2006 Kia Spectra engine stalls and bad idle, cleaning the Idle Air Control Valve

[Bob456789]

I have a 2006 Kia Spectra with 66k miles. The idle rpm of the car fluctuated badly and at times the engine will stall. It will stall when letting off the gas and applying the brakes. This is an intermittent problem.
I purchased the car used and the problem did not show up for about four days. At that time I thought the A/C was cutting in and out causing the slight change in engine RPM. The problem would come and go and only lasted for a few minutes.
After about three weeks the car started stalling and the range of the fluctuation increased with the rpm spiking up to around 2000 while in park. I took it to the dealer and they cleaned the throttle body and serviced the transmission. While at the dealer the car did not show any problems of course.

After reading several other posts, I removed the Idle Air Control Valve and cleaned it. It was very dirty and took some time to clean out.
The valve is showing some signs of wear, bright shinny areas on top of the gate.
The car performed better, no more high revs while parked. However the car would still stall. I removed the valve and cleaned it a second time. The second cleaning appeared to solve the problem, but then it returned later that day. I believe I was just to overly optimistic wanting it to be fixed. The next day the engine reved high and the transmission disconnected even though the car was in drive. I had slowed to make a turn and while accelerating after the turn the engine reved very high and but the car was slowing down. After the rpm dropped back to normal the transmission re-engaged.

I think my next move would be to replace the idle air control valve. However I am bothered by how dirty the valve was. Looking at the two openings that it mates to, the lower opening is very dirty where as the top one is clean. The opening has a black, sticky layer in it. I saw a post some where that exhaust gas is mixed back into the intake through another valve and that that part might need to be replaced. I have been unable to find that post again. Any ideas? Is 66k miles a little early for this valve to fail?


Here is how I removed the valve for those that are interested.
I removed the top plastic cover from the engine. It is held in place with 4 bolts that are 10 mm.
The valve is in the back on the right side, held in place with two bolts. The top one is easy to get to. I unplug the electrical connector, on mine the latch was on the back side out of view. I move the throttle cable out of the way by removing the bolt that holds the clamp down. I then removed a small hose to get to the lower bolt, the hose is held on with spring clips. From another post I think you can get the bolts out with a pozidriv screw driver, but I did not have one. I used a 10mm socket and ratchet for the top bolt and a combo wrench for the bottom one. Don’t drop the bolts. I had to retrieve one from under the car. Don’t loose the gasket.
I used throttle body cleaner, an old tooth brush, Q-tips and a small copper rod to clean the valve. The tooth brush was too big and could not reach every where that needed to be cleaned. I stared using Q-tips at that point, the only problem with that is that they shed little strands of cotton. Using a small copper rod I was able to open the valve to clean more area. My fingers are to fat to open the valve with out a tool. I used a copper rod flattened on one end, it’s a home made o-ring removal tool. I did not want to scratch or ding the valve by using a small screwdriver. I let the valve dry in sun to remove all of the cleaner and then reinstalled it.

[pulsar86]

I'm not 100% sure but , Check PCV [ positive crankcase ventilation] valve, is ok, sounds like you may be getting oil sucked into inlet manifold along with crankcase gas. PCV will be on hose from valve cover to inlet manifold.

[Bob456789]

Thanks for the help. I replaced the PCV valve. It was $4.00 at the local parts store. There was a foam rubber piece around the valve. I am not sure if the foam serves a purpose or if its just for looks. It was very oily. I did not see any cracks in the valve I removed. Maybe it was leaking past the threads, maybe the oil is from an old leak and someone has replaced the valve before. Removing the valve required a wrench for several turns even after I had broken it loose. I could only turn it by hand for the last few threads. The one I removed had what looked like Lock Tight on it. I applied a little removable (blue) Lock Tight to the new one. Again it would only go in a few threads by hand and then with the wrench until it stopped. This worried me as I did not want to break it off but I also did not want it to leak.
I have ordered a new Idle Air Control Valve and will have it in a few days. In the mean time, because I can't leave things alone. I removed the IAC valve again and it still looks clean from the last time I removed it. I only drive about 16 miles round trip to work. However the gate appeared to stick when I moved it. So I applied some light oil to the two pivot points of the gate. I know the oil will collect dirt but I plan to replace the valve in a few days. I also put the Idle Air Control Valve back on using a torque wrench. I have know idea what the correct torque is. I just wanted to get the two bolts to the same level. Today on the way to work I had no problems with the car, which most likely will have nothing to do with my temporary fix.

