There are many reasons for poor idle condition; vacuum leaks, dirty throttle body, O2 sensors, TPS, etc. You have to systematically eliminate potential issues. Certainly a bad IAC is among them.

Thank you sir

I would recommend not using carburator cleaner. It contains a dry lubricant that can gum up the needle seat assembly after cleaning.

Idk my car revs itself when i steer and sometimes idles at 500, 1100, 900 or it fcking dies
It should be 900 or 1100.
And if the revs drop the needle stops at 1400 for solid 2 sec and then chooses one of the 4 options above.
That valve has to get hardcore stuck the entire time

Hey Chris, kinda stumped. I'm in a really cold state, the past month has been below freezing. When I turn on the car on days below freezing, the RPM flutters constantly during idling. I don't seem to have this issue on warmer days. Is this a sign of an potential issue with the IAC?

Chris is it possible to replace it

When an engine starts shaking Like that and the RPM goes down That's called surging which means that the engine is running lean or running out of gas thus it starts doing that shake And the RPMs go low

I love you chris fix you solve all my problems :)

why does my honda iacv have coolant pass through it?

Hey Chris, desperate for a solution! My iacv keeps getting clogged from carbon buildup. I’ve owned my 1998 Toyota Harrier for 3 months now and have had to clean it multiple times. What’s the reason for this? Thanks in advance :)

What about if my rpms jump up and down quickly? Same solution?

Hey Chris, what are your thoughts on rough idle with the 5.3 Chevrolet’s? (Specifically 2001 Suburban) They just seem to have somewhat of a rough idle. I read one time in a forum that a guy was able to seemingly determine that it was due to the ethanol in today’s fuel. He was able to run his Burb on ethanol-free fuel and he stated that it idled steady. Ever heard anything like that? Thanks for your time!

when i’m done driving and put my car into park it will noticeably shake and drop rpm little below 700 any idea what’s the issue? only seems to happen when goes into park maybe reverse 1 time

PCV is just as easy and should be changed at the same time. It can easily be just as clogged. They are super cheap.

Am I supposed to dry before installing??

Don't count out a vacuum leak.

Why just clean iac should do throttle body also dummy

I want to know if its still good to clean this on my car when it doesn't idle poorly, just doesn't feel smooth when accelerating through the lower gears? And when i press the accelerator, there is a short delay but when i press it down more then it works as it should. It jerks a little too. A 2009 Renault. Could this be a dirty throttle body/IAC?

It's not a motor it's a solenoid. And you should use the meter measure the solenoid coil. A bad solenoid will be infinite ohms or open circuit. Also swelling around that housing is it an indication that hid has stuck and overheated and should be replaced. I'm just saying

You can make your engine look really nice with tire foam.

So maybe that's why my muffler shakes now.

I really enjoy watching your vids. Very educational!! Thank you.

I'm kinda new to checking for engine problems, but my car starts at 2,000 RMPs and takes 5 minutes to idle down. I am concerned if I should change/clean up the idle control valve ? Also, my car would sometimes stall when I try accelerating into the freeway.

Hey could this by any means cause check engine light and code p0101?
No vacuum leaks and harness is checked good as well as new MAF sensor installed. Or could the EGR valve also cause CEL and p0101?

Could a fluctuating acceleration on a electronic throttle body be due to a dirty throttle body or MAF?

I just did this twice and it didnt work. Do you think it is just a bad iac valve or another problem?

would this cause misfire too or no?

Hey Chris! I've been binge watching your channel for about a year now. I paid a tow truck to move my old sister's Foxbody to my garage and it is now mine.
Not only do I enjoy referencing your videos, but I enjoy hearing the excitement in your voice as the years went by. really shows how passionate you are with what you do.
THANK you and keep it up!!

Rip my carbureted 429.... its idling a little choppy but I couldn't find the IAC

I gotta '92 chev and my idle made my truck die all the time when I first bought the truck. This helped so much. I can drive it like it's new. Thank you chrisfix you're by far my #1 youtuber for anto mechanics repair. I thought it was throttle body.

With all the suggestions on how to fix my car, I'm going to end up becoming a mechanic.

Hey chris my 2004 f150 5.4 idles weird it goes up and down and shuts off

You have a video on cleaning a throttle control valve with out taking it out because I dont have a computer to reset the throttle thanks bro

Thanks men your the boss...

Where is at on 2016 Hyundai elantra? Thanks

My mustang shakes a little at idle once it is warmed up after sitting, is this a problem?

cAN i USE mass Air FLOW CLEANER TO DO HIS OR DIOESNT IT HAVe to BE TRONGER LIKE CARB CLEANER? oops caps sorry to lazy to rewrite

You must have the biggest ego EVER to have your name and logo on literally everything

If it was stuck open could it throw a check engine light saying the mixture is too lean?

