Car acts like it's out of gas / won't go above 10 mph

Asked by Osceana May 09, 2014 at 03:00 PM about the 2006 Hyundai Sonata GLS FWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I have a 2006 Hyundai Sonata, 3.3L V6. When I start the car the engine light comes on. It
won't move out of first gear it seems. It won't go above 10 mph. Maybe it'll go up to 15 or
20. I can feel the car go into 2nd gear, but it doesn't go faster. When I apply the brake it
shakes and sputters. It almost acts like it's out of gas, but it's not. I had this problem a
few weeks ago and then it went away for a while, now it's back. Also, when it does go
away, it will ride normal when I first get in it. If I stop and park somewhere, come back
out and start the car again, all of sudden it starts doing this. Any ideas?

2 Answers

295

Get the engine codes scanned at autozone and save yourself the guess work.

2 people found this helpful.
1,330

Sounds like your car is what is refer to as in "Limp mode". It won't go fast as it can damage the transmission. It's jsut so you can caost along to go home or to a shop. Sometime in the engine or transmission threw a code that told it to go into limp mode to avoid further damage to transmission. It could be major or just a simple solenoid or sensor gone bad but it needs to have someone with advance scan tool to read the codes. Regular generic cheapo scan tools may work it's worth a try but I highly doubt it. Check the transmission fluid to make sure it is not low or not overfilled either but just right.

2 people found this helpful.

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