Lost power going up a hill

[Robink]

Yesterday out in the backcountry I encountered a very steep hill. Probably 18% grade, dirt, rock and gravel, a 1/4 mile to the top. My car is a 21 BB 1.5, lifted with excellent tires. I put it in Low well before I started up. Halfway up I completely lost power. It almost completely stopped. I couldn't tell whether it was running or not or whether it couldn't shift down. In a panic I floored it and what I think happened was the turbo kicked in? It spun gravel and flew up the rest of the hill like a rocket ?. I drive roads like this all the time just not that sustained steep and this has never happened before. This morning I stopped in at the service dept of my dealer and they had never heard such a thing. Anyone here have any ideas? It's running like normal though. Thanks!!!

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[RushMan]

Yesterday out in the backcountry I encountered a very steep hill. Probably 18% grade, dirt, rock and gravel, a 1/4 mile to the top. My car is a 21 BB 1.5, lifted with excellent tires. I put it in Low well before I started up. Halfway up I completely lost power. It almost completely stopped. I couldn't tell whether it was running or not or whether it couldn't shift down. In a panic I floored it and what I think happened was the turbo kicked in? It spun gravel and flew up the rest of the hill like a rocket ?. I drive roads like this all the time just not that sustained steep and this has never happened before. This morning I stopped in at the service dept of my dealer and they had never heard such a thing. Anyone here have any ideas? It's running like normal though. Thanks!!!

Possibly an overheated transmission or PTU?

 

[Robink]

Possibly an overheated transmission or PTU?

Nothing lit up on the dash. It was strange and disconcerting.

 

[BLUEOVALRACER]

Yesterday out in the backcountry I encountered a very steep hill. Probably 18% grade, dirt, rock and gravel, a 1/4 mile to the top. My car is a 21 BB 1.5, lifted with excellent tires. I put it in Low well before I started up. Halfway up I completely lost power. It almost completely stopped. I couldn't tell whether it was running or not or whether it couldn't shift down. In a panic I floored it and what I think happened was the turbo kicked in? It spun gravel and flew up the rest of the hill like a rocket ?. I drive roads like this all the time just not that sustained steep and this has never happened before. This morning I stopped in at the service dept of my dealer and they had never heard such a thing. Anyone here have any ideas? It's running like normal though. Thanks!!!

The Turbo Kicked in?The Turbos are always spinning just not very fast at lower rpms.

 

[Mark S.]

It could've been any number of things. For example, on a steep grade like that the fuel in your tank will flow to one side. It's possible that a combination of the steep grade and going over a rock uncovered the fuel pickup in the tank causing a momentary loss of power. Or perhaps the bouncing around caused water or debris in the tank to migrate to the fuel pickup momentarily blocking it.

Alternatively, it may have been a simple matter of perception. Perhaps you were jostled around enough in your seat to change the position of your foot on the pedal and you thought you were pressing harder on it than you actually were. Once you pressed the pedal to the floor the car responded appropriately.

Without a trouble code it will be difficult if not impossible to know definitively what happened.

 

[Bucko]

I'd try that hill again just to see if any of Mark's points are the issue.

 

[Robink]

These are all excellent points.
There was a little more than three quarters of a tank of fuel in it.
Could my foot have come off the pedal? Yes! I have always had a problem in this vehicle. I'm 5'5" and in order to get myself out of the hole of the low seat so I can see better, I have had to raise the seat as high as it can go. What that also does is take my foot farther away from the pedal. There is no other way the seat will adjust to be higher. City roads I don't mind being in a hole but not on the terrain I drive. I have to see over the hood.
This is the only vehicle I've ever had do this and it's very annoying.
I even put a pedal cover on the gas pedal to raise it up. You guy's really have got me wondering if my foot came off the pedal while the car was bouncing up the hill.
I don't remember that happening but it's plausible. When I get the chance to get back out there - it's a couple of hours away - I'll be sure to note exactly what my foot is doing on the pedal and see what happens again on that hill. I almost did that but it was getting late in the day and it kind of spooked me.
Thanks for your well though out answers. I appreciate y'all!!!!

 

[Mark S.]

I have had to raise the seat as high as it can go. What that also does is take my foot farther away from the pedal.

Plus, you're (presumably) getting jostled by going over an uneven surface, which can certainly impact the way your foot is touching the pedal. This would be especially true if you are already reaching to get your foot on the pedal in the first place.

My EcoBoost Mustang had in interesting quirk. Like the Bronco Sport, the Mustang's throttle response increased considerably in SPORT mode, enough that it could lead to difficulty modulating throttle in 1st gear (it was a 6-speed manual). If I stepped too hard on the throttle the sudden, rapid acceleration would throw me--and my foot--backward far enough to take some foot pressure off the pedal. That would cause an abrupt deceleration which would throw me--and my foot--forward, causing an abrupt acceleration. Rinse, lather, repeat and all of a sudden you're bucking down the road with the rear wheels chirping every time your foot hits the pedal. It was kinda funny the first time it happened.

 

[NMhunter]

That does seem like a plauible explanation. I've had my foot slip of the pedal, and lost power. As you said, it is disconcerting.

 

[sajohnson]

Plus, you're (presumably) getting jostled by going over an uneven surface, which can certainly impact the way your foot is touching the pedal. This would be especially true if you are already reaching to get your foot on the pedal in the first place.

My EcoBoost Mustang had in interesting quirk. Like the Bronco Sport, the Mustang's throttle response increased considerably in SPORT mode, enough that it could lead to difficulty modulating throttle in 1st gear (it was a 6-speed manual). If I stepped too hard on the throttle the sudden, rapid acceleration would throw me--and my foot--backward far enough to take some foot pressure off the pedal. That would cause an abrupt deceleration which would throw me--and my foot--forward, causing an abrupt acceleration. Rinse, lather, repeat and all of a sudden you're bucking down the road with the rear wheels chirping every time your foot hits the pedal. It was kinda funny the first time it happened.

No, really officer I swear it wasn't intentional...

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