Excellent way to explain the cleaning process greating from Paraguay

We've always pronounced it "Eye-yak".

guys I'm a mechanical and hes videos is harder than u think he work hard and I respect him ☺

Hi ChrisFix another helpful video. One question pls, you mentioned the symptoms my Honda CRV has perfectly. However, if I don't warm up my car for at least 5 minutes it will stall, then it runs normal until it cool downs again. I will clean IAC, it can't harm, should I also clean my mass Airflow sensor or just try IAC clean first? I appreciate your help. Everything you show is accurate. The other day I replaced my brake pads, rotor and the breaks worked like dream. Thanks for all your instructional videos, what are blessing you've been. Seriously saved me thousands of dollars and grief.

show us how to do a engine rebuild

Yup thanks for the tip clean my iacv on my Acura Rl 1996 and it idles normal it was ideling low it idle a lil higher now so my car don’t stall no more at a stop. Planing on putting a new iacv in the future and flush the coolant and new hoses .

So cool watching you work on this car! Can’t wait for the next video on it!

With ChrisFix, I can do anything with my car 👍🏾👍🏾

I was losing my mind for years, watching these videos... Plugs, wires, fuel pump, air leaks, ECU...
My problem was a bad distributor.

Could this cause my truck to bog down and die while puffing white smoke out the tail pipe

On my ranger when I have it gas and let it fall back to idle it would shudder so I just turned the idle up 👍

Yay I’m going to do this because I’m still in quarantine

could this cause stalling at stop signs? My car will stall sometimes when I hit the gas from a stop.

I did this.
Mine was a little different and had 4 bolts...maybe it was a different part. Regardless I did this to it and just like it said, my rpms increased to be about 800!!

My truck had a high idle occasionally. I would just slowly let the clutch out while holding the brake to force the RPM down for 2 or 3 seconds then it would idle fine until it was left to fully cool down before using it next.

Hey Chrisfix! I have a 2003 Chevy astro, I have done everything in the video as well as replaced a lot of parts on the van. I have a rough idle when I put my foot on the brake when in gear. the harder you press the brake the worse the shake, soon as you put it in park its fine. this van does not have a brake booster, the powersteering pump and master brake cylinder are together. (powersteering gives power brakes) I really need help with this I have replaced a lot of stuff.
I have replaced motor mounts, transission mount, crankshaft position sensor, 3 new distributor caps, new spark plugs, new spark plug wires,
brake master cylinder, Idle pully and blower motor,oxygen sensor, fuel pump, fuel filter, new computer, catalytic converter, pcv and hose, and new Idle air control valve.
When I had the reman module replaced at dealer they said the pcm randomly misfires are still present, and needs more diagnostics for misfires. Your my last hope......

Hey Chris Aren't You supposed to make a video about how to replace your stock steering with a race steering wheel?

Anyone have a guess what Chris is using for a headunit? What tablet/droid radio?

Brother , I love your videos you were definitely meant to do this...keep up the excellent work.

@chrisfix please help, I followed this video.cleaned the IAC valce, the throttle body and still idles poorly, then i took it to Autozone to hook uo the obd2 and it shows that I has misfires, so I replaced the spark plugs, didn't fix it, i replaced the ignition coil amd spark plug wires and still didn't fixed it, so now I'm fixing things and buying parts that doesn't fix the ilde problem, then obviously I did checked the air intake filter, and the sensor everything is good, so I must be missing something. All help would be greatly appreciated.

Hey Chris, I have a 2015 Ford Focus 2.0 FFV that has been having idle issues. It has also been throwing a bad O2 sensor recently. Could having a dirty IAC valve cause this code to pop up?
Thanks for the awesome video!

How many of you cleaned the IACV kn your vehicle and it didn't fix it? As usual, this is one of may reasons that can cause a poor idle, but a parts changer mindset is what you all want instead of actual diagnosis and data. Don't guess, test.

Where tf did you get a 2014 Maserati from

Hey Chris please make more videos because I binge watch your stuff

My Ranger didn't want to go into a fast idle RPM when first starting the truck up in colder weather. I learned about the IAC on this channel, and replaced this item new figuring the truck was starting to have lots of miles on it. It was a quick fix, and the idling is perfect. Then I started to hunt for other small items to replace on my old truck. My recent purchased part is an Ignition Coil, but I'll wait and change it in the warmer Spring weather. Last fall of 2020 on my 02' Ranger 4.0L, we changed the thermostat, it's housing, hoses and sensors, and hose fittings. Then the valve cover gasket. I remember when work was hard work, but now its just to much fun since watching this channel . Sometime I'm in the garage late at night, and the wife thinks I have a GF. I'm Kidding.

ahh, got some food now time to watch some ChrixFix Reruns 😂

Can I use mass air flow sensor cleaner or WD-40 to clean it ?

