IAC valve

[pb31]

Ok, I bought a new IAC valve from a Ford dealer today for my Tbird. + a gasket. I was wondering if I need to reset the car's computer after replacing the IAC.

[dltbird96]

you know that is a good question, I had to replace mine as well, if anyone has the answer to this, please reply

[likhootch]

Originally Posted by dltbird96

you know that is a good question, I had to replace mine as well, if anyone has the answer to this, please reply

By IAC I assume you mean idle Air Control valve? If that's the animal, then the answer is no you do not have to reset the computer.

[Donald91tbird]

Originally Posted by likhootch

By IAC I assume you mean idle Air Control valve? If that's the animal, then the answer is no you do not have to reset the computer.

That is a common problem according to the MSN Review. Reliability Rating - AIC Motor

How do you know if its not working properly? Does the car just die or decrease performance?

[likhootch]

The car can possibly die if it is stuck all the way open or closed. Your gas mileage should be shot, and the car will run rough and stall/stagger on acceleration. If the car dies on start, try unpugging the IAC and then try starting the car. (I actually had an EGR stuck full open on my Exploreer that would cause the car to not start, the vacuum created by a wide open egr valve at low idle was eniough to prevent the cra from starting.) The IAC can cause this also. At high rpm, no problem. You can actually drive the car in this way. But you lose a tremendous amount of performance and gas mileage. You may have to apply some gas to get it running depending on where the valve is stuck. If the car runs with the valve disconnected, then it is that valve. The Ford service manual for my 88 Tbird lists a cleaning procedure and dissasembly of the valve, but you can buy a new valve from Ford(expensive) or NAPA. I haven't bought one in a while but it is around $80 for a new one. It is farily easy to install, just make sure the new gasket is in place. Disoconnect the battery before you start, this way, when you are done the computer will already be reset. Good luck