I just had a diagnostic done on my juice box.

2006-H3-119,000 miles.

"Only problem" on it was fixed (a wire being snipped).

So they don't seem to think anything else is wrong with it. Hence me asking ya'll. I find it I can't pass someone when its a 2 lane road, to go around a slow driver. You can slam down on the gas and try to hold it down as much as you want but it just doesn't accelerate to a higher speed as fast. IT TAKES FOREVER, I almost crashed finding this out. It used to not do this. It was playing chicken almost, I was inches from another car because I hadn't found out that it just doesn't go from 60 to say 70 very fast, I swear it can literally take 2 minutes. I'll be right next to the person for nearly a minute before it finally gets up in speed to get ahead. That's just bad!

Is this normal? Just getting old in age? It doesn't even ride smooth anymore but heck that stopped a decade of miles ago like 70,000.

 

I hear a lot about this with the 3.5L. They are not made for speed but you can check your spark plugs (for correct gaping and burn color) , air filter, clean your mass air flow sensor and throttle body. I have the 3.7 in a H3T and I've had a few thing for the engine and I feel pretty good on taking some if I have to.

 

That doesn't seem right. I routinely make the jump from 60-70 and it doesn't take much time. Is it possible your vehicle is not downshifting? Do you see a jump in the RPM's when you mash the gas to pass or do they stay in the same range? Have you tried manually shifting into 3rd when attempting a pass? Since what you are describing is very subjective it's difficult to give you any sort of answer one way or another without specific details of road conditions, speed, RPM's etc etc.

 

The RPMs do stay the same. It seems to get stuck or idle at a certain point and it just then finally kicks up a bit enough to pass someone. I'm never passing anyone. It used to handle very good and I know its not a speeding car, of course, but it shouldn't be like this. It used to never be like this.

 

Something wrong there for sure. My 3.7 has no problems downshifting and passing at any highway speed.

What exactly is a 'diagnostic', and who looked at your rig? Was the TB cleaned? Plugs been changed? Have you been using off-brand fuel for an extended period? Ever ran a fuel system cleaner through it? Airfilter?

 

Finding all the "problems" haha. a multi-point inspection

this is what i remember has been done to it in the past few months, after 100,000 miles it went to ****:

rear brakes and rotors
front brakes (brakes and rotors were actually replaced 4 years ago on both and again recently)
transmission fluid flush
thermostat replaced
all new spark plugs (ac delco)
cylinder 1 coil replaced (apparently a bad storm flooded it because the car was thirsty)
i even had new tires ha
battery was checked and is great
air filter
oil change

what they said needs to be done:

100k service *what is this???
tune up *isn't this the same as a 100k service?
fuel service
front & rear differential
trans flush (done)
coolant flush (thermostat was replaced, i see this as unnecessary!)

I rather use SHELL but CHEVRON is closer. I never use off brand. I don't know if it's all in my head but where I used to live, the shell station, the gas last forever. Here at ANY of these gas stations its gone like quick!

 

How is the 3 running at idle and from a dead stop?

While not everyone here agrees on fuel system cleaners, I'd recommend a bottle of Techron, Seafoam, or GM Fuel System cleaner as it can help clean any dirty injectors and combustion chamber components that could cause poor performance in a high mileage motor.

I'd double check to make sure the spark plugs were gapped correctly.

A throttle body cleaning and MassAirFlow sensor cleaning would definately be in order at that high mileage if you haven't had them done. These would usually cause more trouble at idle than running down the highway, but I'd still address them. There are a couple how-to's on these procedures. Pretty easy for the average DIY'er. About a half-hour job.

 

If the RPM's don't jump way up when you step on the gas pedal to wide open throttle position, something is wrong. If I am at 60 and hit the gas hard it will jump to 3300-3500 rpm's. Sometimes there is a little delay but it is seconds not minutes.

As Xlr said, you would definitely benefit from a throttle body cleaning. This only takes 30-40 minutes if you are going slow and deliberate and is very easy. Others have reported dealers wanting $150 for the cleaning which is stupid. There are step by step instructions on here.

You should definitely be changing your differential fluids as well as your transfer case fluid. All 3 are also very easy to do and step by step instructions are here for those as well or you can download a service manual cheap or free some places. If you bend down and look at your rear diff you will see 2 screw-in plugs. It is as simple as removing those, letting it drain, put the bottom plug back in and fill through the top plug until the fluid is to that level. Follow what is in your owners manual for proper fluid type.

These are simple things even for those that may have limited space, time, etc. They will give you a great sense of satisfaction doing it yourself and save you a bunch of $$$.

 

Okay throttle body cleaning and MassAirFlow sensor cleaning, got ya, thanks. Yes I been doing a fuel injector cleaner (STP) every 1,000 miles since 100,000.

Well I'm curious then how do you do a throttle body cleaning yourself? Let me get this straight:

HOW TO CLEAN A THROTTLE BODY !!! D.I.Y. AND SAVE !! - YouTube

That hose you just remove it? Wash it? Then put it back? That's a throttle bottle cleaning? Cuz crap that looks so easy, I always wanted to work on my own car hahaha.

So can I remove this part and wash it in my bath tub? Just water? Soap and water? I'm a girl, I'd totally be trying to wash this with dish soap unless that's a bad idea.

& really spray a massflow in there with a toothbrush? that's all a do it yourself pretty much? INTERESTING.

Thanks guys.

 

Use the MAF and TB cleaning how-to's that can be found on this site.

MAF sensor is cleanned by spraying with MAF sensor cleaner only. No brush, no other cleaners. They are very sensitive.

Throttle body needs to be removed to clean thoroughly. If you were to spray clean it in place, all the dirt removed ends up in the combustion chamber and can foul the plugs. Perhaps you can find someone nearby that ca show you the ropes.

As far as fuel system cleaners go the three I mentioned above are the only ones I've found that actually effectively remove deposits.

Also, double check to make sure all connections and hoses are hooked up on the intake. It sure sounds like you have something more significant going on that is causing a lack of power to the degree you are describing...

Have you had the head issue that affected some '06's? If not, compare your VIN with the list on this site to determine if you fall into the range with the bad head. Perhaps you have a loss of compression in one or more cyclinders. That would be more indicative of the issue you are experiencing.