Hey Acurazine,
It appears to me that when driving my Acura TL 2004 3.2 base. I can never get it to rev this high like in this videos. This video shows 0-60 for the TL. I've tried putting it into manual mode and holding it high in second gear but it seems like the car doesn't wanna go higher than 5000 RPM. Yet this video the person has it rev so easily up to the redline and 6000 rpm range. What is going on with my car?????????
Here's the video btw:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1msawteaBvg

What the heck is going on? No matter how hard I floor my gas pedal for my car on normal drive, it stays in the 4500-5000 rpm range and never past it!???
Anyone help?

 

I can also easily rev above 6500rpm. Has it been like that for a long time? have you see a gradual loss in power? More details please.

Could be transmission, could be clogged catalytic converter, could be a lot of other things as well but not enough info to close in.

 

My car throws no codes or anything. Although I do recall back earlier when I had the car, I wanted to gun it with a friend and while I was doing it in manual mode my CEL flashed but it went away and no codes were stored.
My car drives fine and the speed is there, ive never noticed this wasn't normal until I saw videos of 0-60 NOT just from this car but from other cars and their RPMs all rev up to the red line. My car has no codes. What could this be??
I know for a fact that if I floor my car too much I get a rotten egg smell. But I'm not sure if that's a cause. I really want to fix this problem. But car feels and sounds like it works so hard just to get up to 5000 RPM. What should I do?
My mechanic test drove my car today and said the transmission shifts fine. It's just odd how I can never get up to the red line. I just can't, it doesn't seem to go past 5000 rpm.

 

Check the oil level first.

VTEC doesn't activate and the engine stays below 5k rpm if it's low on oil.

 

Thank you, that gave it away. Rotten egg smell = bad cat. That is a common symptom of a clogged or finished cat. Also explains your low rpm limit. If you want to verify it, a TL should do 0-100km/h (0-60 mph) in about 6 seconds. If you have a bad catalytic converter, you can easily add a few seconds on that, almost double it. The rotten smell is because there is too much unburnt gas going in the cat, and its so hot it burns the sulfur inside the fuel, thus smelling like eggs. I would not push the car too much if I were you, the fact that you smell rotten eggs means your cat is still alive, but not for long.

If that wasn't enough proof, you can jack up the cat and tap on the cat with a rubber mallet, there is a good chance you'll hear a rattle.

The fact that your CEL didnt come on (and stay on) before is a mystery to me, but don't wait until it does to change it...it might be too late. Best case scenario you'll be stranded on the side of the road, worse case, you'll blow your exhaust gasket, WORST case, you wont even realize that exhaust fumes are leaking in the cabin, you'll intoxicate yourself and anybody in the car, pass out and suffer permanent brain damage, if not death.

 

Sounds like your 3rd cat is clogged. I had very similar symptoms and I replaced the 3rd cat and haven't had an issues since.

good luck

 

You can also test the cat using an IR heat gun. The outlet side of the cat should be considerably hotter than the inlet side if it working the way it is supposed too.

That is how I confirmed mine was bad, not only was the outlet side not hotter, it was cooler.

 

Easy now, a clogged cat would never cause this. But it does remind me of a Simpsons clip. "Don't kid yourself, if a converter ever got the chance... it would kill you and everyone you care about"....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f2P5yJFQKw

 

You are wrong my friend. I don't know the exact number, but a few people die every year because of a clogged cat. I remember one specific case here in Canada, it was during a summer festival, 2 teens were taking a nap in their VW with the AC on, they never woke up. The coroner issued a warning because this was the first time something like this happened in Quebec, explaining how the clogged cat forced the fumes back under the hood and was sucked in by the AC into the cabin. Those 2 kids had no idea what hit them.

This type of news is rare, but it does happen. There are many documented cases, especially during natural disasters in colder weather where stranded people go in their car and keep it rolling to keep warm. Out of a few hundred, if not thousand people, it only takes one clogged cat and a hole somewhere before the cat and the recipe for disaster is cooking up. Exhaust fumes are VERY dangerous. You can't see them, you can't smell them, and they kill in minutes, if not, they can permanently damage a braing in 2 minutes of exposure to a high concentration.

Quote of Wiki

 

Did your car throw any codes? What made you want to test it?
Right now my car still can't rev higher than 4500 rpm even when I floor it

 

Show proof of one.

 

You're the one that needs convincing. I remember seeing it on the news and it marked me because it was so close to home. Go look yourself.

There are tons of cases of accidental deaths due to blocked exhausts by snow, mud, or objects. When a cat clogs up, its the same problem, just closer to the engine.

 

I need help finding a case where someone died because of a clogged cat. Fully blocked exhaust system with mud, snow, or banana in the tailpipe running in the same spot for a long time....sure that has killed a few people.

 

How is it different if the cat is clogged entirely? It has the same outcome as blocking the tailpipe, if not worse.

 

Oh great... not the bunny. Will a car run with a 100% completely clogged converter? 100% back pressure? Maybe for a minute... not long enough to exfoliate the operator and their entire family. Pre cat exhaust might smell a little too. Most likely the "clogged cat" the op has is only partly blocked as he is still reaching decent RPMs. Telling him his issue is potentially fatal is an extreme stretch. As proven from the lack of evidence provided that it happens all the time.

 

Not sure what's your issue with me.

Will a car run with a completely blocked tailpipe?

I used entirely when I should have used almost completely. No use being pedantic, English is a second language to me.

Do you usually wake up because of a smell? Researchers say olfactory stimuli will not wake up you. Whether it's straight CO2 or propane you won't wake up because of that...

Do I believe the op is going to asphyxiate? No. I think it's far fetched to think it will lead to that but it's not impossible either.

 

No issue with you, I like ya, you give great advice on the site and are a fellow Canadian. ( although I live in Kansas now )

Again, I guess we can go by the mentality of "anything is possible". The odds of the op dying tonight because of a partially clogged cat are far less than winning the lottery 5 times in a row while being struck by lighting. If we should suggest something for the op to worry about that actually might happen....When is the last time you checked the tightness of the spark plugs?

 

Like I said, i'm not making stuff up just for the fun of it. I remember 1 case very specifically because it happened close to home. These things you don't really hear about them unless it happens around you. But as I said, i quoted a wiki article that mentioned 2 deaths, one in the late 80's and other in the 00's. These things happens very rarely, but if the conditions are right, as they say, if it can go wrong, it will go wrong. And with the hundreds of millions of vehicles around the world, and i would say at least 50% of those are owned by people that have no idea how to maintain a car or pinpoint a problem where there is one, so there is bound to be some old tercel with a clogged cat and a rust hole close to the header that could potentially be leaking fumes in the cabin.

OP has mentioned having this problem for a long time, chances are, hes close or on his way to a clogged cat. I was exaggerating when i said death awaits him is he doesnt act, but i wanted to be a little funny by giving his the best case, and worst possible case scenario.

 

I agree man, I think it's just a misunderstanding regarding polish_pat poking fun and giving out the extreme most possible situation that could happen, not him trying to scare the OP. The red text denoting a hint of sarcasm maybe should have been used.

All in all, the OP likely has a catalytic converter problem.