Q: Rpms go up but the car wouldnt accelerate the way it should. Eventually after about a month the car would onlyago about 5 mph in

This may be a variety of possible things that could cause this to happen. If this is a fuel issue, it may be related to a throttle position sensor going bad. The throttle position sensor (TPS) is a sensor used to monitor the throttle position of a vehicle. The sensor is usually located on the butterfly spindle/shaft so that it can directly monitor the position of the throttle.

This sensor relays the position of the throttle plate (also called the butterfly) relative to your foot’s position on the gas pedal and associates the two in the ECU. The ECU then makes the direction to supply more or less fuel to the motor. When this sensor is not working properly, this can cause intermittent responses when applying the gas pedal. If this is a transmission related problem, this may be something related to low transmission fluid or a failing control solenoid.

Modern automatic transmissions use pressurized hydraulic fluid to change gears. Every time a gear change is required, the car’s computer activates a transmission solenoid, which directs transmission fluid into the valve body to engage the correct gear. When this is faulty or not working properly, this can cause a delay in gear shifting or in some cases cause the car to not shift at all. It may be necessary to have an expert from YourMechanic come to your home to take the car for a test drive to properly determine what may be causing this specifically as it may be related to either a fuel supply issue or potentially a transmission problem.