Can the EGR valve make my car stall at red lights and sputter when driving?

RVIDAURY

MEMBER
1997 TOYOTA RAV4
150,000 MILES

I have taken the car to the mechanic and they checked the check engine light it says the egr valve needs replacing but he said that will not make my car stall he changed the timing belt the distributor and I still have the problem my car sputters and will stall if I wait to long at a red light it will usually start right back up. The car is sluggish while driving also

2 Replies

WRENCHTECH

MECHANIC
20,761 POSTS

The EGR can do that is it's not closing all the way at idle. Sometimes they get a piece of carbon caught in them preventing the pintle from closing but that can be seen if the valve is removed.
Try this for your stalling.

You may have a bad IAC ( idle air control) but try eliminating any vacuum leaks and cleaning the throttle body first. Remove the intake snorkel, have someone hold the throttle wide open for you and scrub the back side of the throttle plate and surrounding bore with an old tooth brush and some carb cleaner. Be sure to spray some into the small holes next to the throttle plate. That should help stabilize the idle. If it still has a problem, replace the IAC.

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Friday, August 26th, 2011 AT 10:43 PM

DRCRANKNWRENCH

MECHANIC
3,380 POSTS

Yes they can. They get very dirty from all the build up that they get.
It could be clogged injuectors, dirty intake, etc.
Take off the intake hase at the throttle body and see how dirty it looks inside.
You can clean an EGR, most people just buy one.
You can clean it with brake cleaner and some work.
Run 2 cans of SEA FOAM or BG44K and then change the oil. The stuff works so good it ends up making the oil dirty from all the deposits it cleans out.

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Friday, August 26th, 2011 AT 10:45 PM