speed acceleration sessions. It also helps to be familiar with the transmission condition of your car.
2.) Don’t Change Cylinder Heads – There is no need to change it unless you’re an engineer trained at hand-firing guns rather than honing expertise on open-source engines, but even if this is so, skip the cylinder head because its compression ratio will have dropped smoothly during refilling or cleaning through movement inside tunnels or fractures inside said chambers.
3.) Don’t Rev-Up the Engine – Acceleration effectiveness will suffer when revving higher during certain conditions, especially at high speeds, which significantly affects performance. This can be easily remedied by tapering down speed and using lower gear ratios in addition to maintaining proper air pressure; this will ensure that more of the engine’s potential is exploited at lower speeds.
Car jerking when accelerating can be a very frustrating issue, but you don’t have to suffer through it. If your car jerks when accelerating, it can indicate several current or potential problems suppose if you are unaware of the technical know-how of how to investigate and fix the issue. In that case, we recommend contacting a specialist immediately to avoid paying a hefty bill in the future.