I've got a 2000 civic and it has issues accelerating when it's super cold. After the car has been idle for a while in cold temperatures, it struggles to turn on and when I put it into drive, the car kicks a little. I let off the brake but there's no movement, then I hit the gas pedal and the rpm goes up but actual acceleration is verrrrrry sluggish. It'll only accelerate semi normally if Im in the lowest gear and if I pop into d3-d4 it's still sluggish. That's off a cold start. First time it happened.. I drove 40 mins with poor acceleration the entire trip, however if I warm up the car for 10-15 mins, turn it off, then turn it back on, it'll accelerate normally in d4. this only happens when its below 30 degrees. Warmer than that I haven't had any problems with starting or accelerating. Although the car struggles little if the fuel tank is below half. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

Is the check engine light on? Has any regular maintenance tune up parts been done? Mileage?

 

The light has been on for years.. something to do with the o2 sensor i think. No real tune up. Mileage 94749

 

So no regular maintenance besides maybe oil changes and you wonder why the car is starting to give you problems?

 

Aside from oil changes or if the mechanic tells me something needs to be done then its done. And im not wondering why its giving me problems im wondering what the problem is so i can fix it. Lol thanks for ur super helpful comment tho.

 

The point being made is you neglecting maintenance probably led to this issue I've never heard about before. I never noticed that you mentioned anything about even checking the fluid. That doesn't require a mechanic to do.

 

If I knew what fluid to check I'd check it. Sorry, I know nothing about cars.

 

Then I wouldn't waste my time asking on a forum. Take it to your mechanic.

My advice is to get a basic manual on your car and educate yourself. At the very least you should be able to check fluid levels.

 

Lol I've dealt with car issues on a forum for my prelude before and was successful because they provided helpful feedback. I was tryin to save some money to see if it's a problem I could fix relatively easily on my own so i came here to see if anyone's had similar problems or know what the problem could be but clearly I was wrong. Thanks again for your help. Haaa

 

Dude. I understand, but if you don't even know how to check fluids then I don't know what to tell you. That you don't even have a clue as to WHAT fluids you have to check leaves me scratching my head. I just Googled how to check transmission fluid and got Youtube videos. There's no excuse not knowing.

And you have a CEL on that you obviously have disregarded for years. Absolutely no excuses plausible for not getting that fixed. If you do indeed have a CEL for O2 then you may have issues regarding that. If it's from neglecting the transmission then it might be that.

Your mechanic charges you just to look at something? The one I use, when I use them, doesn't.