Daughters 2001 Throttle reving up by itself!

Hi,
Does any body know why my daughters 2001 camaro (6 cyl basic stock model) would rev up by itself when she was driving on the freeway? She called & said she had to pull over & get a tow because when she took her foot off the brakes the car idled up on it's own & the RPM's kept increasing without pushing on the gas pedal. She said this also happened when the car was in park after she pulled over. Tow truck driver suspected a throttle cable but aparantly there isn't one on this car.
Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks
TC

it should have a cable operated throttle body. If it's okay then the idle motor or a huge vacuum leak.

Hi Dad. Thanks :)

I don't know if this matters but my AC unit has been acting weird lately and also for two days before this happened my car was making "tick-tick-tick"-ing noises when it started. It would stop about 2 minutes after my car ran.

I also had a major tune up about three weeks ago and replaced the water pump and the car ran like a champ until a few days ago . :-(.

Any help/advice is much appreciated. :)

It almost sounds like a bad MAF sensor, but when it comes right down to it, I think someone would need to see it in person to figure it out...
Have you checked the trouble codes? If its a bad sensor, it should be throwing a code.

It almost sounds like a bad MAF sensor, but when it comes right down to it, I think someone would need to see it in person to figure it out...
Have you checked the trouble codes? If its a bad sensor, it should be throwing a code.

Hi Mallletslinger :)
Thanks for your reply!

The only thing I saw (and I'm NO expert or even close) was : ABS INOP. That came on after the car got towed. But that's just the ABS light.

Besides that the dummy lights, I don't know how to check for sensor codes:frown: .
The car has been towed to the dealership and they said that it could be a number of things wrong: Gunk in the throttle, idle sensor out of wack, cruise control sensor out of wack, etc. and that a diagnostic check would tell for sure. They're going to disgnose the problem for $120 :crying:

it should have a cable operated throttle body. If it's okay then the idle motor or a huge vacuum leak.

Do you think that's why my AC has been hissing lately??? What does the vacuum do? Sorry for stupid questions-I'm no mechanic

$120!!! Hell, you should just go buy a code reader of your own...wouldnt cost much more than that, and then you would have it when ever you need it.
When they say "$120 to diagnose the problem"...what they mean is, "We are going to charge you $120 to see if your computer is throwing any codes, then we will ask for your permission to change every part that could be causing those codes"
These computers have really dumbed up how dealer techs look for problems.
In my 89, you can use a paperclip to check the codes, but before I know that, I took it to the dealer and asked them to check the codes, and they told me it would cost $75 just to check the codes...what a joke...I went to pepboys and got a ACTRON code scanner for like $35, and it came with a code explanation book...
You should just go buy an OBD 2 scanner so you dont have to pay them $120 for them to plug theirs in and tell you what it says.

$120!!! Hell, you should just go buy a code reader of your own...wouldnt cost much more than that, and then you would have it when ever you need it.
When they say "$120 to diagnose the problem"...what they mean is, "We are going to charge you $120 to see if your computer is throwing any codes, then we will ask for your permission to change every part that could be causing those codes"
These computers have really dumbed up how dealer techs look for problems.
In my 89, you can use a paperclip to check the codes, but before I know that, I took it to the dealer and asked them to check the codes, and they told me it would cost $75 just to check the codes...what a joke...I went to pepboys and got a ACTRON code scanner for like $35, and it came with a code explanation book...
You should just go buy an OBD 2 scanner so you dont have to pay them $120 for them to plug theirs in and tell you what it says.

AW SHIT :banghead: . If I would've known about this website and all of the help I couldn've gotten, I would've done just that. I guess it's too late now. I got a guaranteed $120 bill for now but I'm going to invest in a OBD2 Scanner like you said so I don't get screwed again.

Hopefully when they tell me what is wrong, my dad can you come down here and fix it for me (and let me help)? hehe:smokin: I hope it's not a major thing.

Thanks for all of your advice!!!!