[gemstone]

I have a 2007 Spectra that is starting to experience some uneven idle speeds... So I am also thinking about cleaning the IAC valve and replacing the PCV valve... Where is the PCV valve on a 2007 Spectra?

[Bob456789]

I am not sure about the 2007. On the 2006, remove the plastic engine cover. It is on the back right side and has a hose attached to it. It is screwed into the valve cover. On mine the PCV valve was covered with a piece of foam for some reason.

[kiaguyTT]

I too have experienced similar behavior from my car, particularly when I start it up on mornings.

Thanks to this thread I now know where the PCV valve is but I'd like to know where the IAC valve is located too.

Oh, I drive a 2004 CERATO 1600cc.

Cheers,
KiaguyTT

[Bob456789]

Oops... I blame it on a lack of coffee. The IAC Valve is directly across form the PCV valve. It is held in place by two bolts and has an electrical plug on the right side. I will attemt to up load a pic I copied from another thread.

Also as an update the new IAC valve I installed did not solve the problem. However the computer did finally produce an error code. I now have a new throttle postion sensor as well.

[jarp87]

Originally Posted by Bob456789

Oops... I blame it on a lack of coffee. The IAC Valve is directly across form the PCV valve. It is held in place by two bolts and has an electrical plug on the right side. I will attemt to up load a pic I copied from another thread.

Also as an update the new IAC valve I installed did not solve the problem. However the computer did finally produce an error code. I now have a new throttle postion sensor as well.

Hey there bob, i just registered to ask you: What or how did you manage to solve the problem ??

ive already clean the IAC valve, next step its to change the PCV valve.. but where exactly is the PCV valve?

any help will be great!

[Bob456789]

I no longer have the car as it was wiped out by a tornado. I can no longer find the photos I had of the engine and I do not remember where the PVC valve was located. I had a drawing of the intake at one time that I think I found on this forum somewhere. As it turns out, the car had a bad throttle postion sensor. It would drop out at random for a second or so. The car's computer did not show an error for weeks. The day I gave in and took it to a shop, the computer generated an error code at last. The guy I talked to at the shop said that normally the throttle postion sensor works or doesn't and that is was uncommon to have one that was intermittent.
Sorry that I could not be of more help.

[jarp87]

Originally Posted by Bob456789

I no longer have the car as it was wiped out by a tornado. I can no longer find the photos I had of the engine and I do not remember where the PVC valve was located. I had a drawing of the intake at one time that I think I found on this forum somewhere. As it turns out, the car had a bad throttle postion sensor. It would drop out at random for a second or so. The car's computer did not show an error for weeks. The day I gave in and took it to a shop, the computer generated an error code at last. The guy I talked to at the shop said that normally the throttle postion sensor works or doesn't and that is was uncommon to have one that was intermittent.
Sorry that I could not be of more help.

Thank for answering. im sorry about the car.

Well i manage to found the f****G pvc valve..

this helped me a lot "there was a foam rubber piece around the valve" f**ing rubber, how the hell was i going to see the freaking valve. i found the rubber piece and in fact pcv valve was the problem. bought one ($9.5 here) change it and voila! 4 error downs just by pcv.

thanks again.

Oxygen sensor (sensor1 bank1) might be down or just dirty, will check it.

oh BTW i sprayed some carb cleaner on the old pcv valve and now sounds like the new one, so if someone wants i think it can be cleaned periodically to avoid losing it.

kia spectra 2008.. pcv valve its almost in front of the IAC sensor. in fact on the left of the IAC, theres a hose that goes to the pcv valve.