2zz-GE hesitating

[JohnInDenver]

At fairly regular intervals at 3,200 4,400 5,500 and especially at 6,800 there is what feels like brief loss of power followed by acceleration. It is as if one spark plug misfires or it is not getting either enough air or fuel. It is a 6 speed with the 17 Inch rims. Except for misfiring it is in excellent condition.

I just bought this car. It is a 2003. It has 60,000 miles, origional spark plugs and has been drive at or above 5,200 feet all it's life. I doubt it has ever experienced premium gasoline. It has all the repair receipts (just regular oil changes, new tires and two windshields replaced). The air filter was recently changed. The fuel filter not. I've not had any codes checked yet. Haven't had it long enough to check gas mileage.

Any suggestions?

[acrylucs]

Umm yeah. ok if its never seen premium gasoline, it's going to hesitate. the 2zz REQUIRES 91+ octane or the ECU will hold back the engine. empty the crappy gas, an put in some premium. after that, disconect the battery to reset the ECU and try it again. If its hesitating like you say it is at intervals that the computer messing with the timings to stop any pinging.

[JohnInDenver]

Thanks. Worth a try.

[cosmicbluexrs]

I would never put anything less than 91 octane in my ride it gets 94 octane regularly.
Putting regular gas 87-89 etc is just asking for future trouble. Why buy a car for all that it offers then cheapo on gas? is beyond me, then when problems arise blame the car!

Well my suggestion from now on put the highest octane you can get and the lowest should be 91 as stated. Sorry nothing personal but this just gets me when owners do crap like this, and seeing you inherited this from bozo who think nothing of it to put regular gas in, well he shouldn't be let out of the circus again

[silver04rollas]

Originally Posted by cosmicbluexrs

I would never put anything less than 91 octane in my ride it gets 94 octane regularly.

^^^

Werd. I use Octane 94 90% of the time. Reading the user manual is a good thing. It states clearly "Minimum Octane 91 or higher". With a 11:5:1 compression ratio, excessive premature detonation in the cylinders with lower Octane can cause damage to the engine in the long run.

[JohnInDenver]

WELL ..... Put 91 Octane in a nearly empty gas tank. It was suggested to also disconnect the battery to reset the computer. On the Tacoma Territory Off Road Association (TTORA) I learned the on board computer will usually reset by itself if given a little time. I did not want to reprogram the stations on the radio so the battery stayed connected. After two 7 mile drives and 91 octane the hesitation went away at all rpms.

THANKS ACRULYCS.