Any info on this would be very much appreciated!!!
My 98 Ford Explorer has been stalling out on acceleration after a stop. To make a long story short, extenuating circumstances (and desperation) led me to the ford dealership near my home. The service man there said it was the IAC valve. So, I made an appointment to have it fixed next week. Then I asked how much it was going to cost me. I was expecting $100-$150ish. Nope. $300+!!!
After looking around online trying to find what a fair price would be (I’ve read everything from $50-$400) it seems as though this should be a fairly easy repair. I took a look at it myself and it seems there are only two bolts and an electrical connection to deal with. The part is not expensive from what I’ve seen.
Am I missing something here??? Is there some extremely delicate or technical thing I’m missing that would cause this repair to be so expensive? I’m a single mom of three AND a full-time student so $300+ is NOT an option right now. More importantly, is this a repair I can do myself? I’m certainly no mechanic (I’m a finance major…), but I am one of those people who if something is broken I want to take it apart to see if I can fix it haha. Plus my father made sure I knew how to do simple things (change oil, etc) before I was allowed to buy my first car 10 or so years ago.
Any suggestions??!!! Should I tell the dealership what to do with their estimate or is it about right? Thanks in advance!!
What size engine? One engine size I checked looks like the job would probably be beyond your skills. Get the repair manual and look up the idle air control valve. A good, internal cleaning of the iac passages, with Carb/Throttle Body cleaner, and round wire brushes, may remove enough of the carbon buildup to restore proper operation.
It does not sound like an IAC problem to me. If you have any pressure on the accel pedal, the IAC is irrelevant. You say the vehicle dies while accelerating from a stop. A bad IAC would cause you to stall when coming to a stop and failure to start unless you keep your foot on the accel pedal under both conditions.
I’m with Beads. There is something else going on here. Is your “Check Engine” light on?
Go shopping for a better shop/mechanic. There are several guesses to check out: the performance of the throttle position sensor (tps), and the mass air flow sensor (MAF), and fuel flow/pressure. Have the fuel filter and the air filter been replaced in the last few years? If the check engine light has been turned on (by the engine computer) its diagnostic code could help in the troubleshooting.