loss of power, engine is louder, has less power than before Options

[celicamike]

Hey guys, I did a search but didn't find anything useful. I've noticed that my '94 GT has been kind of sluggish recently. It takes forever to accelerate, particularly when going uphill, and it kind of sputters/hesitates when I wind it over 3500 RPM. I've also observed that the engine becomes much louder when I put it under a load, almost like a exhaust leak. Anyway, the car idles fine and there is nothing unusual when cruising once I get up to speed. Have any of you experienced this or have any idea what the problem is? I don't have any apparent vacuum leaks, and the compression was great. The car is pretty old though, with 213,000 miles. I'm thinking that I might need new plug wires and distributor cap and rotor, since the ones I have now are presumably the originals. What do you guys think, could this be the answer to my problem? I appreciate your help. Thanks.

[silver6gc]

bccentaur3 Posted Jan 5, 2009 - 11:43 AM
To find out if your clutch is bad you can put it into fifth gear and act likes its in first and let go of the clutch as usual and it should grab. If your car stalls right away your clutch is still good. A sign of a worn clutch is when your revs get higher and your car barely moves.

wow...that is an incredibly good way to have a bad clutch if you didnt before. there are much better ways of checking your clutch than that.