I have a 19 Altima the dealer said I have computer stuff or something? Is that true? I literally just first time clean my brakes and got em super shiny. Calipers and I finished about an hour ago I just showered but I finished. Thanks to you. Took me 4 hours.

Do you bite your nails?

I have a question will the little peace inside the transmission that looks similar to the idle air control valve? Would it also help with the idle if the oil was easier to flow through the tiny holes filter that's inside the transmission? The little sensor inside the transmission.

Does the iac valve sensor have alot to do with it? Because i switched my iac valve with a brand new one in my truck, and connected the senser now its even more accelerated

Hey Chris, my girlfriend's 2012 subaru legacy shuts off if you come to a stop without being super gentle with the brakes. It idles a bit low as well, but would this be a fix for it? Thank you so much man, I love the videos

Great work, great explanations

I don't even have an idle issue but I watched the full video lol

Hey chrisfix!!! i have a question! Did you teach yourself about cars ? did you go to a school ? family teach you??

Hmmm...I'll have to give this a shot

1:18 🥶🥶

If anyone is interested, this is an informative vid, just not totally correct. I have been working on cars for about 45 years and know some dealership mechanics. They all say never use a toothbrush on throttle bodies. Also use throttle body cleaner, NOT carb cleaner. The bristles on toothbrushes are too hard and could etch or wear away some of your TB which is aluminum. Also carb cleaner has stronger chemicals and could damage some of the rubber or plastic in your TB.

I tried cleaning my (unaccessible to a newbie) EGR valve by spraying cleaner for 1-2 second bursts into the air intake tubing while maintaining revs at 1500 and then going to 3000 10 times every few minutes.
Needless to say my turbo is now shot :(
Guys, don't watch other YT channels. ChrisFix is the only channel you need.

Man I love your videos but I have a Ford Galaxy and the engine is backwards. To get to the EGR valve and IAC I have to take the turbo off which is behind the engine and I am a newbie fixer! :(

Hi, I live in Indianapolis, and I couldn't find an engineer to put the turbo on my 2011 Bmw 335is convertible would u like to do it I'll sended to u and we will talk🙄

You are so badass! So glad you make the best detailed videos! You seriously freakin' rock! 🙂 Love all your videos!

How to lubricate turbo peoperly

Excellent video Chris as always. Can I suggest you do a video with cleaning the TPS sensor.

Man you are a legend. You tips are absolutely amazing. Makes me want to clean all parts of my car.

I HAVE THIS ERROR code p1504 ford expedition 1997? its idling low when its cold only! do you recommend that i replace or clean IAC valve?

i’ve had this problem for about 3 months now and couldn’t find anything on why it does it so i lives with it then i watched this and u explained exactly what is happening to me thank you again for your help

Do you need to clean out the residual trottle cleaner with distilled water or wait until it dries completely?

Do you wait for IAC's to dry up before reinstall? It wouldn't be smart to try snug inside same paper towel to dry them up. Or can they be reinstalled slightly wet from the spray?

awesome, will try that for my 23 year old vintage, rpm is bouncing up and down while idling in hot engine..

Great video Chris. Have you ever thought about doing Diesel Truck tutorials?

@ChrisFix I’m having issues with my idle surging low, I’m not sure where the problem is. I cleaners the air box, replaced the air filter, cleaned the maf sensor, and now about to clean the throttle body & IAC valve. Could you please do a video on how to check for vacuum leaks?

Thanks again Chris you're super awesome on how you explain stuff..👍💯👏

I had to wonder what that black knob is on the side. Does that adjust the ICV in some way?

What if we’re stopped at red light and the engine shakes a lot when idles in drive

Well there’s your problem in the beginning you don’t have an IAC installed, its in your hand......

Hey Chris, this is a great video and I wonder if it's going to help with a problem on my Ford Mondeo mk3. When idling, prior to warning up to optimal temperature, the engine makes popping sounds, as if someone is making popcorn under the hood. Will the steps on this video help? Long time 21yo Bulgarian fan!

My Crown Vic is 22 years old and never had idling problem. It has the same IAC valve from the assembly line

I think my car is over idling

Hi guys, i wonder where to find the gasket (throttle & Idles) for Acura 1997 cl 3.0 ?

Can I use brake kleen