steve brochu
New member
i need to replace the idle air control valve on my 86. how big of a job is it and do i need any special tools?
iac on an 86 how hard?
- Thread starter steve brochu
- Start date
boomdriver
Well-known member
Its not bad depending on how you approach the task.
Its difficult to unscrew the IAC motor as its mounted because of misc things that are in the path directly behind it. The easy way is to remove air duct, cone and PCV hoses, then unbolt throttle body (4 allen bolts) and pull the throttle body away and up enough to get a wrench on the IAC motor and unscrew it. The IAC might be tight,(25 yrs worth) so TRY to break it loose while the TB is still bolted down. Its more difficult if the TB is loose and you have to hold that and the wrench on the IAC.
Giving yourself easy access has its price......you;ll need to clean away the old TB gasket and replace, and be prepared to replace any damaged or broken vac lines or heater hoses.
The upside is that now is a great time to take the TB and hose it out with some TB spray cleaner as well as spraying into the plenum and its passages to remove the gunk and carbon build-up. Don't drown the motor in spray cleaner...
The only "special" tools required would be the long reach allen wrenches, and the rest is typical tool box stuff. Be careful with the IAC connector...they tend to break the retaining clip from age/heat/fatigue.
Its also a good time to remove and bypass the small radiator/heater hoses under the throttle body. GM felt that many Corvettes would be sold within the Arctic circle so they ran hot water thru the TB to keep it from freezing up....The hoses are a source of leaks and headaches when they fail. Most folks just bypass the TB and do away with the hot water in the TB unless you're going to be doing a lot of sub-zero driving...I bypassed mine and used metal lines from the intake to past the a/c compressor to eliminate as much rubber as possible so that one short section of heater hose could repair ANY line on the car.
All this stuff....is worth a Saturday morning. Mebbe 3-4 hrs tops, and thats stopping constantly to look again and go slow since its the first time.
Have fun! its not bad at all..
Its difficult to unscrew the IAC motor as its mounted because of misc things that are in the path directly behind it. The easy way is to remove air duct, cone and PCV hoses, then unbolt throttle body (4 allen bolts) and pull the throttle body away and up enough to get a wrench on the IAC motor and unscrew it. The IAC might be tight,(25 yrs worth) so TRY to break it loose while the TB is still bolted down. Its more difficult if the TB is loose and you have to hold that and the wrench on the IAC.
Giving yourself easy access has its price......you;ll need to clean away the old TB gasket and replace, and be prepared to replace any damaged or broken vac lines or heater hoses.
The upside is that now is a great time to take the TB and hose it out with some TB spray cleaner as well as spraying into the plenum and its passages to remove the gunk and carbon build-up. Don't drown the motor in spray cleaner...
The only "special" tools required would be the long reach allen wrenches, and the rest is typical tool box stuff. Be careful with the IAC connector...they tend to break the retaining clip from age/heat/fatigue.
Its also a good time to remove and bypass the small radiator/heater hoses under the throttle body. GM felt that many Corvettes would be sold within the Arctic circle so they ran hot water thru the TB to keep it from freezing up....The hoses are a source of leaks and headaches when they fail. Most folks just bypass the TB and do away with the hot water in the TB unless you're going to be doing a lot of sub-zero driving...I bypassed mine and used metal lines from the intake to past the a/c compressor to eliminate as much rubber as possible so that one short section of heater hose could repair ANY line on the car.
All this stuff....is worth a Saturday morning. Mebbe 3-4 hrs tops, and thats stopping constantly to look again and go slow since its the first time.
Have fun! its not bad at all..
Similar threads
Corvette Forums
Supporting Vendors
Dealers:
