I have a 2004 Subaru Forster and I was driving it on the freeway today when it started losing power, I would press on the gas and it would shake and go slower and slower until it lost all power. I turned it off then back on and it started working but would only let me go up to 40 mph, I got off the freeway and then it lost power again. This time I had to turn it off and on like five times until it started working again. Luckily I was close to my work so I made it, but Idk how I'll make it home. Do you have an idea of what the issue could be?
My car has 146000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.
What you are describing sounds like a sign of a clogged catalytic converter. The catalytic converter converts toxic exhaust gases into less harmful pollutants that are suitable to be expelled into the atmosphere. When this is clogged, this causes these gases to be backed up into the exhaust system not allowing the engine to breathe properly. When this happens, the engine is forced to work much harder to expel these gases. This often results in the engine bogging down, hesitating, shaking and causing very poor fuel economy. This should also cause a check engine light to come on as the O2 sensors should be reading the incorrect amounts of oxygen in the exhaust gases if this is your problem. I would recommend having an expert from YourMechanic come to your location to diagnose and replace your catalytic converter.
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