Car Tips: Symptoms Of A Dirty Throttle Body And How To Clean It

Your vehicle is an intricate piece of machinery that requires a little service from time to time. For example, your throttle body may need some cleaning. But you do not have to take it into the shop to do that. The following will help you clean your throttle body and find out if that is your problem. 

Symptoms of a Dirty Throttle Body

The throttle body gives you control over the speed of your vehicle. The throttle body allows air to speed up your car by sensing how much you are pressing on your gas pedal. 

The following are the most common symptoms of a dirty throttle body:

  1. Your vehicle will idle roughly, as the throttle plates close erratically. 
  2. Your car's mileage may diminish drastically due to the fact that your throttle plates won't close. So your vehicle's computer will try to overcompensate the extra air coming into your vehicle with more gasoline. 
  3. You might experience stalling or poor acceleration. The throttle body may get stuck before opening, and it won't let in enough air to keep your engine running. 

The aforementioned symptoms are usually associated with your throttle body, but it can also be a bad fuel filter. So talk to your auto repair specialist to further investigate your vehicle's problems should the problem continue after you cleaned the throttle body. 

How to Clean Your Throttle Body

You will need the following to get started:

  • A screwdriver
  • Nut driver with different sized nuts to make sure you can find the one your vehicle needs.
  • Throttle body cleaner spray
  • Small steel brush
  • Clean towel

To clean your throttle body, just follow the steps below. Start this project after your car has cooled down.

  1. To find your throttle body, just start with your air filter. Follow the plastic air duct from your air filter to where it connects to your throttle body. 
  2. Remove the plastic air duct using your screwdriver.
  3. This should expose the throttle body. You can remove the throttle body using your nut driver to make the next step easier. Just remember to disconnect the wires attached to your throttle body. 
  4. Spray the throttle body cleaner onto the throttle plates. Try to lift the plates to spray inside as well. Let the solution sit for a moment, as instructed in the directions.
  5. Use your brush to further clean the throttle body.
  6. Dry with your towel.
  7. Reattach everything that you removed. 

That is how simple it is to clean your throttle body, and hopefully this gets your vehicle driving normally. Remember to talk to an auto repair specialist like Johnny Myers Discount Tires & Service Center should the problem continue.


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