Q. We had an incident where our 2019 Toyota Corolla with only 5,000 miles suddenly accelerated over a curb and sped forward when parking at a storefront causing damage to two storefront windows and the car. A police officer on scene suggested it could have been a “surge”. Upon researching and talking to other people apparently this is quite common. Apparently on a car with a small engine (1.8 liter) when the air conditioner engages the engine speed increases to compensate for the new load. Is there any way the car can be diagnosed to determine the cause and correct the problem? We are afraid to drive the car with the air conditioner on.
A. Smaller displacement engine can surge slightly and cause the engine speed to pick up a bit but in the hundreds of vehicles that I have driven not enough to overcome the foot brake. To drive over a typical six-inch curb would take quite a bit of acceleration far more than an engine surging from the air conditioner cycling. In addition, since 2012 Toyota as well as many other manufacturers have added throttle override devices which disable the throttle when the brake is applied. Not being there it is hard to say what happened. A possible scenario is, the engine did surge slightly while the driver’s foot was on the brake, the driver got confused and applied the accelerator rather than pushing harder on the brake pedal. The good thing is no one was hurt, the car and the building can be repaired.
Q. My mechanic has been working on my car for years, he is a great guy with fair prices and does good work. The problem is each time I get the car back there are greasy fingerprints on the car. Over the years the grease stains have become darker, and I can’t clean them off. Any suggestions?
A. Depending on how set in the stains there are some things you can do. Start with dish detergent mix about 50/50 with water and seen if the detergent cuts through the stains. WD-40 lubricant may also work to remove the stain, in both cases clean the surface with a microfiber cloth. I have even seen soap, water and kerosene mixed together to remove grease and tar. If this doesn’t work, you may need to use a high-speed buffer and light polishing compound and remove a very slight amount of paint to clean up the staining. Then once it is clean, polish the car with a quality wax. Rather that tackle it yourself and possibly do more damage, stop by a vehicle detail shop and ask them if they can clean and then polish the entire car. Wax adds a layer of protection that seals the paint against staining. Once the car is clean buy your mechanic a fender cover.
Q. I was talking to some of my fellow Rotarians about electric cars and was wondering if you would be willing to talk with us about electric cars, hybrids and how and where you recharge these vehicles. Due to Covid we are still meeting remotely, would you come to a Zoom meeting and chat about these vehicles? And it there any charge for your appearances?
A. I would be happy to chat with your group about anything automotive related. Regarding fees, pre Covid I used to ask for a cup of coffee, but now not even that. For the past 18 months just about any presentation that I do is remote using Zoom or a similar platform. As good as in person events are, the virtual presentations allow me to “travel” anywhere. Readers send me an email (jpaul@aaanortheast.com) and I would be happy to join your meetings.
Q. Last spring my new Mazda Miata purchased in December developed a stalling problem. The dealer checked it over, found no engine codes and after two days gave it back with a fuel additive and told me to try it out. The drove for a few more days and the problem vanished, and the car has driven great all summer. As fall is approaching, I’m worried about the same problem happening again. Should I add more fuel cleaner, gas line anti-freeze or something else?
A. Now certainly there could be a number of issues, but it may have been the gasoline itself. Gasoline is formulated differently for warm and cold temperatures. In the winter/cold weather gasoline has higher vapor pressure to allow for easier starting. In the warmer weather the fuel is designed with lower vapor pressure to produce less evaporative emissions. Perhaps what happened was your car was filled with “winter” gas and driving on the warm spring days caused some drivability problems. Once you refilled with “summer” gasoline the drivability issues corrected themselves. Generally right around the middle of September “winter-fuel” is introduced to help with cold weather starting problems.
Q. My 2007 Lexus RX350 has a hesitation issue when the car is first started for the day, the initial start is very hard, but it does catch and run smoothly. This does not happen again when the car is used through the day. The shop is a little stumped because there are no check engine lights on. Based on the symptom the shop did a “top-end” de-carbonizing, unfortunately there were no improvements. Any ideas?
A. We are seeing more issues with fuel deposit build up in engines today, so the cleaning was a good maintenance step. Other possible issues could be an intake manifold or other vacuum leak, dirty/malfunctioning MAF (mass airflow sensor), dirty valve body/throttle plate, or even a oxygen (fuel/air) sensor. At this point the best thing to do would be to leave the car at the shop where it has been serviced so they can experience what you are experiencing. They may want the car for a few days to verify the issue as well as the repair.
— John Paul, Senior Manager, Public Affairs and Traffic Safety, AAA Northeast
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Questions and answers from the ‘Car Doctor’ - The Saratogian
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