Hesitation on acceleration in a manual
Hesitation on acceleration in a manual
Hey everybody. I am new to the forum and that's because I am new owner or a 2009 G37s manual sedan. Car has 44k miles on it. It's doing something strange and was hoping to get some advice or thoughts what could be the issue...
So I will randomly but frequently (typically at least once every time I drive) experience a hesitation when I accelerate. It seems to be completely random and doesn't matter how hard I am accelerating. The hesitation is typically 1-2 seconds. Feels like I quickly let of the gas completely then press right back down. In addition, if I floor it, I have noticed on several occasions the rpms increase very slowly. (Ie: in 3rd gear doing 40mph and I floor it, rpm climbs about 100rpms per second). Lastly I have noticed the brake lights randomly flicker after I turn off the car. It will do that until I pull up on brake.
from what I have read on here, I have tried resetting ecu as cleaned the throttle bodies with no change. Also topped off the brake fluid. Did a diagnostic check and it's throwing error code C1116 which is stop lamp switch (No CEL though). Is the stop lamp switch the same as the brake light switch? Could that being faulty cause both problems?
any thoughts are greatly appreciated thanks
So I will randomly but frequently (typically at least once every time I drive) experience a hesitation when I accelerate. It seems to be completely random and doesn't matter how hard I am accelerating. The hesitation is typically 1-2 seconds. Feels like I quickly let of the gas completely then press right back down. In addition, if I floor it, I have noticed on several occasions the rpms increase very slowly. (Ie: in 3rd gear doing 40mph and I floor it, rpm climbs about 100rpms per second). Lastly I have noticed the brake lights randomly flicker after I turn off the car. It will do that until I pull up on brake.
from what I have read on here, I have tried resetting ecu as cleaned the throttle bodies with no change. Also topped off the brake fluid. Did a diagnostic check and it's throwing error code C1116 which is stop lamp switch (No CEL though). Is the stop lamp switch the same as the brake light switch? Could that being faulty cause both problems?
any thoughts are greatly appreciated thanks
Last edited by Scottfreidel; Feb 21, 2018 at 05:12 PM. Reason: New title
the clutch feels good I do feel some resistance and grinding only going into 5th but don't think that would be related and the issue i am having happens in 2nd through 5th. To me it feels a little stiff in all gears, but I am coming from a tsx ,civic, and I did own a g37s 2008 coupe for a year. If I recall the sedan is a little more tight then the coupe was, but again coming from a tsx where it's a lot more loose. So maybe that's what I am use to lately. It's not slipping tho at all if that's what you mean
the clutch feels good I do feel some resistance and grinding only going into 5th but don't think that would be related and the issue i am having happens in 2nd through 5th. To me it feels a little stiff in all gears, but I am coming from a tsx ,civic, and I did own a g37s 2008 coupe for a year. If I recall the sedan is a little more tight then the coupe was, but again coming from a tsx where it's a lot more loose. So maybe that's what I am use to lately. It's not slipping tho at all if that's what you mean
If I remember correctly, the car should be at 3k at 80mph. Just how the gear ratio is for the car. My car does hesitate off the line sometimes when I'd just released the clutch like normal but immediately get on it. It feels like it's bogging but kicks back to normal in like half a second. Not sure what that's about.
3k rpms sounds correct for 80mph with the 6MT. still too high imo, but that's the stock gearing.
by 3k rpms our cars are making decent power and we are getting closer to where things get interesting. certainly by 3500 rpm you should notice strong response. below 2k rpms there can be weaker acceleration particularly if you are lugging a taller gear.
for instance, if i coast to a slow speed in 2nd/3rd but then hit the gas again, there is a couple seconds where not much happens as the tach slowly climbs. if i need to accelerate quickly i downshift to as low a gear as is practical and carry on. this is similar to every manual car i've ever owned though and is considered normal.
i do notice in certain conditions the g37 feels hesitant to accelerate, usually in the 2k rpm range and even in lower gears. must just be a characteristic of our power band. kind of feels like turbo lag, which of course it isn't. it gets slightly better after an ECU reset, but returns after a few days.
never bothered me enough to sell the car. i just know that if i want spirited response, i need to keep revs in the 3k+ rpm range.
oh, and error code C1116 has nothing to do with the engine response.
by 3k rpms our cars are making decent power and we are getting closer to where things get interesting. certainly by 3500 rpm you should notice strong response. below 2k rpms there can be weaker acceleration particularly if you are lugging a taller gear.
for instance, if i coast to a slow speed in 2nd/3rd but then hit the gas again, there is a couple seconds where not much happens as the tach slowly climbs. if i need to accelerate quickly i downshift to as low a gear as is practical and carry on. this is similar to every manual car i've ever owned though and is considered normal.
i do notice in certain conditions the g37 feels hesitant to accelerate, usually in the 2k rpm range and even in lower gears. must just be a characteristic of our power band. kind of feels like turbo lag, which of course it isn't. it gets slightly better after an ECU reset, but returns after a few days.
never bothered me enough to sell the car. i just know that if i want spirited response, i need to keep revs in the 3k+ rpm range.
oh, and error code C1116 has nothing to do with the engine response.
