Why does your car shake vigorously when you accelerate mostly going uphill?

Answer 1

Hi! I am no mechanic, but will try to offer a few explanations. It is very possible that your clutch has worn out. The clutch essentially consists of two plates which contact when your foot is off the clutch pedal ( or when you are not changing gear in an automatic). The stress of going uphill could be causing the two plates to slip against each other before grabbing again, causing the car to shudder as power is abrubtly applied to the wheels in a staccato way. There may be a smell of burning too. Alternatively, perhaps the engine may not be running on all cylinders, which will result in a clunky sound, or the timing may be out, which will result in what is called pinking. (see the wikipedia site). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engine_knocking

Hope this helps.