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I have an 03 acura rsx, automatic, 140k miles. Had issues with the engine sputtering and shaking when slowing down or idling. The mechanic said the check engine light showed a bad Idle Air Control Valve sensor so he changed it and it cost $270 + $150 for labor, others wouldve charged the same i learned but the next day the issues were worse and the car stalled 5 times when slowing down. He then said he found a vacuum leak and fixed that and the problem has stopped, the car now idles ok and doesnt shake and sputter. I'm thinking that maybe the IACV didnt need to be replaced and just the vacuum leak was the problem. Or would a leak make the idle control valve go bad? Did i get ripped off here or both the IACV sensor and vacuum leak had to fixed?
I think he should have eliminated any vacuum leaks before he diagnosed it being something else. I dont know what you can do now. I would find another mechanic for sure and next time spend more time talking about cost before you let anyone try to fix a problem.
would a vacuum leak cause the check engine light error code to show the IACV was bad? and if so could the IACV be fine and the vacuum leak be the real problem?
Pretty standard to pull the check engine code if it's on, so I'd say no. I mean, I'm assuming the check engine light was on, right? Odd that he didn't drive the vehicle around for a few minutes to see if it fixed the problem. Mechanics aren't omniscient. Fixing a problem generally means start with the obvious (check engine light > pull code > code is for something that causes the exact problem being experienced > fix what code says need to be fixed). The vacuum leak may have been very obvious (audible hissing) had the mechanic checked for that or it may not have been. No way of knowing now. If you've got something obvious (CEL), I don't think it's that unreasonable not to go run and grab the propane torch and start spraying in the off-chance of finding a vacuum leak. What exactly was the code anyway? I've really done very little work on OBD-II vehicles as up until recently my cars were all quite old.
Pretty standard to pull the check engine code if it's on, so I'd say no. I mean, I'm assuming the check engine light was on, right? Odd that he didn't drive the vehicle around for a few minutes to see if it fixed the problem. Mechanics aren't omniscient. Fixing a problem generally means start with the obvious (check engine light > pull code > code is for something that causes the exact problem being experienced > fix what code says need to be fixed). The vacuum leak may have been very obvious (audible hissing) had the mechanic checked for that or it may not have been. No way of knowing now. If you've got something obvious (CEL), I don't think it's that unreasonable not to go run and grab the propane torch and start spraying in the off-chance of finding a vacuum leak. What exactly was the code anyway? I've really done very little work on OBD-II vehicles as up until recently my cars were all quite old.
the check engine light code showed an issue with the IACV so he decided to replace that. He drove the car extensively in troubleshooting. The next day after car stalled he said he never saw the vacuum leak initially. Just seems like the leak was the problem since simply fixing the IACV actually made things worse. Or do the two go hand in hand, i dont know?
I have an 03 acura rsx, automatic, 140k miles. Had issues with the engine sputtering and shaking when slowing down or idling. The mechanic said the check engine light showed a bad Idle Air Control Valve sensor so he changed it and it cost $270 + $150 for labor, others wouldve charged the same i learned but the next day the issues were worse and the car stalled 5 times when slowing down. He then said he found a vacuum leak and fixed that and the problem has stopped, the car now idles ok and doesnt shake and sputter. I'm thinking that maybe the IACV didnt need to be replaced and just the vacuum leak was the problem. Or would a leak make the idle control valve go bad? Did i get ripped off here or both the IACV sensor and vacuum leak had to fixed?
You paid to replace an Idle Air Control Valve that wasn't faulty. The mechanic should have found the vacuum leak first. Simple as that.
Pretty standard to pull the check engine code if it's on, so I'd say no. I mean, I'm assuming the check engine light was on, right? Odd that he didn't drive the vehicle around for a few minutes to see if it fixed the problem. Mechanics aren't omniscient. Fixing a problem generally means start with the obvious (check engine light > pull code > code is for something that causes the exact problem being experienced > fix what code says need to be fixed). The vacuum leak may have been very obvious (audible hissing) had the mechanic checked for that or it may not have been. No way of knowing now. If you've got something obvious (CEL), I don't think it's that unreasonable not to go run and grab the propane torch and start spraying in the off-chance of finding a vacuum leak. What exactly was the code anyway? I've really done very little work on OBD-II vehicles as up until recently my cars were all quite old.
A good mechanic will run down all sorts of possible problems.
A bad mechanic will just go by an OBD2 scan and throw parts at the problem.
The mechanic in question was the latter type.
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