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I was merging onto a busy highway yesterday and my car started to shudder when I tried to accelerate to match the flow of traffic. I got up to speed, but it felt like the engine was struggling and I was worried I’d cause a problem for the cars behind me. Has anyone else dealt with this kind of hesitation during a merge?

Yeah I’ve had this happen during a merge. The engine shuddered as I tried to speed up and I felt it hesitate. I eased into a bigger gap, let a few cars go by, then tried again and finally matched the flow.

One time last winter it did that on a cold start, ramp to the highway. It recovered after a few seconds, but I kept a longer merge lane and watched the mirrors more than usual.

I checked the revs and listened for a rough spark, but it just sounded stressed for a moment. After I was on the highway, the rest of the trip was fine.

Did you notice any check engine light or a misfire before you got back into traffic?

I had a similar scare and I pulled over once to check oil level and fuel quality; nothing obvious, then I tried merging again and it went smoother.

A buddy said maybe it was the fuel pump or cold fuel issue; not sure, but it made me nervous enough to log the miles and monitor.

Sometimes I wonder if the real problem is ramp curvature or timing more than the engine struggle. I kept thinking about it later, then realized I overreacted and kept a safer buffer next time.

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