My husband was driving it and it stalled on him?

SHARICHARI

MEMBER
1996 CHEVROLET LUMINA
6 CYL
FWD
AUTOMATIC
240,000 MILES

I have a 1996 chevy lumina with a 3.1 engine. Up until three days ago it ran quiet and smooth. My husband was driving it and it stalled on him. He tried to restart it and found it would only stay running when he had his foot on the gas pedal. Once we towed it home the mechanic who towed it pushed a pump on our engine and gas squirted out and he said it wasn't our fuel pump. We replaced our spark plugs and wires today and it still wont stay running without pushing on the accelerator. What could be causing this and could it be the fuel pump?

Wednesday, August 19th, 2009 AT 8:16 PM

1 Reply

SQM

MECHANIC
6,383 POSTS

Hello,

It sounds like the idle air control valve might be dirty.
That's why you need to have the accelerator pedal depressed in order to keep the engine running.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/engine-stalls

Anytime the IAC becomes dirty the idle quality suffers. Overtime the larger air particles will stuck to the inside of the valve and will restrict airflow.
The IAC can be serviced by cleaning out the buildup of particles.

You might find this article helpful:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/idle-air-control-valve-service

I have attached diagrams for your reference.

Please let me know of any questions.

Thank you.

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