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2009 Toyota Camry. At first my battery was flat, this has happened 3 times in the past 2 months. The last time this happened, I jump started it and went to take my car for a drive. As I placed my foot on the accelerator nothing happened. There was no rev or anything. The check engine light was on. I checked the water and oil level, everything was fine. The car has been running smoothly prior to this happening. No signs of any problems other than the battery.

I took it to ultra tune and the guy told me that he thinks there is a problem with the compression which means that, there could be problems with the head and will be very expensive... is this right?. Could it be something else?

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  • Welcome to the site. We thrive on information, and we might need a little more to help you. Why is the check engine light on? You might have compression or head issues, but that would have nothing to do with the accelerator not working at all. I guess the accelerator works sometimes, because you were able to drive to a shop?
    – JPhi1618
    Commented Feb 4, 2016 at 13:56
  • Welcome to the site. That Check Engine Light means that the car is trying to tell you something. Please tell us what errors you get. This post may help
    – Zaid
    Commented Feb 4, 2016 at 13:59
  • Thanks alot for your reply and welcome!. To be honest i don't know anything about cars. All i know is when i went to drive the car and place my foot down the car would not go. Its an automatic so when placed in drive and reverse it gose by itself. But as i put my foot in the acceleratoe petal nothing happens. Not sure why the engline light is on. It just came on after i jump start the car. I had to get the car tow to the shop.
    – cee
    Commented Feb 4, 2016 at 14:02
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    I guess I just don't understand why the shop was even looking at your compression because it's not related to the accelerator issue at all. Sounds like you need to get more details from them. Ask specifically why the accelerator wasn't working and why the check engine light was on.
    – JPhi1618
    Commented Feb 4, 2016 at 14:06
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    #1 is to get the code checked to figure out why the check engine light is on. Parts stores usually do this for free. If this car is drive by wire, it could be a bad sensor or motor. There could be an alternator/voltage issue causing your battery to die and ECU to get confused by sensor readings.
    – rpmerf
    Commented Feb 4, 2016 at 14:22

3 Answers 3

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One possibility, if this is a diesel engined vehicle. Modern diesels are "fly by wire" for the throttle. They have an electrical sensor on the throttle that the engine ECU reads. If this sensor has broken, then the ECU won't know that you are pressing the throttle, therefore the ECU won't speed up the engine.

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  • Thanks alot, when we jump started the car, the wire that connects to the ECU got fried. Thats why the accelerator wouldnt work. All due to a 2 month old faulty battery.
    – cee
    Commented Feb 9, 2016 at 9:14
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Check the ETCS fuse in the underhood fuse box more than likely it's blown. It should be an ATM-10 fuse.

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The ECM (computer) develops parameters over time during its operating life. One of the most important inputs it requires and uses daily is throttle position. This input controls fuel delivery under load, wide open throttle, idle, transmission kickdown (automatic) and cruise. The problem with throttle position switches is that they are a potentiometer with a moving component to send a signal to the ECU. Over many years this friction wears out the potentiometer, however the ECU retains the parameter information and doesn't much care over time for this wear. However, when you disconnect the battery, this memory is lost and the ECU then has no idea of the throttle position due to the mechanical wear of the TPS. End result being a computer with no idea how to deliver fuel over an operating range. The best solution is to buy or borrow a new TPS from a reliable source, and drive the car for about twenty minutes under various conditions. This causes the ECM to "relearn" and if you keep 12v power constant when you replace the donor TPS with the old TPS, you can return the new TPS to whomever you received it from, and the computer will be back to its old self. The end result is your car is running fine (for its age!) and you wont have any starting issues with your new battery!

For clarification, the acronyms "ECU and "ECM" are the same item, I use these abbreviations in everyday speak, ECU stands for "electronic control unit" and ECM stands for "electronic control module' they both refer to the same component.

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