I drove all day today, and at the end of the drive, my throttle seems to be sticking. I'll lift off the accelerator and the RPMs stay high and don't change until I hit it again. Stuck cable/pedal? Any other ideas? I'm not super concerned since the clutch and brakes still work...
(I changed the topic title to reflect the current situation).
The throttle body is dirty. Grab a $2.00 can of carb clean and spray it down, working the plate back and forth as you do so. If you want to be really thorough, get an old toothbrush and scrub around in there and get all the carbon off the back of the throttle plate and deeper in the bore as well.
Oh, my friend's Neon's got this too. I asked him about it once and he said it's to help you on the highway because it doesn't have cruise control. I just shrugged it off at that time.
Quote from: TheIntrepid on May 26, 2007, 10:42:49 AM
Oh, my friend's Neon's got this too. I asked him about it once and he said it's to help you on the highway because it doesn't have cruise control. I just shrugged it off at that time.
That sounds like something my sister would say.
I think I can understand why your friend doesn't drive. :P
That sounds like something a car salesman would say, Intrepid.
R-inge's correct. My sister's Toyota did the same thing and the garage offered to fix it for $150.00. I spent $4 and twenty minutes and corrected the problem.
Good. I figured it was easy...
Why did it wait until it was run all day to do this? It's never happened before, and yesterday was the first time I drove it for more than half an hour.
Quote from: NACar on May 26, 2007, 11:14:33 AM
That sounds like something my sister would say.
I think I can understand why your friend doesn't drive. :P
:lol: :lol:
Well it's not my car so I'm not about to do any cleaning to it. I use his Explorer when the NEon's in the shop, which is quite often.
Well, fuck.
Now it's doing this all over the place. I drove a couple of blocks and turned back-- the rpms now rise sometimes (probably the same problem?). The little throttle plate thing moves back and forth freely, but there's no tension in the cable. Any ideas? No one is open until Tuesday.
I'm seven hours from where I need to be on Tuesday.
It was predicted.
Quote from: Raza on April 29, 2007, 03:22:21 PM
It's an over/under until there's a catastrophic breakdown, Psilos.
Seriously though, I'm sorry to hear it. I hope it doesn't give you too much trouble, and that you can still make your trip.
Quote from: Psilos on May 26, 2007, 05:31:31 PM
Well, fuck.
Now it's doing this all over the place. I drove a couple of blocks and turned back-- the rpms now rise sometimes (probably the same problem?). The little throttle plate thing moves back and forth freely, but there's no tension in the cable. Any ideas? No one is open until Tuesday.
I'm seven hours from where I need to be on Tuesday.
So, is the throttle return spring kaput?
It seems to work fine...
I can't get it to do it again, but I wasn't driving it, just sitting there revving to various RPMs.
And the Haynes is no help.
But if I drive it around the block a couple of times, it does the thing again.
What about the Idle-Air-Controller-valve thingy?? :huh:
What condition is the throttle cable in? And because we like bikes, what condition is the housing in? :tounge:
Other than that, maybe the idle air control valve?
I'll check that out.
The cable (and housing :lol:) are in fine condition. The cable moves smoothly...
My sister's '94 Escort has a problem like that... when it's in park or neutral, the revs will continually go up and down between 500 and 1500 rpms. The slightest pressure on the throttle though, and it goes away.
The revs seems to rise while it's in gear and driving, like I've got the pedal pressed down. (Yay for the clutch, I suppose).
The IAC solenoid thinger seems to be OK. The manual said to unplug it with the engine idling and the revs should fall or the engine should stall. The revs fell. Other tests require a ohm/volt meter, which I don't have.
Quote from: Psilos on May 26, 2007, 07:00:39 PM
The revs seems to rise while it's in gear and driving, like I've got the pedal pressed down. (Yay for the clutch, I suppose).
The IAC solenoid thinger seems to be OK. The manual said to unplug it with the engine idling and the revs should fall or the engine should stall. The revs fell. Other tests require a ohm/volt meter, which I don't have.
Take it to Autozone or one of those places, they'll usually plug in the OBD scanner for free.
Yeah... The CEL isn't on and I don't want to drive it that far. I'm pretty sure that the revs will rise until it hits the limiter, and I don't want to be sitting at a stop light bouncing off 6000 rpm.
Unless I can figure it out, I think I'm just gonna stick around until Tuesday when I can get it fixed.
