Accessing & Cleaning the Throttle Body (Pics!)

[stevensolds]

Mine is a lot cleaner than it was. There is no comparison. But there was some stuff that was so caked i was feeling a little lazy towards the end and gave up on the little bit around the edges. I got 80-90% of it out though. It was really bad. Had to redo it 3 times just to get stuff off the butterfly valve. I did not soak it enough i dont think though. I also got my brother to hold the gas pedal down as I did not feel like pressing the thing inside the engine.

[erw38]

Good Job Scotty!

[bronze]

PCM is behind the glove box. It is safe to power wash the Aurora engine just make sure you let it dry reasonably well before you go tooling around in it. Probably a early morning task on a Saturday where you don't need to go anywhere until noon.

Dre'

[fierak]

i just open my Throttle Body and what to see an inch of black gunk stuck to it.Im wondering how can u clean it deep inside cus is very dark and stycky?

[Ted C]

In the initial post, the directions state " go inside and have drink" . What type of drink? I have pressure washed my engine at the car wash several times, never had any issues arise...

[oldsauroraman1]

Good job Steven. Hey, that's not lazy having your brother hold the throttle open, it's working smarter!

[VanAurora]

Nice post, and very helpful! I wish that I'd seen this before I took off my EGR, but a shelf spare at Pep Boys, along with a manual that covered the Aurora 4.0L, gave me enough information to do the job. So, when the diagnostic says code 36 for EGR pintle position, don't think that you've got to replace the EGR-the cheapest route for a new part is Lake Chevrolet at $174.35+s&h. One thing though, I don't have a MAF on my 1995 Aurora-when you take off the intake hose on the throttle body end, all you see is the throttle body & butterfly. Another thing, a pair of mechanic's gloves is a wise investment to protect your hands when working under the hood.

[95rora]

Another quick reminder when working under the hood of an aurora, get a magnet. I lost a bolt out of the throttle body and also a bolt out of the egr valve. Guess it might help if I wasnt clumsy.

I did my tb back in July and I ended up disassembling the tb and taking out the plate behind it. Good thing I did because my tb base gasket was shot. I dont think mine had been done either because it took a can and a half of Valvoline tb cleaner. Still doesnt idle quite right some of the time. I think my egr valve is going bad or something. Dealer couldnt seem to find it anyway.

[cauterized]

Just curious why shouldn't you disconnect the electrical connection when removing the MAF sensor? How would this affect the car? And how would you fix if so?

[unirok]

do you clean the TB with the car running or off. I remember the can saying it should be running. Do you have to rev it while spraying?

[vojtazbrna]

I always clean it with the car off.
The can says to start it up every couple seconds or something, but I don't think it would even start since the MAF is unplugged and the whole air intake is disconnected. I never tried it, though.

[unirok]

vojtazbrna said:

I always clean it with the car off.
The can says to start it up every couple seconds or something, but I don't think it would even start since the MAF is unplugged and the whole air intake is disconnected. I never tried it, though.

Cleaned mine today. Car starts fine with the MAF unhooked. I didnt have to use a toothbrush as I saw all the dirt shooting right off. Car has to be running so the cleaner sucks thru the whole tb. Had to rev it a small bit so she wouldnt stall though.

[raymundo1]

I have washed my engine (1995 aurora) several times and I never had any problems whatsoever (knock on wood) that does not mean that you wont but, I like the looks of my engine clean. I don't cover anything and I use a mild degreaser sprayed with my compressor and then rinse it off with my pressure washer. Let it sit for a while and then make it shine with a rag.

[scottydl]

raymundo1 said:

I have washed my engine (1995 aurora) several times and I never had any problems whatsoever (knock on wood) that does not mean that you wont but, I like the looks of my engine clean. I don't cover anything and I use a mild degreaser sprayed with my compressor and then rinse it off with my pressure washer. Let it sit for a while and then make it shine with a rag.

raymundo, this thread is about cleaning the inside of the throttle body, not the outside of the engine itself.

[my1stluv]

Finally did this..........

I now get whiplash and awesome throttle response at all speeds when I "tap" the gas pedal ;D
Cleaned the IAC while I was at it.....

[TJM]

Whiplash is not covered by ACNA insurance. Sorry.

[unirok]

tjm said:

Whiplash is not covered by ACNA insurance. Sorry.

Tell me about it.....claim denied

[adeluxe]

Will try to get to my TB today sometime. Thanks!

[chaqueno]

I am also a big fan of TB cleaning. I do it at least 2 X a year on all my Vehicles. Put a can of Carb cleaner through my Safari van the other day and what a difference again. I call it, "Tune up in a can" Now the van I run the engine with my foot on the gas pedal ( otherwise it will stall ) and spray it at the same time. The black smoke and crap comming out of the tailpipe got my neighbours attention. Man it smoked and even dripped but the end result is great. On my 97 Aurora, I sprayed and used a toothbrush also and wipped it out with a rag. Then I started the car and again,using my hand on the Butterfly linkage, I sprayed while keeping the revs up a bit. It makes a big difference on the overall performance. BUT I was told by a mechanic at the dealership that I should bring the car in for a fuel cleaning session. They hook up a machine and run the car for 20 min using a certain fuel/solvent mixture which cleans the injectors and everything else that is involved in the fuel delivery system from the rails on. Anyone have this done on their Aurora? They said that it would be good for the car especially if it has over 100000 kms on it now.

