1993 Es300 Accelleration Problems

[kross500]

Ok, heres the problem guys. 1993 es300. 180k miles. Under hard accelleration from a complete stop, I get a total loss of power. Engine idles fine, does not overheat. Looked at spark plugs, and they appeared to be in good condition, but I can't be positive. They were replaced recently. If the car is in neutral, and I hit the gas hard, the engine runs fine, gets up to high rpms very quickly, with no loss of power. Recently had the complete fuel system cleaned, where they dump the chemicals into the gas tank and i believe the throttle body. Still no fix. Stumped...any suggestions would be great. It seems like there is a lot of knowledge floating around this forum. Problem has persisted for a long time, maybe 50k miles or so. but it has gotten to the point where now, if I am crusing around 65 or 70, and stomp on the gas hard to pass on the highway, I am experiencing a slight loss of power or hesitation, which I never experienced before. It sounds like a ignition problem for the engine is not getting enough fuel or air...but i cannot be sure and lexus maintainence can be pricey. thanks for the help guys.

[gav_logan]

Just a suggestion... I was having a similar trouble with mine, and some one suggested it was the air intake. I recalled from the pre-purchase inspection they said the intake was cracked so they taped it up.

Might be something to check...

[SKperformance]

that would be the first place to look then replace the cap and rotor for the distributer.

[Lex3486]

Here's a good way to test the intake pipe; get your car on a relatively steep hill and start from a complete stop. Go easy on it at first and then stomp it too-pay attention to the engine; if it seems to go "dead" for a second or two, or just won't move at all, chances are that it's the intake. If nothing in drive, then try it also in reverse; look for the same things. Doing this puts alot of stress on the engine and causes it to move alot, which can open up any cracks in your intake pipe that are located after the mass air flow sensor, causing unmetered air to enter the engine and thus confuse the ECU, causing the car to "stall" or "hesitate". If your intake was in really bad condition, as I've seen on many ES's, you'd notice this problem from every start, but sounds like your case is pretty minor. Still, this is definitely where I'd start. Keep us posted!

[Grif]

Loss of power, or hesitation?

[kross500]

Thanks lex3486, i've checked the intake hose. I'm assuming that the sensor that you were refering to is the one directly after the air filter. I did check that hose, and i didn't seem to see any cracks. I completely removed it and checked the underside, too. When i start on a hill, it will completely lose power when i stomp it hard, and won't regain power unless i ease off the gas. I haven't tried it in reverse though. A friend of mine suggested a speed sensor. Any idea on how often those go bad??? and if this would cause the problems i've been having? Or is it more likely that there is a small crack in the intake hose which i just can't see? appreciate all the great ideas you guys have been throwin out there. I'm sure that with just a little work i'll be able to pinpoint the problem.

[Lex3486]

Well, it's hard to tell, but it sure does sound like the intake pipe. Mine did the exact same thing. Make very sure that you tightened the clamps down on both ends; this is just as important as having a good pipe. I thought when I first got the 93 ES I have now (my family's third one, so I know a little about em) that it was having an intake pipe problem, but I came to find that the clamps were loose - easy fix. If not that, then I suppose that it could be a speed sensor (?) I'm not too familiar with problems with those, so I'm not the one to tell...but the fact that you said that it has a complete loss of power when you stomp it really really sounds like the intake...I dunno, I'm sure if you didn't notice any cracks that that isn't your problem - usually for a crack to be big enough to cause you any problem, it's very easily seen. Some say that a hole as small as a pin head could do it, but c'mon...let's be reasonable here; nothing, not even a Lexus, is that perfectly tuned <_<

[jjose99]

Hi all,

First off let me say what great forum this is. I've been looking for a quality forum like this for a while.

Kross500, would you please let me know if you were able to solve this problem, I have a very similar problem in my car, and would love to know if this worked for you. Thanks a bunch!

[bbsal]

is there any lights on in the car like a check engine?reason im asking is because if the mass air flow sensor is going bad that would couse it also if theres no cracks in the intake.

also welcome to the club

[zeta]

if there are cracks in the intake, the car would not only lose power, but with running such rich amount of air, the car would stall. i had a crack in my big pipe a while ago before i replaced it, and the car would accelerate fine with normal accel, but if i pushed it down a bit further, it would hesitate and accelerate about 2 seconds later. i checked the engine bay and found my intake pipe cracked with a 2 inch crack. duck taped it until the new pipe came in. $102 for the new pipe with installation. not too bad.

check the pipe for cracks or if it's become hard... the heat from the engine and weather can cause it to become completely opposite of the soft plastic it should be and become hard to a point hard accel would crack it. check it out.

kev

[jjose99]

dont wanna steal kross' thread, but thanks for the additional replys. I will have to look into all of those things.

[kross500]

well, I checked the intake pipe one more time for cracks, did not find any. It could possibly be the mass air flow sensor. but, it's not an issue anymore. Was driving the car the other day, lost oil pressure, drove it for about 1/2 mile to get it off the highway, and drained the oil when I got it towed home and found very very small metal particles in the oil. My dad thinks that the engine is toast, hes pretty knowledgeable about this. The car still starts up fine, a little smoke at the start up for about 10 sec. and there is a small knock coming from the engine compartment. I'm about to start tearing down the car and parting it out on eBAY. if anyone thinks that I should hold off for a while, maybe something that I could try, let me know. Oh, by the way- I lost oil pressure about 5 miles after I had the engine up to around 5000 rpm. thanks for all the great info guys. keep in touch.

[zeta]

yeah... if metal particles are rolling around in your oil... that thing is pretty much gone. those metal particles are gonna start tearing the internal parts of the engine that use the oil as lubrication. any more severe would've been a break down straight in the middle of the road. good to hear nothin major happened to you like an accident. maybe try a NEWER ES :)

kev