No problem...
Also, don't forget to post what the problem was so other people can find a reference to it if they are looking to diagnose a similar problem :smooch:

Hi,
Does any body know why my daughters 2001 camaro (6 cyl basic stock model) would rev up by itself when she was driving on the freeway? She called & said she had to pull over & get a tow because when she took her foot off the brakes the car idled up on it's own & the RPM's kept increasing without pushing on the gas pedal. She said this also happened when the car was in park after she pulled over. Tow truck driver suspected a throttle cable but aparantly there isn't one on this car.
Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks
TC

Dad,
You know how you're asking what I want for xmas and birthday and I always say "don't worrrry about it" :) Well OBD2 is what I want :) hehhehehehhe :tongue: :rofl:

No problem...
Also, don't forget to post what the problem was so other people can find a reference to it if they are looking to diagnose a similar problem :smooch:

Sure thing! :naughty:

Do you think that's why my AC has been hissing lately??? What does the vacuum do? Sorry for stupid questions-I'm no mechanic

Hissing from where? If you shut the A/C off does the ilde speed drop?

Hissing normally = vacuum leak, normally

And when the A/C compressor is cycling, the idle contol will raise engine rpms, and if used excessively, the IAc valve goes nuts and causes this type of problem.

i was gonna say iac, or tps... the tps sensor might think that the throttle is being pushed when it isn't... or iac may be rising up the idle

if that shop charges 120 for diagnosis, definately don't let them work on the car, once they say what is wrong tell us and we'll tell you wether or not its a simple fix... sensor changes are quite simple so you wouldn't need them too...

if that shop charges 120 for diagnosis, definately don't let them work on the car, once they say what is wrong tell us and we'll tell you wether or not its a simple fix... sensor changes are quite simple so you wouldn't need them too...

Hi! Okay Service just called and said they hooked it up and no codes came up and that they test drove the car for 11 miles and it didn't do what I had described. She said that my car has almost 80K and that sometimes the Throttle compartment "just goes out" but she can't tell me for sure if that wa the problem. She said it seemed like a one time thing and its up to me if I want to have that compartment replaced. it's around 900 (including 120 diagostic, part, and istall).

I told her I was chatting on a forum and brought up how the A/C has been hissing (I'm not sure where it's coming from I just hear a light hiss when I flip it on, or the heater, or the defrost for that matter. It seems like the entire heating/cooling stuff just kinda pooped out or is starting too.
what happens is when I excelerate the heating/cooling air comes out stronger and when I lay off it goes back down. sometimes it doesn't work at all, and it doesn't hiss at that point-it just doesn't do anything.

I brought up that MAF (told her I was on this forum :wink: ), the AC/heating hissing and pressure (above), and the ticking when I start the car, and she said that she'll have the mechanic do a safety inspection to see whats up with the car.

Does it sound like I'm getting screwed? To be honest, she seems like she's not sure what the problem is and she's leaving it up to me to decide if I want to replace the parts. She said she can't say either way. She can't tell if the problem will happen again. The thing is I can't take the chance...I really need to get it fixed soon because I don't have another car and I have an infant daughter and a full time job that I have to attend to and I'm willing to pay the money to get it fixed--I just want to make sure that if I do pay the money to a dealership-they'll fix it completely.:frown:

OH I forgot to mention that the first thing she said when she called was that when the car came in the mechanic stated that the "floor mat was bunched up under the petal"--give me a f*cking break. That's not the problem. It probably got like that when the 6'3 tow truck driver squeezed in my car and pulled it forward a few feet.:nono:

Well...just like I said, they pulged in their code reader and took it for a quick test drive...'well thatl be $120 bucks, and we couldnt find the problem...'

they are already charging you the money for looking...tell them to have one of the tecks drive it home tonight, and back to work tomarrow...they will use more gas(of course) but if it happens again, then they will know what is wrong.
When they take it for a test drive, the engine is cool, and they maybe spend 7 or 10 mins driving, ATMOST so it is kind of a joke...especially if the problem is intermittent(doesnt happen all the time).

