318i is Idling Extremely High

I have a 1984 BMW 318i that has started idling at an extremely high RPM around 3,000 to be exact. I can tap the gas and the idle will go down momentarily, then it will sputter then it picks back up the idle speed to 3,000 RPM's and remains there. I had thought about starting with the Idle Air Stabilizer Valve. Anyone have any ideas or is this a good place to start. Thanks.

This is kinda basic, but you might want to see if something is stuck on the throttle.

I know of a person who once thought their gas pedal was broken because the throtlle remained wide open even when the pedal was depressed...they later found out that squirrels were using the compartment under the hood as a acorn storage place, and an acorn got stuck...

Take that for what its worth...hope it helps.

Hey 318i Mike!
I'm kind of having the similar problem with my car too at the moment but instead of Starting at High Revs, my car just automatically starts reving by itself 2 minutes after I start my car.
So I'm gonna be going to my mechanic today and I'll ask him what's the problem and I'll ask him about your problem.
So I'll get back to you as soon as I get back from my mechanic.

PEACE!!!!:smoker2: :grey: :sun: :bandit:

I've seen this many times, what happens is that the idle valve gets stuck and then the idle control unit gets fried so the idle gets wacky. Here's a quick test, unplug the idle valve and check if you get voltage from the connector, if you do that means the idle cpu is still good, then unbolt the idle valve, and take it off. Now look for the two connections on the idle valve, and connect one to the + and the other to the - of the battery, if the idle valve is still good it will close shut as soon as it gets voltage (you can hear a click and you should not be able to blow air through the air passages.)

If you don't get voltage to the idle valve and the idle valve doesn't snap shut when you connect it to the battery, replace both of them.

If the valve works and you're not getting voltage to the idle valve from the idle cpu, well thats a little more complicated to figure out because the idle cpu has sensors all over the engine to check temp and rpms and its a real pain in the @$$ to diagnose, start with the easiest first, and good luck!