1997 2.4 0-60 in 30 seconds!! im in a pickle, not sure what it could be please help.

Hello guys, i just picked up a 1997 Tacoma to use as a daily driver and first thing first was to do all the maintenance on it and check everything. Everything checked out so i took it for a driver and it drove just fine, but when i would step on it it seems like it has good power for a 2.4 up to 3,000-3,500 RPM, after that it feels like someone stuck a sock into the intake, it feels like it starts loosing power, either not getting air or fuel or something. I decided to do a 0-60 test and got up to 60 in 30 whopping seconds haha, however 0-40 it picks up fairly good for a 2.4

1996 Tacoma 2.4 with 97,000 AT
1 owner, from CA, no hitch, no ball on bumper, and no trailer light connectors, so it never pulled anything.

Bellow are things i did and things i check so far.

- Engine compression: 195, 180, 175, 195
- Spark plugs changed
- Spark plug wires changed
- Engine oil and filter changed: Royal Purple 10W 30 synthetic
- Transmission fluid drained and replaced: Royal Purple Max ATF H-Perf
- Rear end fluid drained: Royal Purple

$30 75W-90 Synthetic Gear Lube - 1 Quart (Pack of 2)

75W-90 Synthetic H-Perf
- Air filter changed: WIX air filter
- MAF sensor checked and really clean
- No engine codes at the moment


So seems like engine is healthy, everything seems good, few more things i can think of is to:

- Run a can of Sea foam through the intake, through the gas tank
- Change fuel pump as it might be clogged up or not working properly to provide enough gas at higher RPMs
- Change Fuel filter as it might be heavily clogged
- Pull and clean all fuel Injectors

Anyone had a similar problems, or can suggest anything please? thx guys.

 

Sounds like you might have a clogged cat. Awesome truck BTW... looks like it's got some stories haha

 

my first thought too. it can really kill power.

 

well the cat is brand new

The good news is, its all good now, i decided to drive the truck some more and shifts got better and doesnt seem to have any power loss after 3k as before.

My guess is, after i drained the tranny and refilled it, i should have driven it a few miles more and shifted through all the gears manually, after driving it for 5-10 miles around the street the shift felt better.

i decided to give it another run at 0-60 and it got it done in 12 seconds, which was impressive for the little 2.4 .

I will still go ahead and change the fuel filter and possibly check out the fuel pump filter inside the tank also when the fuel gets low just to finish up all of the maintenance properly.

im glad the problme solved itself... for once!

 

At 30 seconds you were still twice as fast as I drive.

 

12 sounds about right, glad you got her sorted out

 

Mine just did the same thing (2.7 5-speed). Felt like I was pulling a sled, and it dug deeper the more gas I gave it. I pulled the spark plug wires while running to see if a coil was bad. (#4 looked like it was weak.) Plugged it back in. Drove it for about another mile or so, and it just went away. Truck runs fine now, plenty of power.