The throttle body is one of the essential parts of your car and regulates the airflow going to the engine. The moment you touch the gas pedal, you are essentially opening the throttle plate to enable more air to pass through the manifold, which eventually passes the air to the engine. Knowing how to clean the throttle body without removing it can be essential for keeping your vehicle happy.

The longer you leave the throttle body, the more dirt will build up inside. As a result of dirt in the throttle body, you might feel a lack of power when pressing the gas pedal. Fortunately, anyone can clean the throttle body at home. All you will need are a few basic tools to ensure that it is back to optimal condition.

If you notice a lack of power when pressing the gas pedal, it might just be a dirty throttle body. This article aims to show you how you can clean the throttle body to ensure that it is in optimal condition. We have focused on making it as simple as possible to ensure that virtually anyone reading can apply these steps.

How To Clean Throttle Body Without Removing It

As a rule of thumb, you should consider cleaning the throttle body every 75,000-miles or so to ensure that you get the optimal performance from your vehicle. The best way to clean it is to do it without removing the unit. The following step-by-step guide should enable you to do so without too many hassles.

1. Get Everything You Need Ready

Before you even start cleaning the throttle body, you must buy the right products to start cleaning. Keep in mind that not all vehicles are the same and you will find that many cars require specific products. Essentially, you will need to have a cleaning product designed for removing the dirt and a towel.

2. Accessing The Throttle Body

Once you have everything ready to start cleaning, you will need to access the throttle body. The access should be easy and you should consider looking for the engine air intake rubber. The rubber makes it easy to locate the throttle body. It is fixed with a secure clamp, which means you can remove it without using any tools.

3. Opening Up The Throttle Body

As you can remember, we mentioned that the throttle plate is located on the throttle body and regulates the airflow. The component is sealed when you don’t press the gas pedal and needs to be opened up.

The best way of opening up the throttle plate is to have someone on the inside of the vehicle pressing the gas pedal. Opening it up with your hands is possible, but you risk the chance of confusing the computer and might require a reset.

4. Apply The Cleaning Product

Once the throttle plate is open, you will have access to the insides of the throttle body. The next step would be applying the cleaning product diligently. We do not recommend that use too much of the product as this could potentially flood your engine. You should use only the recommended dosage that is often on the spray bottle.

5. Cleaning The Throttle Body

Once you have the product applied, you should use your towel to clean the throttle body. Cleaning the throttle body can often be daunting, but we recommend using a clean towel for the process. The last thing you want to do is to add more additional dirt to the throttle body, which could cause some extra issues for you to deal with.

6. Reinstall The Intake Rubber

Once you have completed most of the work, and you are sure that your components are clean, you need not forget about the air intake rubber. With the clamp, it should quickly fit back in position. However, we would recommend securing it properly to avoid any potential air leakages that could result in a loss of power for your vehicle.

7. Start The Vehicle

Once everything is fixed in position, you will need to start the car to ensure that everything is working. If you accidentally used too much of the cleaning product, you might find that the vehicle does not start. By pressing the gas pedal to the floor and continuously cranking the car, you should have it start. If it does not want to start, you need to make sure everything is fixed in place.

FAQ

Is The Throttle Body Cleaner Dangerous For Your Engine?

If you are using the correct product, you should not need to worry about the throttle body cleaner damaging your engine. The main purpose of the product is to remove some of the dirt and grime that often sticks to your engine. However, applying too much of the product could negatively impact your engine. You might find that you can easily flood the engine when overusing the cleaner.

How Do I Know If I Should Clean The Throttle Body?

There are a few things that should give you an indication that the time for cleaning the throttle body has come. One of these might be that your vehicle is in limp mode and doesn’t want to give you enough power. An overall loss of power for your vehicle is also a sign that the throttle body needs to be cleaned ASAP.

Finally, the overall engine performance of your vehicle might not be at the level that it should. You might have strange noises and vibrations when your vehicle is idling. While this could be down to a variety of reasons, it would not do any harm to check the throttle body and see whether it might be causing the issues.