If you are getting a random hesitation you could also look at the spark plugs and also the mafs. That would be my next few things to check out. Stop lamp is the brake light, unrelated but get it fixed when you can.
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You should be at 2950 RPM for 80MPH. Is there any difference in throttle response when you have traction control off?
Stock TQ at 3K is nothing special so you can't expect huge snap. When I was NA with intake, ART pipes, and exhaust it was only 235 TQ. I wouldn't expect the "bog" or hesitation you are describing though. I don't get good throttle response till I am in the 4K range
Stock TQ at 3K is nothing special so you can't expect huge snap. When I was NA with intake, ART pipes, and exhaust it was only 235 TQ. I wouldn't expect the "bog" or hesitation you are describing though. I don't get good throttle response till I am in the 4K range
Hey everybody. I am new to the forum and that's because I am new owner or a 2009 G37s manual sedan. Car has 44k miles on it. It's doing something strange and was hoping to get some advice or thoughts what could be the issue...
So I will randomly but frequently (typically at least once every time I drive) experience a hesitation when I accelerate. It seems to be completely random and doesn't matter how hard I am accelerating. The hesitation is typically 1-2 seconds. Feels like I quickly let of the gas completely then press right back down. In addition, if I floor it, I have noticed on several occasions the rpms increase very slowly. (Ie: in 3rd gear doing 40mph and I floor it, rpm climbs about 100rpms per second). Lastly I have noticed the brake lights randomly flicker after I turn off the car. It will do that until I pull up on brake.
from what I have read on here, I have tried resetting ecu as cleaned the throttle bodies with no change. Also topped off the brake fluid. Did a diagnostic check and it's throwing error code C1116 which is stop lamp switch (No CEL though). Is the stop lamp switch the same as the brake light switch? Could that being faulty cause both problems?
any thoughts are greatly appreciated thanks
So I will randomly but frequently (typically at least once every time I drive) experience a hesitation when I accelerate. It seems to be completely random and doesn't matter how hard I am accelerating. The hesitation is typically 1-2 seconds. Feels like I quickly let of the gas completely then press right back down. In addition, if I floor it, I have noticed on several occasions the rpms increase very slowly. (Ie: in 3rd gear doing 40mph and I floor it, rpm climbs about 100rpms per second). Lastly I have noticed the brake lights randomly flicker after I turn off the car. It will do that until I pull up on brake.
from what I have read on here, I have tried resetting ecu as cleaned the throttle bodies with no change. Also topped off the brake fluid. Did a diagnostic check and it's throwing error code C1116 which is stop lamp switch (No CEL though). Is the stop lamp switch the same as the brake light switch? Could that being faulty cause both problems?
any thoughts are greatly appreciated thanks
I have the same problem at ~85k, but it’s been happening since I bought the car at 35k. Also a 6mt.
I’ve tried intakes, cleaning throttle bodies, grounding throttle bodies, etc. All these things improved the throttle response somewhat, but that is NOT the issue.
This is why I hate the “just use a sprint booster, everything will be great” response. If the issue were poor throttle response unilaterally in all conditions, then maybe that type of a bandaid fix would do it (though not as a substitute for a tune or throttle table adjustments).
The issue is consistency. At times, the car feels nothing short of amazing. Razor sharp precision, immediate jerk at any RPM when pressing the go-pedal, etc. Other times, it is sluggish, slow to rev in neutral, delayed response after input, slow or bogged acceleration, etc.
It’s a DRASTIC difference, and isn’t a matter of improving throttle response across the board, but rather addressing some issue that’s causing major throttle response problems as a symptom under certain conditions.
I see see a ton of threads about this, but has anyone come across an example of someone having this issue and then solving it successfully?
I’ve tried intakes, cleaning throttle bodies, grounding throttle bodies, etc. All these things improved the throttle response somewhat, but that is NOT the issue.
This is why I hate the “just use a sprint booster, everything will be great” response. If the issue were poor throttle response unilaterally in all conditions, then maybe that type of a bandaid fix would do it (though not as a substitute for a tune or throttle table adjustments).
The issue is consistency. At times, the car feels nothing short of amazing. Razor sharp precision, immediate jerk at any RPM when pressing the go-pedal, etc. Other times, it is sluggish, slow to rev in neutral, delayed response after input, slow or bogged acceleration, etc.
It’s a DRASTIC difference, and isn’t a matter of improving throttle response across the board, but rather addressing some issue that’s causing major throttle response problems as a symptom under certain conditions.
I see see a ton of threads about this, but has anyone come across an example of someone having this issue and then solving it successfully?
Hey guys, dont want to bring an old thread back from the dead, but in case someone ever reads this with similar issues, they will see a resolution. Turns out the problem I was having was caused by a faulty brake light switch. After replacing it, I havent had any of the hesitation issues.







