Saturns commonly have some
troubles that benefit from a good throttlebody cleaning,
including running rough and a sticking pedal. For a
quick check to see if your throttlebody needs cleaned, push
down on the quarter circle piece on the end of the
throttlebody shaft. If it sticks at all, it needs
cleaned. Cleaning is easy and cheap, though, so you
may want to clean it anyway.
This is your throttle plate:
If you are unfamiliar with how
these work, try having someone push on your gas pedal (car
off) and watch the throttle plate and surrounding parts.
The black quarter-circle piece on the side of the throttle
plate housing will be pulled by its attached cable, turning
the shaft and moving the plate.
The outside of the plate, as you
see here, is normally shiny. The other side, however,
is usually rather nasty with an oily sludge.
How to:
Step 1)
Remove the
stock intake system (Airbox Lid - Throttlebody)
From here, you can simply push
down on the quarter circle piece (see below) to open the
throttle plate, and spray carburetor or throttlebody cleaner
into the opening. Be ready with a rag, because nasty
black liquid will come streaming out. Keep doing this
until there is no sticking when pushing on the quarter
circle piece.
Reassembly:
Reassembly is the reverse of
disassembly.
