Throttle Body Cleaning (The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly)
 

Since there’s extra time to catch up with so many things I needed to work on, I took this time to clean both Throttle Bodies of my Saturn and HHR’s.
I discovered, that though the HHR has never had a cleaning, it looked to be in good shape. On the other hand, the Saturn was in DIRE need, since it has has over 250k miles on it and I believe was never cleaned when that was paid for (a shifty mechanic sprayed Chemtool into the intake and charged me $120). Anyway, this is the before and after pics of both. I’d say this is a worthwhile chore that was actually MUCH easier to do on the HHR than the complicated wires, braces, tubes, sensors and hoses that are attached to the Saturn’s. It took me 10 minutes to take off the HHR’s (4 bolts and a plug!), whereas it took 5 times that long with the Saturn’s.
If I were to do this again, I would certainly clean Throttle Bodies in “bulk”, instead of separately, just because of the cleaner and scrubbing needed.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...5b71c94ac.jpeg
HHR Motor side (Before)
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...dd7f69e17.jpeg
Saturn (Intake Side) Before
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...d3bca21f2.jpeg
HHR (intake side) Before
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...ad69ff203.jpeg
Saturn (Motor side) Before
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...974b78fb6.jpeg
Saturn (Sensor wells) Before
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...c84ea9833.jpeg
HHR (Motor Side) After
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...b525a677d.jpeg
Saturn (Motor Side) After
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...343443e93.jpeg
Saturn (Motor Side) Sensor Wells detail After
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...e318e0d9f.jpeg
Saturn (New and Old) Idle Air Control Valves


I used only Napa CRC Throttle Body Cleaner.. The change in the two was of course more remarkable in the Saturn. There’s a 5 second delay in its “Relearn”, which made it start at about 3000rpm then slowly it dropped down to a smooth 800rpm. Very nicely. The HHR seems to be virtually the same, since it had little carbon buildup. Idle seems ever-so slightly smoother.

So, there’s the Very Good..

Now, for the bad....

The Saturn drives amazingly better. Smooth and much more responsive and warmup low idle is faster. However, after driving the HHR around the block, I get these 3 Codes thrown... I’m totally confused about them. There were no codes before.


https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...20a694a24.jpeg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...af08796f8.jpeg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...94480fcfa.jpeg

Lastly, the Ugly is this ...


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...30982b65b.jpeg

This is why, you cannot move the butterfly plate. Now you need to buy a new throttle body.

X2 the throttle body has wee tiny plastic gears, you should never move the butterfly plate manually, that might strip those gears.
this might clear up , try a battery lobotomy, but plan on a new throttle body.

Maybe not. Make sure everything got plugged back in with no damaged pins. Make sure the butterfly is fully closed engine off. With key OFF make sure the butterfly moves and returns. Make sure the intake neck is tight.

The gears stripping comes from the grease getting dry; a 2010 shouldn't have that problem. It is forcing the butterfly that causes it, it should move with little effort.

The message on the DIC is from the throttle sensor error.

Here's a video about the throttle body. This is for a Volvo, but it's the same animal.

P0172 dirty MAF sensor
https://www.obd-codes.com/p0172

P0223 yes pins, damaged throttle actuator
https://www.obd-codes.com/p0223

P0442 , loose gas cap or EVAP seals
https://www.obd-codes.com/p0442

This is very interesting that you said "Fully Closed with Engine Off". I noticed that it was not fully closed when I pulled the air tube before I touched it, just looking at it from above. It seemed to have a slight opening at the top. I never touched it while it was plugged in, and when I cleaned it, I just slowly moved the butterfly to clean where it was sitting until it was clean (like in the pic), then I moved it back. It never seemed forced, and I didn't hear any clicking or slipping, It seemed to return to exactly the same position when I released it. I know the calibration on those things aren't made to force, so I never did anything to force it, but that air gap was a little surprising to me when I first saw it. I know my Saturn's is also flat and no air gap, and looked quite different. I need to research why this is.

Thank you for looking these up.. I had the first and third codes before, and since everything was still original, I went ahead and replaced the MAF plus I Got a new levelled up Gas Cap from Napa (OEM compatible), and the two codes went away. Then after cleaning the Throttle Body, that's when these came back. It's really odd to me, because the parts were replaced and codes went away 300+ miles ago. That's why I was thinking to take your advice to disconnect the battery for a while and see how it goes first. As far as the pins, I'm going to go out and see how they look under the microscope. Let's see how it goes.... THANKS MUCHLY!

Keep us updated!

I remember when I did mine. Unplugged and removed TB. Then plugged back in with the TB sitting on a folded towel. Turned the ignition on full acc (don't try to start). Had wife push on the pedal while I sprayed. Worked like a charm.