QuestionLately I feel like its a little more difficult to accelerate, and when I get to around 50 mph, the car stutters so much that I feel like it's going to turn off. Also, after driving on the highway, once I stop, the car idles rough. I've also noticed the AC isn't as cold as usual...
please tell me this isn't an expensive repair, as I am about to drive it into a canal.
AnswerHi Stephanie,
On the engine issues the most direct way to find out what is the cause is to have the fault codes, if any, that may be stored in the memory of the engine controller read out.
An Autozone parts store may do that for free, but if there isn't one near you then look for an independent shop that will do it for $40 or less. Get the fault code number(s), the name(s), what it means, and how much they would charge.
Then write me back with the results, we'll look it up in the manual and let you know if it is something you can do yourself, etc.
The AC is probably working sub-optimally because of a gradual loss of refrigerant. You might want to just wait till next year, if you don't live in to hot a climate, to have it "recharged". Otherwise I would go to an AC shop for that servicing.
Save the Neon!
Roland