Well...just like I said, they pulged in their code reader and took it for a quick test drive...'well thatl be $120 bucks, and we couldnt find the problem...'

they are already charging you the money for looking...tell them to have one of the tecks drive it home tonight, and back to work tomarrow...they will use more gas(of course) but if it happens again, then they will know what is wrong.
When they take it for a test drive, the engine is cool, and they maybe spend 7 or 10 mins driving, ATMOST so it is kind of a joke...especially if the problem is intermittent(doesnt happen all the time).

Thanks! I just left a voice mail for the Service dept asking them to do just what you described above and to call me back and let me know. :)

Thanks! I just left a voice mail for the Service dept asking them to do just what you described above and to call me back and let me know. :)
Maybe they will have just as much fun being towed as you did.lol
or maybe it wont happen again, we'll see...

Maybe they will have just as much fun being towed as you did.lol
or maybe it wont happen again, we'll see...

hahahaha! yeah! They shouldn't charge extra for driving it home-should they???

Nope...they are saving money on gas, and it is more or less a favor the mechanic is doing for you if one agrees...So they dont have to do it if they want to, all you can do is ask.
will they charge you more??? Ask them if they will, if they say yes, yell a bit they say you are on your way to take your car... It wont change things, but will let them know that you are not happy(as if they didnt already know)

Nope...they are saving money on gas, and it is more or less a favor the mechanic is doing for you if one agrees...So they dont have to do it if they want to, all you can do is ask.
will they charge you more??? Ask them if they will, if they say yes, yell a bit they say you are on your way to take your car... It wont change things, but will let them know that you are not happy(as if they didnt already know)

Darn!! I've been really nice so far....maybe I shoulda been upset or mad or something :evillol: I'f all else fails, YELL! I like this ....:naughty: :) LOL

You neglected to mention the AC/Heat blowing harder on accel with the hissingl. That would really lead me to believe it's a vacuum leak somewhere. The cars powertrain computer will in turn raise the idle to compensate for it.

GM v6 engines are notorious for intake manifold leaks.



Oh, and maybe your shop can educate me on something, what the the hell is a throttle compartment? is this some magical little secret compartment in the car somewhere that has some kind of fairy or speed nome in it :wtf:

In 17 years of dealing with cars I've never heard of a thottle compartment.

You neglected to mention the AC/Heat blowing harder on accel with the hissingl. That would really lead me to believe it's a vacuum leak somewhere. The cars powertrain computer will in turn raise the idle to compensate for it.

GM v6 engines are notorious for intake manifold leaks.



Oh, and maybe your shop can educate me on something, what the the hell is a throttle compartment? is this some magical little secret compartment in the car somewhere that has some kind of fairy or speed nome in it :wtf:

In 17 years of dealing with cars I've never heard of a thottle compartment.

I think she's avoiding the technical description by calling whatever "it" is...the throttle compartment. Next time I talk to her I'll ask her specifically what is the name of the part that the throttle is associated with ????? Does that make sense? It's all chinese to me.

Is it a acceleration unit? I don't know....:frown:

I'm going to mention what you wrote about the intake manifold and the vacuum leak/power train computer.

Okay guys stupid question....what is the difference between RPM's and idle'ing? RPM's is moving and Idle is sitting engine, right? that's what I always thought.

Don't let them start changing parts Dear! That';s not the way to fix a problem. Let me look at it & we will figure it out with all this help from the forum :)

Love Dad

PS RPM stands for "revolutions per minute" so if your tachometer says 3000 the engine is running 3000 revolutions per minute. Idle is usually somewhere between 500 to 800 RPM's ;)

Don't let them start changing parts Dear! That';s not the way to fix a problem. Let me look at it & we will figure it out with all this help from the forum :)

Love Dad

OK Dad, r u coming down to San Jose this weekend? :smooch:

okay so i talked to the service and she said that she asked the mechanic again about what the problem could be. The throttle part is the "throttle body" that's how she's referring to it. I asked her if it is gummed up like she said it could be and she said that no they checked and it looks okay but that there might be some part internally that isn't functioning properly. She said the AC/vacuum isn't what's causing the problem because a FCB or another type of code would appear or something like that (it began with an F). She said that they can make the car do things to read a code and that there are no codes showing up.

