2002 Saturn Testing Electric EGR

Engine problem
2002 Saturn Two Wheel Drive Manual 38000 miles

2002 Saturn SL 1.9 liter. Manual transmission. Car is detonating underload when engine is warm. First switched to higher octane gas. That didn't help. Next I want to check the EGR. It is full electric operated. No vacuum supply. Removed EGR cleaned Carbon deposits. Pintle moves freely. I have no idea how to test if the EGR is actually working under acceleration. If the pintle is not moving up and down as commanded by the PCM, would it set a code? There is no code. Thanks