Throttle Position Sensor replacement & repair made easy

What does a throttle potentiometer do?

The throttle potentiometer is the recipient of the signal from the accelerator pedal where vehicles have an electronic pedal (and therefore not a cable operated one)

How does a throttle potentiometer work and what are the components?

The throttle potentiometer receives the varying voltage input fed from the accelerator pedal. If you consider the accelerator pedal as a volume control, where 0 is no pressure and 10 is maximum pressure, the throttle body reads the number and alters the position of the throttle plate to allow more air in to increase the power of the engine.At the same time it sends a signal to the engine control unit (ECU) so it can determine how much fuel pressure it requires to match the air input.

How do you know there is something wrong with the throttle potentiometer?

Depending on the vehicle, you may observe one or more of the following symptoms;

• Erratic engine idle.
• Hesitation under acceleration.
• Poor engine performance.
• Illuminated engine management light (EML)

When should you consider a throttle potentiometer replacement?

The basic fact is that if your throttle potentiometer has failed, it needs to be replaced before the engine will run correctly.

How common is a throttle potentiometer replacement?

Although the units are getting more reliable, there is still a chance this can occur at least once in a vehicle's lifetime.

How can I extend the life of my throttle potentiometer?

There is nothing you can do to prevent failures on this unit..

What happens during a throttle potentiometer replacement?

Depending on the manufacturer, a number of different processes will need to be done in order to access the throttle potentiometer, however the mechanic will need to do some of the following basic steps

• The mechanic will asses the situation by reading the diagnostic codes and checking live data
• Once confirmed that the throttle potentiometer is faulty, they will continue on to replacing it.
• Once replaced, the mechanic will start the engine and recheck the error codes

How much does a throttle potentiometer replacement cost?

The cost of replacing a throttle potentiometer depends on your car and what parts your car's manufacturer recommends using for the replacement. Find out what you could save by having the throttle potentiometer replaced by ClickMechanic, by selecting your car at the top of this page!