With no MIL lighted, I look for something mechanical, not electronic. To be sure, you can do some "TAP" tests. Tap the maf sensor, tps, etc and see if anything changes.
BTW, what are you driving?
He has a Ford Ranger, 4 cyl. I believe
Yeah, that's it. Year 2000.
What about the clutch? Driving down I was following a log truck around some curves and I smelled brake/clutch, but I figured it was the truck ahead. I can't figure out how the clutch being bad would cause this problem, though. I was talking to someone tonight who used to have a '92 Ranger, and he suggested that weird things like this might be the clutch.
Quote from: Psilos on May 26, 2007, 07:08:58 PM
Yeah... The CEL isn't on and I don't want to drive it that far. I'm pretty sure that the revs will rise until it hits the limiter, and I don't want to be sitting at a stop light bouncing off 6000 rpm.
Oh... so it just starts going up as soon as you start it, and never goes down? Sounds like something in the throttle linkage is screwy. It couldn't do that unless the thorttle was opening somehow.
No, it's fine and normal for a couple of blocks, then when I put the clutch in, the revs rise. If it's in gear, it seems like it wants to accelerate if I have my foot off the brake. It started last night when I'd put the clutch in and the revs wouldn't fall, but would just kind of stay where they were.
I initially thought it was something like the linkage, and that was sorta confirmed initially, but now I'm thinking not. The throttle plate moves fine, and the cable is OK. The pedal seems to have some kinda jerky resistance, but if I move the pedal up with my foot, the problem isn't affected. I"d suspect a computer thing, but the CEL is off.
Quote from: Psilos on May 26, 2007, 07:00:39 PM
The revs seems to rise while it's in gear and driving, like I've got the pedal pressed down. (Yay for the clutch, I suppose).
The IAC solenoid thinger seems to be OK. The manual said to unplug it with the engine idling and the revs should fall or the engine should stall. The revs fell. Other tests require a ohm/volt meter, which I don't have.
Doeesn't mean the IAC couldn't be sticking. Might be worth trying to clean it out, if possible.
If all the throttle linkages and IAC check out, the next thing I'd look for is an air-leak downstream of the throttlebody. Also, have the Throttle Position Sensor checked. If not that, look for a leaky fuel injector and/or a reason why the fuel pressure might be too high.
Actually, my best guess is a vacuum leak. Check the vacuum lines, especially the PCV harness. I see those often.
Thanks, I'm on it...
A friend of mine who drove the same truck for a long time (but his was a '92) came over to check it out. He thinks it's a vacuum problem because it gets worse as the engine warms up. It starts with the revs just falling slowly, and ends with them actually climbing while the truck is in gear and driving (it accelerates). I have no idea how to diagnose a vacuum leak insofar as finding the leak goes.
Quote from: Psilos on May 27, 2007, 04:39:17 PM
A friend of mine who drove the same truck for a long time (but his was a '92) came over to check it out. He thinks it's a vacuum problem because it gets worse as the engine warms up. It starts with the revs just falling slowly, and ends with them actually climbing while the truck is in gear and driving (it accelerates). I have no idea how to diagnose a vacuum leak insofar as finding the leak goes.
Check all your vacuum lines...anything looks suspect, even the slightest dry-rot, crack or tear, replace it.
Psilos, you're basically controlling the speed of the truck with the clutch then? :mask:
I'm having trouble understand your problem.
Does this truck have cruise control?
Sounds like its possible the cruise can be causing these problems, i'd try unhooking the cable and see if it goes away.
No cruise.
With the vacuum lines... I dunno if I can even find all the lines. I think I'll probably just have a person who knows what's up do it, since that way they can check other things that I might not think to check. Here's to hoping I can get someone to check it out on Tuesday morning!
If I were to drive it, I'd control the speed of the engine with both the clutch and the brake, so that when it's in gear, I can keep the speed down with the brake.
Quote from: FlatBlackCaddy on May 27, 2007, 09:21:00 PM
I'm having trouble understand your problem.
When I start the truck, it's fine. As it warms up, the problem gets worse. At first, when I put the clutch in while moving (so that the revs are already above idle), the revs fall more slowly than they should. Then the revs stop falling at all and kind of stay where they were before I put the clutch in. At this point you can jab the accelerator (clutch in) or take the clutch out a little (so it slips) and the revs fall slowly back to idle.
