Petrol Xantia won't idle

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D.Slatford
Posts: 129
Joined: 13 Nov 2001, 06:06
Location: Wakefield, United Kingdom
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Petrol Xantia won't idle

Post by D.Slatford »

Came to set off for work this morning, and I find my 1.8 P reg Xantia stalls at idle. It seems to run fine enough with the foot down, but makes no attempt to stop itself from dying near idle. It was always a little slow at startup to idle, occasionally dying once before idling fine on the second attempt, but now it's really had it.

I understand a faulty stepper motor will cause this, which I suppose I can only test by somehow replacing it. Is there anything else that might be worth checking too? On an injection system I can't think of much else. There appear to be no broken hoses. The ECU light hasn't come on.

This was a "temporary" car when I bought it six months ago, but despite its 195,550 milage and present problem, it's been the finest petrol engine I've had in any car!
deian
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Post by deian »

by stepper motor you mean the idle control valve? maybe you can check that it's not stuck? not sure how they are on the Xantias, but take the pipes off and spray some WD40 inside, it may be stuck in one position. Also you could check that it's got some sort of electrical feed? a multimeter would help, just try what you can until you see 12v going into it somehow.

then again... it could be something else, but i agree with your suspicions of a faulty ICV. Can't think what else it could be. Any others problems would tell the ECU to put the light on.

Good luck.
ralph
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Joined: 14 Jul 2003, 15:46
Location: Bradford, West Yorkshire
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Post by ralph »

I had same problem on my 1.8 Xantia, and thought it was the stepper motor. A diagnostic check revealed it was the MAP sensor.
The garage I used fitted a second-hand sensor for about £29, so it was a cheap repair.
2000 Clio 1.2 8-valve
1993 Mercedes 190E
2007 Honda FRV diesel
1998 Xsara TD, 293K - gone but not forgotten.
205s, 405, ZXs all loved and crushed.
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