[scottydl]

chaqueno said:

...fuel cleaning session. They hook up a machine and run the car for 20 min using a certain fuel/solvent mixture which cleans the injectors and everything else that is involved in the fuel delivery system from the rails on. Anyone have this done on their Aurora?

Yep, I have. I had a stick fuel injector, and the shop did that cleaning procedure and it worked (didn't need the injector to be replaced, it was just REAL dirty in there. Cost about $100, not sure whether or not it's worth it... with some elbow grease and quality cleaning products through your system, you can probably accomplish the same thing.

[aarcuda]

I ceaned my MAF and my throttle body yesterday and it runs GREAT!!!

They sell a MAF sensor cleaner at the parts store. Remove the 3 screws and remove the MAF to spray it clean. They say to clean it at every air filter change.

The throttle body was all gunked up. I used throttle body cleaner, a toothbrush and a rag. dont use pliers to hold the rag like the sticky post cause you can scratch the throttle body and have air leaks.

The gunk takes a while to dissolve. lots of spraying, brushing and wiping with the rag. the back side of the throttle plate was all gunked up too!!

Heres a hint, when reinstalling the MAF, put the bottom screw in the maf then line it up on the throttle body. its almost impossible to get that screw in the hole and get it started if you dont put it on first.

[phil95]

Hi Im new phil95. I have a 95 4.0 engine it has begun to stumble while starting from a stop and driving. any ideas? fuel pressure reg maybe?

[Flybrian]

I did this yesterday. Awesome writeup that helped greatly! I went through an entire bottle of TB cleaner and crap was still dripping out. Alas, the sun went down and doing this by flashlight is not the best method, so I buttoned everything up to complete the cleaning thoroughly another day. Already, though, I can tell a difference in midrange acceleration.

Another tip to minimize the chance of loosing the screws is to place some rags or paper towels underneath the MAF unit to 'catch' anything you happen to drop.

Oh. As an FYI about the 'DO NOT REMOVE THE THREE ELECTRICAL CONNECTORS FROM THE MAF UNIT' bit, well, I got pissed at them getting in my way, so I did. Afterwards, I reconnected them. Absolutely no problems. I suppose the only thing you may have to do is clear the codes manually (dis/reconnect battery), but I had to do this anyway since I changed out the throttle position sensor at the same time.

[chieftain]

I did this clean-out about two weeks ago and had a great time. Decent amount of gunk in there to be sure, but was able to get most of it out. Would have been even easier if I had thought to simply put something on the throttle pedal to hold the butterfly open, but what can I tell you...

Was quite surprised to find I did not have a MAF -- this is a '95 model -- so much so that I took pictures of it to prove my point in case of flames :-) but then I read that the '95's didn't have one. What component takes care of airflow measuring if there's no MAF?

Anyway, haven't noticed much as far as performance, but I can say that my mileage has improved about 8% (on only two tanks) compared to before I did the cleaning. That's probably worth it for ninety minutes or so of work.

Finally, after doing the cleaning I did have the high idle for a few hours (call it 1,200 RPM), but since then it's calmed down just fine. Great thread, great write-up. Thanks!

[slimpee]

I'm going to try this next time it gets warm. Although i did learn a lot more about washing the engine than i care to know I still have a couple of questions:

1. Is it a good idea to spray the TB cleaner into the TB while it's running?
2. Is it a good idea to disconnect the MAF and spray some cleaner into it as well or leave it connected and do this?

[95mushroom]

I wouldn't spray TB or carb cleaner onto the MAF it will likely damaged the sensor. They make special spray cleaner for MAFs though, they 'claim' a nice hp gain too.

[aurorabrain]

slimpee said:

I'm going to try this next time it gets warm. Although i did learn a lot more about washing the engine than i care to know I still have a couple of questions:

1. Is it a good idea to spray the TB cleaner into the TB while it's running?
2. Is it a good idea to disconnect the MAF and spray some cleaner into it as well or leave it connected and do this?

Never spray anything on the MAF while its connected to the car and running. The MAF is a hot wire and whatever you spray on it will stick to it and could ruin it. If you spray TB cleaner while its running, never spray it in front of the MAF, always behind it. If you want to clean the TB while the car is running, remove the MAF housing and unplug it. Your car will start and run with the MAF removed and disconnected, but it will set a code. If the SES light is on, it will go off by itself after 40 ignition cycles. Disconnecting the battery to clear codes is NOT recommended by GM. If its annoying you go to an Autozone or equivalent and have them clear the codes.

I found a good article that PM wrote here: www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/how_to/3297276.html

you might want to check it out...

[Buddiemac]

I have a 2nd generation which I had to clean the TB this weekend.

I would suggest to also to insure that the air idle solenoid plugger is thoroughly cleaned while cleaning the TB. The pluggers can stick.

On the 2nd generation it is better to remove the solenoid to clean. Not sure for first generations. But from the pics it would be easy to remove.

[slimpee]

thanks guys, i'm definitely cleaning both, with appropriate cleaners, when it gets warm outside.

What is the air idle solenoid plugger? Do classics have them? If so where is it?

[Buddiemac]

The first post in this thread, last pic: Under the title throttle body you will see a solenoid - I believe this is the solenoid on the 1st Gen - others that have f1st Gen can comment. The first Gens may have better access to clean from inside the intake of the throttle body, the 2nd gens are not so accessable so I removed it.

These solenoids also go by the name Throttle bypass valve/Solenoid.

Here is a link for some explanation:

www.tomco-inc.com/Tech_Tips/ttt23.pdf

Cleaning the plunger has reported better responsiveness if it was sticking.