Low power

[Skipperkins]

Hi all. I have an 2010 E350EB, v10, Quigley 4x4, 4.10 rear, agile Rip. This van is lacking power when going up hill. I live in SoCal and when going up a grade like the grapevine it barely makes it up. I’m talking 45mph at 4500+ rpm. Is this normal? I bought the van for camping and towing my FJ Cruiser on a flatbed. If I towed my FJ it would not make it up at all. I hesitate to go anywhere that might have a hill. Any thoughts as to what is up? I’m desperate to get out and off road but have no faith in its ability in hilly areas. Please help if you can.
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[mikracer]

Definitely not normal. I'm guessing you dont have any check engine lights or anything since you dont mention it. I would at least get a code reader hooked up to see if there is anything stored.

I have a similar setup (same drivetrain, gear ratio, etc) and I can tow my 7000lb toy hauler up a decent grade at 50mph. Just the van itself will go up it without any hesitation as fast as I want it to go.

[REDOVAL]

Shooting from the hip it sounds like a possible torque converter slippage issue if the engine is at 4500rpm and lacks forward go power. I'm with mikracer on this one...my v10 with 4.56 gears rips up hills at nowhere near 4000 rpm even towing (and that's with the 4 speed 4r100). If possible, check your trans temp, I suspect it's through the roof hot.

Scott

[carringb]

Not at all normal. I can pull the grapevine at 60 pulling 12,000 pounds. At that point I’m 4500 rpm+ but you must be in 1st gear hitting those rpms at only 45 mph.

Anyways. Start with the basics.... check the air cleaner first. Rodent nests can block most of the airflow. Then make sure the fuel filter is up to day. Then start checking other items on the PM schedule.

[Skipperkins]

I’ve checked all the stuff that can be checked. The dealer says everything is fine. They check it on a level road. I thought about a failing torque converter. That sounds expensive. Don’t want to go to the dealer for that. But the last responses I have from here definitely confirms my lack of power issues.

[Twoxentrix]

May not pertain to you situation, but I had a vehicle a while back that developed ruffly the same symptoms (occurred very quickly, not something that developed over time) - turned out something inside the muffler collapsed and restricted the exhaust ....that supposedly created back pressure which hindered the engine from developing its power.

[Beasty Boy]

Originally Posted by Skipperkins

I’ve checked all the stuff that can be checked. The dealer says everything is fine. They check it on a level road. I thought about a failing torque converter. That sounds expensive. Don’t want to go to the dealer for that. But the last responses I have from here definitely confirms my lack of power issues.

I think Twoxentrix has something. I would go one step further and get rid of the cat converter. Weld on flanges and put a straight pipe on. That way if you live where you gotta smog check you can put it back on

[Orv]

I noticed a big increase in hill-climbing ability in my van when I changed the spark plugs -- apparently I'd had a soft misfire. (The idle got smoother too.) But on a modern engine I imagine something like that would throw a code.

Dumb question: Are your brakes hot? A dragging brake will really make it feel gutless...

[Darkstar]

Have you checked if your alternator is powering everything properly. They can give that a quick check for free at most auto parts stores. I had a similar issue of odd lack of power intermittently when my alt was failing. Not sure if its related, but if you are checking things off the list, this may make sense to check...

[basssears]

Try a local (well regarded) mechanic who will come for a ride with you on a hill and see what you're talking about. If it's not a warranty thing I avoid dealerships like the plague.


-- Bass