When everything is pretty warm, after driving around the block a couple of times, the revs start to rise after the clutch goes in while moving, and the only way to control it is with the clutch--slipping it so the engine has to move the speed you're going. Finally, when it's in gear and the clutch is out, the truck actually accelerates a bit unless you use the brake. At this point, the only way to control the revs is by using the brake with the truck in gear. I haven't been able to replicate the problem while the truck is parked.
Yesterday when I took it to the mechanic, it was fine, and they couldn't replicate the problem. They checked the IAC and the vacuum lines, finding nothing wrong. They did replace the battery cables since they were super corroded and partially broken. They said that the 'puter might have been getting too little power and thinking something was wrong when it wasn't, and the problem was the 'puter's attempt to fix the problem. At any rate, I drove for seven hours yesterday, and it was fine.
That might have been it. The car was undercharging due to corroded battery cables, and the car was trying to increase RPM to deal with it.
Quote from: Psilos on May 30, 2007, 09:04:15 PM
Yesterday when I took it to the mechanic, it was fine, and they couldn't replicate the problem. They checked the IAC and the vacuum lines, finding nothing wrong. They did replace the battery cables since they were super corroded and partially broken. They said that the 'puter might have been getting too little power and thinking something was wrong when it wasn't, and the problem was the 'puter's attempt to fix the problem. At any rate, I drove for seven hours yesterday, and it was fine.
Often times it is the simplest things that make us beat our heads against the wall :banghead:
:lol:
Glad it wasn't anything...terminal...like in the past :lol: ;)
Quote from: R-inge on May 30, 2007, 09:09:19 PM
That might have been it.? The car was undercharging due to corroded battery cables, and the car was trying to increase RPM to deal with it.
wow, cars are too smart now... usually they'd just die when that happens :confused:
Yeah, no kidding. Oh, for the days of engine bays you could stand in!
Quote from: footoflead on May 30, 2007, 09:54:24 PM
Often times it is the simplest things that make us beat our heads against the wall :banghead:
:lol:
Glad it wasn't anything...terminal...like in the past :lol: ;)
Seriously... I was starting to think that a) I should stop trying to own a car, and b) I should start believing in god. :lol:
Still no problems so far?
I haven't driven it. :lol:
Quote from: Psilos on May 31, 2007, 12:41:51 AM
Seriously... I was starting to think that a) I should stop trying to own a car, and b) I should start believing in god. :lol:
You could make your very own CAR GOD, that would solve all of your problems.
An occasional sacrifice to appease him/her/it and you good to go :ohyeah:.
btw-does not reflect my religious beliefs
if that does not work, i would strongly recommend option A, cars do not last long around you my brother ;) lol
I think he's made enough sacrifices to the car gods.
Quote from: Raza on June 02, 2007, 03:32:29 PM
I think he's made enough sacrifices to the car gods.
:lol: :lol: :pullover:
Seriously...
Quote from: Raza on June 02, 2007, 03:32:29 PM
I think he's made enough sacrifices to the car gods.
Personally, I think he is cursed until he rights some past wrong
Quote from: Danish on June 04, 2007, 01:24:28 AM
Personally, I think he is cursed until he rights some past wrong
:lol: :lol:
Quote from: Danish on June 04, 2007, 01:24:28 AM
Personally, I think he is cursed until he rights some past wrong
I've considered that, but I can't afford a Miata now. :lol:
Quote from: Psilos on June 04, 2007, 08:51:04 PM
I've considered that, but I can't afford a Miata now. :lol:
At least you know what you did wrong :lol:
Quote from: Psilos on June 04, 2007, 08:51:04 PM
I've considered that, but I can't afford a Miata now. :lol:
You know, the first step towards solving a problem is admitting it... :lol:
I don't have a car problem! I can stop any time I want! :lol:
Quote from: Psilos on May 27, 2007, 11:57:51 PM
When I start the truck, it's fine. As it warms up, the problem gets worse. At first, when I put the clutch in while moving (so that the revs are already above idle), the revs fall more slowly than they should. Then the revs stop falling at all and kind of stay where they were before I put the clutch in. At this point you can jab the accelerator (clutch in) or take the clutch out a little (so it slips) and the revs fall slowly back to idle.
When everything is pretty warm, after driving around the block a couple of times, the revs start to rise after the clutch goes in while moving, and the only way to control it is with the clutch--slipping it so the engine has to move the speed you're going. Finally, when it's in gear and the clutch is out, the truck actually accelerates a bit unless you use the brake. At this point, the only way to control the revs is by using the brake with the truck in gear. I haven't been able to replicate the problem while the truck is parked.
