A dirty air filter can cause your car to jerk as it can restrict airflow to the engine and hinder the combustion process although a dirty air filter is not the common causes of a car to jerk but it can be a cause of car jerking.
Most often though when you have a dirty air filter you might have poor acceleration or increased fuel consumption, unusual engine noises, check engine light, misfiring, decreased acceleration, sometimes black smoke from the exhaust and reduced engine performance.
Things that causes a car to jerk are transmission issues, transmission slippage, low transmission fluid, engine misfires, low fuel pressure, bad spark plugs, clogged or dirty fuel injectors, clogged air filters, clogged fuel filter, bad ignition coil or even faulty fuel injectors.
Problems with the engine, transmission, fuel system or even the suspension could cause a car to jerk.
If the car is jerking upon acceleration it could be a result of a loose connection to the transmission where the wiring harness plugs into the transmission.
That happened to my car before and after unplugging and plugging the wire harness back into the transmission it fixed the issue.
In some cases it could be dirty transmission fluid and or a clogged transmission filter or the transmission may be slipping and going out.
A clogged fuel filter can starve the engine of fuel and cause the engine to sputter and jerk when driving.
Even worn or fouled spark plugs can cause misfires and lead to a jerking sensation of the car, especially during acceleration.
Dirty or clogged fuel injections can prevent proper fuel pressure and fuel delivery to the engines injectors and cause the engine to run rough and jerk.
And even a dirty air filter or clogged air filter can cause a car to jerk in some cases as a clogged air filter restricts the airflow to the engine, and hinders the combustion process and can cause the car to jerk.
Other things that can cause a car to jerk are a clogged catalytic converter as well as a malfunctioning mass airflow sensor.
A mass airflow sensor measures the amount of air that enters the engine, if faulty, it can result in improper fuel and air mixture in the engine and result in the car jerking.
A clogged catalytic converter can also restrict the exhaust flow and cause engine performance issues and jerking as well.
And even issues with your transmission like worn clutches, worn bands, faulty torque converters, sensor issues and dirty or clogged transmission filters and dirty or low transmission fluid can cause jerking, especially as the transmission changes gears.
And if the flywheel does not engage properly it can also cause your car to jerk during acceleration or even having damaged suspension parts such as damaged or bad ball joints or bad or damaged control arms can cause your car to jerk and or bounce during acceleration.