No Acceleration When Stepping On The Gas

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Muffin1259

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Hi All,

2001 Lincoln LS V8...87,000 miles...

Last evening on my way home I stopped at the gas station ...After putting in some gas I proceeded on my trip home only to not get any acceleration when putting my foot on the gas pedal... Was able to pull into a parking lot and phone AAA.

My car starts fine...(just put in an alternator 3 weeks ago)...It idles, but won't go over 1000 RPM...it won't rev... When the AAA guy got there he was able to touch the throttle and the car would rev... Any ideas what this could be before I meet with my mechanic this A.M.???

Also, AAA towed my car from the front (NOT on a flatbed as I had requested)...A 1/2 mile into the trip to the garage I noticed smoke coming from the back wheels...I made him stop and now the ABS light is on...Did they ruin my ABS???

Can't catch a break with this car!

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

Paula
 
Wait a second... they towed it from the front? I hope you had the car in neutral with the parking brake off. I don't know why they didn't just tow it from the rear though.
 
Paula,
I've had this issue before. I don't remember exactly what it was but it was simple. Some wire or something disconnected from the accelerator. Took the mechanic maybe a half an hour to get me back on the road. Good luck!
 
The plastic on the end of the throttle cable broke. It shouldn't be too bad to fix that.

The brakes will be more expensive to fix than the throttle cable, and if it got hot enough to kill an ABS sensor, you may need bearings too now.

That's still minor compared to the damage that may have been done to your transmission. You never, ever, pull a rear wheel drive car with an automatic with the rear wheels down. Most of the parts in the transmission spin with the rear wheels, but the transmission pump isn't running (unless he left the engine running), so there's no lubrication of these spinning parts. If he went very slowly and/or had the engine running, you may be okay.
 
Yup, parking brake off and in neutral...but horrible smell coming from the car and then smoke from the rear tires!!! Made him stop and call for a flat bed...Now the ABS light is on! Calling AAA now!!!
 
Muffin1259 said:
Yup, parking brake off and in neutral...but horrible smell coming from the car and then smoke from the rear tires!!! Made him stop and call for a flat bed...Now the ABS light is on! Calling AAA now!!!
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How fast was he going? If the parking brake was released and it was in neutral, it sounds like he seized your transmission.
 
Merk1n_Season said:
why not put it on a flatbed ?
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That's the only way I allow any of my cars (and truck) to be towed. This guy probably thought the LS was front wheel drive, or didn't understand why most cars need to be towed from the front these days. Anyway, the safe answer is always "flatbed."
 
Crazy thing is when I got to the gas station this morning to speak with the mechanic the car actually revved when I put my foot to the gas... Mechanic looked and did see what looked like a ring broken...Thinks that could be the problem...

Now as to the brakes and transmission....ABS light was still on...As I said smoke was coming from the tires and a horrible burning smell before I was able to get the tow truck to pull over... and get them to bring a flat bed... As to the transmission would the car have started this morning if it was ruined?...How will I know???

Just got off the phone with AAA and they are blowing smoke up my arse....Told me I need my mechanic to get a diagnostic and then their assessor will go and look at the car...Asked if that would be today...they said they would need to look at his schedule.

I really have a feeling I am royally screwed on this one!!! 30 year member of AAA and this is what I get.
 
PS...Asked for a flat bed in my initial call to AAA...Always towed that way...And, when the gentleman with the flatbed finally came when I insisted on it. I was told he was actually on his way to my car when he got held up on another tow...So, they knew I had asked...
 
Oh and also told them in my initial call and initial meeting with the tower that the car was rear wheel drive!
 
The car will still start if the transmission is toast; it just won't be able to go anywhere under its own power (at least, not very far).
 
Okay, I'm a woman and pretty stupid when it comes to these things...Will the mechanic be able to tell it's the tranny right off the bat?... And, how do I go about proving that the tow did it???
 
Know I'm being a pain...But, could the transmission be toast in that short of a drive? Could it be something that rears up at a later date...Or would my mechanic know right away?
 
Muffin1259 said:
Will the mechanic be able to tell it's the tranny right off the bat?... And, how do I go about proving that the tow did it???
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A decent mechanic should be able to diagnose transmission problems fairly quickly. The tow truck driver was, from your description, both negligent and incompetent, so I'd doubt you'd have a problem getting this resolved to your satisfaction (assuming that you're a reasonable person, not someone who's thinking she just hit the jackpot).
 
Muffin1259 said:
Know I'm being a pain...But, could the transmission be toast in that short of a drive? Could it be something that rears up at a later date...Or would my mechanic know right away?
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Yes, it can be toast in a short drive. Not a certainty, but it can be.

Yes, it can be damaged now such that it won't fail till later.

Your mechanic may or may not know right away. If the damage is major, it will be clear when he tries it. If the damage is minor, it won't be noticed without a teardown of the transmission. A teardown is expensive and I doubt anyone would be willing to pay for that.

Let's see what the mechanic finds before we discuss all the things that might be done about it.
 
My opinion....skip your mechanic unless it's a Lincoln Dealer......take it to a Dealer on this one.
 
purevilpleasure said:
My opinion....skip your mechanic unless it's a Lincoln Dealer......take it to a Dealer on this one.
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I agree, take it to the Lincoln Dealer. They can tell you better than just an average mechanic. You definitely want to know if something is wrong now rather than later so it doesn't come back and bite you in the as s.
 
Definitely don't want to hit the jackpot (over this anyway)!!! Just want what they did to my vehicle fixed... Still waiting to hear from the mechanic...a little nervous it's taking this long... AAA said he can't fix anything until they have their assessor come and take a look after his diagnostics...

As far as the dealer, been burned way too many times to take it back there again!!! And, not their favorite after the I used the After Warranty Adjustment back in the day!
 
Muffin1259 said:
Definitely don't want to hit the jackpot (over this anyway)!!! Just want what they did to my vehicle fixed... Still waiting to hear from the mechanic...a little nervous it's taking this long... AAA said he can't fix anything until they have their assessor come and take a look after his diagnostics...

As far as the dealer, been burned way too many times to take it back there again!!! And, not their favorite after the I used the After Warranty Adjustment back in the day!
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So go to a different dealer. Someone who is a 20+ year expert on LINCOLN CARS will know more about what to look for than Joe the Mechanic. When something like this happens (where someone else is paying for it because it's their mistake) don't take short cuts.
 
dunndarryn said:
So go to a different dealer. Someone who is a 20+ year expert on LINCOLN CARS will know more about what to look for than Joe the Mechanic. When something like this happens (where someone else is paying for it because it's their mistake) don't take short cuts.
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I think she's kind of stuck with where she's had it towed to. I agree that a good dealer is better than most other "mechanics," but I'd be willing to wait and see what the guy she took it to has to say. If he and the "assessor" disagree, I'd shoot for the dealer to be the tie breaker.

Muffin1259 please post back as exactly as you can what the mechanic has to say once he's evaluated it.
 
My mechanic just phone and said he needs a throttle body clip...Dealer says they don't make that part...That it has to be the entire throttle body...$400 Does anyone know where a clip can be bought???


As far as the ABS light, it is now off...He can't drive the car until he gets this part.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks in advance!
 
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