On noes! It's back. I drove the Ranger across town today, and towards the end of the drive from home, the same problem began. It happened all the way home. The battery terminals have a bit of corrosion on them, so I suppose I'll start by getting rid of that. *sigh*
On the bright side, it's been 8000 miles since the last trip to the shop.
Too bad you didn't get the Mazda engined one.
It's better in every way.
Which one is the Mazda engine?
Quote from: Psilos on April 16, 2008, 05:01:04 PM
Which one is the Mazda engine?
2.3L DOHC Duratec.
[edit] Duratec 23
The Duratec 23 is a 2.3 L (2261 cc) version of the Mazda-designed Duratec 20. Bore is 87.4 mm and stroke is 94 mm. It has an aluminum engine block with cast iron cylinder liners and aluminum DOHC cylinder heads. It uses SFI fuel injection, has 4 valves per cylinder and features fracture-split forged powder metal connecting rods and a one-piece cast crankshaft.
The 23EW was built in Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico for use in the American market Focus through the 2007 model year. The Ford Focus version does not have VVT, and its output is 151 hp (113 kW) at 5750 rpm with 154 ft?lbf (209 N?m) of torque at 4250 rpm. A VVT version of this engine is used on the Mazda6, Ford Fusion, and Mercury Milan producing 160 hp (120 kW).
The 23NS is built in Dearborn, MI for the Ford Ranger and Mazda B-Series. Output is 143 hp (107 kW) at 5250 rpm with 154 ft?lbf (209 N?m) of torque at 3750 rpm.
Applications:
23EW
2003-2007 Ford Focus
23NS
2005 Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute
Ford Ranger/Mazda B-Series
The Duratec 23E is a version of the Duratec 23 with California PZEV emissions.
An Atkinson cycle version is used in the Ford Escape Hybrid, Mercury Mariner Hybrid, and Mazda Tribute Hybrid.
Ah, yes. They made those in 2000. ;)
Quote from: Psilos on April 16, 2008, 08:51:08 PM
Ah, yes. They made those in 2000. ;)
What?
That engine came out in late 2001. Before that it was the old Pinto engine with hogged out bores like what you have.
I know. I was being sarcastic. :lol:
Though, the engine I have isn't that bad. It's more or less reliable, it gets decent mileage, and it makes enough power. Plus, it's cheap to fix. :lol:
Quote from: Psilos on April 17, 2008, 01:46:25 AM
I know. I was being sarcastic. :lol:
What a weird way to be sarcastic. :huh:
Quote from: 280Z Turbo on April 17, 2008, 12:19:31 PM
What a weird way to be sarcastic. :huh:
Comparable:
-You should buy a Mazda2.
-Ah yes. They sell that in the US.
It's not very clever or anything, but I don't see what would make it strange or confusing.
What can I do to prevent more corrosion from happening (if that is the cause of my problems)?
Ugh. I replaced the battery cable ends and got rid of all that corrosion, but the problem persists. Strangely, it's gone from only happening when the engine is warm (and then getting worse and worse) to only happening when the engine is cold. It's a bit sporadic. Yesterday morning, after not driving it for a few days, the problem was pretty bad. This morning, after sitting overnight, there was no problem at all. Also, it temporarily went away when I cleaned most of the corrosion off the battery cable ends, then came back a couple of drives later. For that reason, it seems like the problem should be the cable ends...
I just replaced the ends last weekend and haven't driven it too much since then. Maybe the computer needs a few drives to sort itself out? I'll not drive for a couple of days and see if it's still there. If it is, eh, throttle plate? Eesh.
I've done pretty much all I can, and the problem persists. I remembered last year that I got a copy of a TSB from the mechanic who worked on the truck that might be pertinent. It is discussed on this SHO forum (the TSB is for both the Ranger and SHO): http://v8sho.com/SHO/High_Idle.html (http://v8sho.com/SHO/High_Idle.html).
Looks like I'm gonna get part number XF1Z-15K607-AA and do a thing.
P.S. Also, this:
http://v8sho.com/SHO/TSB00-3-5.html (http://v8sho.com/SHO/TSB00-3-5.html)
LOL
You should just drop a SHO engine in, it would be even MORE reliable... [/sarcasm]
The v6 would fit- the V8s had breaking cam problems...
:-)
That would be sweet.