1995 Toyota Camry slow to accelerate

Tiny
CJP9900
  • MEMBER
  • 1995 TOYOTA CAMRY
  • 167,000 MILES
After starting the car the brake pedal is tough to hit while putting the car in drive then is extremely slow going up to 4-5 rpm's while only going around 5-10 mph. The oil light just came on today and I'm not due for an oil change for another 2000 miles. Checked underneath hood and the coolant was empty so I refilled the coolant and now is still sputtering and still slow to accelerate.
Tuesday, September 17th, 2013 AT 12:35 PM

3 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Was the engine overheated? Is the oil full and not contaminated with engine coolant? Do you see any leaks? Has the check engine light come on?
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Tuesday, September 17th, 2013 AT 6:18 PM
Tiny
CJP9900
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
No the engine is not over heated and the oil is full, contaminated? I'm not sure? I haven't noticed any leaks. I drove it around my neighbor hood for a few minutes today and I no lights to alert me of anything except my door ajar and seat belt lights expectantly came on. The car is on and off shaky while in park. I have never experienced this type of car trouble in my time of owning older vehicles so I don't have a clue what is going on? I also want to mention how appreciative I am that you replied to my question. My car isn't safe to drive to take it in and get it diagnosed. I'm a single mom without any help or knowledge of vehicle mechanics. So your all I have when it comes to helping with my broken car right now. Thank you and bless your heart for helping me. I just bought this car a month ago and it didn't have any problems till a few days ago.
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Wednesday, September 18th, 2013 AT 10:30 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
I'm glad to be here to help. I just I hope we can get to the bottom of this problem. You mentioned the coolant was empty. When I asked if there was any contamination in the oil, I meant that sometimes the coolant can leak into the oil if there is a bad head gasket. What you end up with is a light brown or white sludge around the oil cap and on the oil dipstick. Let me know if you noticed anything like that. Also, have you noticed any white smoke coming from the exhaust? Something other that I was thinking about was a possible plugged catalytic converter. When the engine is hot and you have driven it, check the exhaust system to see if the converter is red hot. Also, see if there is a good bit of back pressure coming from the exhaust.

Let me know what you find.

This may take a few posts back and forth. Without a check engine light on, it becomes a guessing game and requires different things be checked. I'll do my best.
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Wednesday, September 18th, 2013 AT 6:22 PM

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