May I ask for some more help?

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northern kentucky
Recently you guys helped me out with a rough idle on my Malibu, by suggesting that I remove the Idle air control valve from the throttle body and clean it. That worked for me. Now I have offered to help my boss with his same problem. However he has a 97 Ford Contour, and I'll be darned if I can find any information about the the valve, where it's located, how to remove, etc. I have searched on Auto Zones web and even bought a Hanes Manual. Is there such an animal on a Ford Contour? I just wanted to use some throttle body cleaner on it, plus change the air filter and PCV valve (which if I am reading correctly) might be a bigger job than I thought.

I would greatly appreciate any info/suggestions.

Thanks
 
If you take the air snorkel/ intake off the throttle body you should see a throttle plate and a hole above, below, or to the side of it. Alternately you'll have a seperate air hose that goes off, past a widget, then rejoins the intake.

The throttle body can be found with a large wheel and accellerator cable going to it.... which'll move when someone steps on the gas pedal. (If you have traction control, it might be more complicated on this model.)

An idle speed control valve lets air by the throttle body. Once you find the hole you can simply spray down it with a can of throttle body cleaner... might be handy to have that "red straw" to really get in there. Fords have Mass airflow sensors in various wierd places, like the middle of the air intake tube. They're fragile and somewhat necessary for the car to run. To get at the idle speed control, the MAF will probably need to come off.

The best way to clean the idle speed control valve is to remove it and spray down both passages and clean the valve off the car.

The second best way is to run the car while you're spraying through the idle speed control passage. Then the goop that's in there gets sucked through the motor and harmlessly combusted. It may be difficult getting the car to run without the MAF, or you might get lucky and have it idle okay, throwing a code, that will be reversible when you put everything back together.

The third best way is to spray down the hole I described earlier, reassemble everything, and start the car before the solvent evaporates.

Someone who knows fords better should chime in, that's the "generic" way to do things.

Also mention if he has a 4 cyl or 6.
 
quote:

Originally posted by eljefino:
If you take the air snorkel/ intake off the throttle body you should see a throttle plate and a hole above, below, or to the side of it. Alternately you'll have a seperate air hose that goes off, past a widget, then rejoins the intake.

The throttle body can be found with a large wheel and accellerator cable going to it.... which'll move when someone steps on the gas pedal. (If you have traction control, it might be more complicated on this model.)

An idle speed control valve lets air by the throttle body. Once you find the hole you can simply spray down it with a can of throttle body cleaner... might be handy to have that "red straw" to really get in there. Fords have Mass airflow sensors in various wierd places, like the middle of the air intake tube. They're fragile and somewhat necessary for the car to run. To get at the idle speed control, the MAF will probably need to come off.

The best way to clean the idle speed control valve is to remove it and spray down both passages and clean the valve off the car.

The second best way is to run the car while you're spraying through the idle speed control passage. Then the goop that's in there gets sucked through the motor and harmlessly combusted. It may be difficult getting the car to run without the MAF, or you might get lucky and have it idle okay, throwing a code, that will be reversible when you put everything back together.

The third best way is to spray down the hole I described earlier, reassemble everything, and start the car before the solvent evaporates.

Someone who knows fords better should chime in, that's the "generic" way to do things.

Also mention if he has a 4 cyl or 6.


Thanks for the info. I realized after posting that I should have mentioned that it is a 4 CYL, and has been badly maintained. He just got married and it's actually his new wife's car. I'm thinking I'm really over my head with this offer. Maybe a bottle of Regaine and a print out of various problems posted on the net, might get me out of this, but I would really like to help him, since he kind of signs my paycheck.

Please keep the ideas coming. He is dropping the car off at my apartment tmrw morning around 9:00AM.
 
quote:

May I ask for some more?

MORE!?!?!?

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