I don't go ragging my car about, but there are a few occassions when I have to pull out straight on to a fast road and get up to speed quickly to avoid someone rear ending my motor. I've noticed that when I pull away quickly in first, then up to second, the car does ok, but when I go up to third, there seems to be just as much acceleration in 3rd from about 3000rpm as there is in 2nd at about 5000rpm, and once 3rd gets upto about 5000rpm the car really comes alive. I.e. 1st and 2nd seem to be restricted a bit. Is this normal? The car is a 1994 940 estate with the normally aspirated 2.3 petrol engine (B230F if I'm not mistaken).

Hi, Could be due to the gearing on those lower gears, perhaps? Des. . . ;)

What about the rotor arm? Was it only 200's that had speed limiting rotor arms?

Start with a good stage zero tune, oil and filter, air and fuel filters, plugs leads rotor and dizzy cap. No air leaks were unmetered air is getting in around the inlet manifold?

The ecu doesn't know what gear (if any) you are in. The only way to tell what's really going on is to use an accelerometer.

Thanks, but it doesn't really lack power (not for what it is anyway, 130ish bhp to pull that massive great tank it does ok). Its just that the power seems to drop off towards the higher revs, but only in lower gears. One idea did spring to mind. The air intake is at the front pointing forward (as on just about all cars), so logic would suggest that at higher speed the air pressure at the front of the car, and at the entrance to the air intake will be greater than at lower speeds. That being the case the engine will have to work harder to suck air in when revving fast at lower speed (ie in first 2 gears). I'm going to just live with it, because I reckon its just me being picky.