She said that the mechanic said that he has seen this before on my type of car and that the Throttle body should be replaced.

But she also said it's up to me because the car was warmed up after 11 miles and nothing happenend so it may have been a one time thing. Well one time is too many times when I have my 5 month old in her car seat and my car doesn't want to stop.

Try to find out if anyone else has ever seen this before... other than that mechanic... A bad throttle body could cause this, if he has seen this before, then it could be a defect in your car that there should be a recall for...ask a service writer at the dealer to look up any recalls and service bullitens for your car... they have a bad habbit of forgetting to do that unless they are asked too.

Okay, the throttle body sits on the intake manifold, when you press the accelerator the action pulls the throttle cable which opens the throttle blade(s) to allow air into the manifold. As the blade opens, the TPS (throttle posisiton sensor) sends a reference signal to the computer. The wider open it is reporting the throttle open, the more gas is injected into the motor to make more power, hance more rpms.

So it's still the same end result, either the throttle is physically sticking open, or, the TPS says the throttle is open when it isn't (which will throw a code), or air is getting into the manifold somewhere other than the throttle blades (vacuum leaks) or something is wrong with the idle control cicuit all together.

I highly believe, without seeing the car that your problem lies somewhere in the throttle body/intake manifold. A binding cable/stuck throttle blade or vacuum leak normally does not set a code. It will eventually result in a code subsequent to the problem, for example, a vacuum leak results in the PCM (computer) contantlyy running idle motor, the PCM finally wakes up says "hey, why I am I always telling the IAC to do something?", so it throws a code saying something is wrong and the IAC is constantly open or closed. Now a shop like you're dealing with now will probably throw an IAC motor at it since "ooh, gee the car says it's got an IAC problem". You get your car back, and a week later guess what, same song different verse. :bs:

These guys are giving a scoop of balogna beans and slowly getting to the core problem.

Question- During your major tune up 3 weeks ago - Did the mechanic clean your throttle body?
If so, do you know what he used to clean it??
The reason I ask - is that if they were using regular carburetor and choke cleaner, this could have caused the telfon coating to be stripped away on the throttle plates. This can cause them to stick either in the closed or partially open position. Regular carburetor cleaner is too harsh for throttle body cleaning and there is a special "less harsh" cleaner specifically for throttle body cleaning.
A lot of folks working on cars dont even know that this can happen until its too late.
Not saying this is the cause of the problem, just something to check out. and may also be the underlying reason why the mechanic is recommending the replacement of your throttle body now

Question- During your major tune up 3 weeks ago - Did the mechanic clean your throttle body?
If so, do you know what he used to clean it??
The reason I ask - is that if they were using regular carburetor and choke cleaner, this could have caused the telfon coating to be stripped away on the throttle plates. This can cause them to stick either in the closed or partially open position. Regualar carburetor cleaner is too harsh for throttle body cleaning and there is a special "less harsh" version to use for throttle body ceaning.
A lot of folks working on cars dont even know that this can happen until its too late.
Not saying this is the cause of the problem, just something to check out. and may be the underlying reason why the mechanic is recommending the replacement of your throttle body now

Good Point :) Tomorrow I'll call the shop where I got the Tune Up done. I think I still have my receipt (IN MY CAR :( )...would it be listed on the receipt? It was like 3 pages long describing what was done....I suppose it would show a cleaning but I doubt it would show what they used. ....I'll call ;)

well i suppose if the throttle body was cleaned incorrectly that might cause the problem, and validate a replacement... but if its just dirty, all it needs is to be cleaned... you wouldn't need a new one if its just clogged up, just clean it... i'm surprised its not throwing any codes, which means odds are its not a vaccum leak or sensor problem...