While I was driving this morning, around 25 mph, my car started accelerating on it’s own. This caused the engine RPMs to increase and naturally so did the speed. This has happened several times; not constantly but intermittently. Could you give me your diagnosis and is this something I could fix myself?
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Robert Tomashek
Hello. There are a few possible causes of this but most of the time it is caused by a failing throttle body. If the throttle plate sticks and does not return to the correct position then the vehicle will accelerate.
In some cases it can also be caused by the floor mats in the vehicle. If the pedal gets stuck on it, but that is not as common. I usually check the throttle body and see if it is sticking and clean the throttle body if it is dirty. If that does not solve it then I would go ahead and replace the throttle body. If you need to have this looked at, consider YourMechanic, as a certified mechanic can come to your home or office to diagnose and repair this as necessary.
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Idling is the process of making a car standstill while the engine is on, but the vehicle is not moving. It happens when no gears are engaged, acceleration pedal is not pressed, and brakes are activated. Idling is needed in many situations, such as when you wait for the traffic signal to turn green or at any point when you don’t feel the need to turn off the engine. Sometimes idling seems to increase the RPM high until the engine is fully warmed up. But the problem arises when RPM is still set to high even after the engine warm-up is done. If you are encountering car idles high and accelerates on its own issue, here is your solution.
Car Idles High And Accelerates On Its Own – Why the Engine Idles High?
The first thing you can check is the root of why the engine idles high. Sometimes, it is effortless to troubleshoot the problem by referring to the codes. If you encounter some error code blinking there, you can either use the code reader or take your car to the professionals.
If it seems to be no error code, then you can check the Idle Air Control Valve/Bypass Air Control or have it checked. There may be debris in there that can be cleaned, and the idle problem gets solved.
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Possible Causes Of High Idle Speed
If the car idles high and accelerates on its own, there may be reasons. Consider these reasons way identifying the actual root of the problem.
- Sometimes the power circuit malfunctions, and it is responsible for high idling.
- Perhaps there is a fault in the cooling system which makes the engine overheat.
- The fuel pressure regulator can be a reason that either needs a repair or replacement.
- You may need to work with the Ignition timing.
- A leaking hose can be the culprit.
- There may be some issue with the engine control system.
You see the reasons can be the many that cause the idle issue to happen. In case you can’t find the actual root, it is always advised to take the vehicle to professionals.
Why The Engine Accelerates On Its Own?
Sometimes with high idling, you also encounter that the engine accelerates automatically, even if you do not give any command. The malfunctioning throttle body can be the culprit that if sticks can cause the acceleration. Check out car Maintenance Tips and resolve all the issues.
The most common reason can be the floor mat that can make the pedal stuck. As a result, the pedal does not return to its accurate position, and this causes acceleration. You can get the throttle checked and tell the repairer to replace if any problem exists.
You can check the floor mat yourself and make sure in no way it interferes with the gas pedal. Nothing should be stuck in the gas pedal; clean the area to crosscheck.
Conclusion
In the end, you should always have the error codes diagnosed. You can either solve the issues yourself or take the car to professionals and get the ‘car idles high and accelerates on its own’ issue solved.