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Bad Throttle Body?

26K views 21 replies 12 participants last post by  TheBigD 
#1 ·
Ok, my truck is at the dealership getting worked on.
It was having a no start issue.
It would turn over but it wouldn't fire all the time.
They first cleaned the whole intake systmem up which I had already done.
They checked the MAF sensor-good.
They said my throttle body was really gunked up and they cleaned that.
They said the spark plugs were wet/oil filed.

After doing all that for $420.00 and told me that would fix it 99% sure....
It didint, it finally started but was idling and running very rough and throwing a "REDUCED POWER" code and 8 other codes i cant remember.

But now they said my Throttle Body is junk. I've never heard of a bad throttle body, ive definetly heard of them needing cleaned but not junked. That part is 400 'n some dollars(ridiculous).

Anyone else ever heard/had that problem. My first major problem but an expensive one.

Its a 2005 Colorado Z71 4x4 5 cylinder AUTO. Only engine mod is a K&N full intake system.
 
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#3 ·
Yeah, its a brand new battery in there. I trust the service department, I know a couple of them personally and i dont 'think' theyd screw me over. but it just sounded odd to me thats all.
 
#5 ·
Dillusion said:
Well anything can break.

If it is the TB then sucks to be you sadly. But how come so much to change the TB?

You can get a TB off ebay for cheaper. You can also get a Trailblazer TB while you are at it.
Like Dillusion said..

You can get a salvage yard throttle body for $50-70... On Ebay or at the junkyard.

The Trailblazer TB is the same EXACT size as the I5 Colorado. No benefit in specifically getting one for a trailblazer but they will interchange.
 
#7 ·
They wont let me put on a used/salvage one. I can understand where they are coming from. They tested it, found the problem, its all apart-- service guys make a certain % of the parts/labor that they put on. They arent going to do all the diagnostics and labor and then put a used part on, it would be bad business practice(especially at a well known GM business) to put on used parts that may be sub-par and then have the same failure again. Plus by the time I would have it towed to my house to put a used one on, plus i'm sure that they would charge more diagnostic time if I dont buy the part then if I do to just have them change it. In the long run, if i had a way to diagnose myself it would be cheaper. But not being a mechanic or having the time its probably cheaper that way. And yes Im having them put the stock airbox on at the same time- they are doing that at no charge also, which is nice.
 
#8 ·
and by the way, I know i kind of got ripped, but thats what happens when you take it to a GM repair shop but its not ridiculous... this is what they did for me for the price.

Total bill is $950 with tax.

Change spark plugs
Change oil/filter
Two new tie-rod ends
Electronic Alignment
New battery
Diagnose "reduced Power code"
NEW Throttle body
Reflashed ECM to stock
Re-install Stock Airbox
Changed all my drive fluids/tranny ect.
Did the Free Valve Seat recall thingy
They also turned off the little security light on the dash that kept comin up from my aftermarket radio
 
#10 ·
It wont run at all with the broken one. Then that means id have to have it towed and still pay for the diagnostic time. I think im just going to pay for it. Another thing is, if THEY put the TB on and thats not the problem(which I hope it is) then they can take it off and return it and then fix w.e the real problem is. thats there loss of time not mine.
 
#11 ·
im suprised you're paying for all the work they did that didnt fix the problem, they missed the problem completely to start with and just threw parts at it hoping to find it that way, id pay for the part that actually corrects the issue and let them eat the rest of it. no reason why you should pay when they were playing a guessing game.
 
#13 ·
I understand what Kyle is saying but I also understand what Colysnowz71 is saying as well. Yes technicians are humans and make mistakes too. But its not like the parts they replaced like spark plugs don't wear out. Yes you could have done the repairs yourself but your paying for the service and warranty as well.

You see if the same thing happens again within the warranty time period (usually 12mos/12k miles) then theyll fix it for free so it works out for folks who don't have alot of extra time or knowledge.

In the end yea it sucks for the guy who doesn't know anything about how to fix cars because your at the mercy of the tech. However this is why I always recommend dealerships because they have all the necessary resources and tools for the job unlike a universal independant shop who coulda sold you all kinds of stuff before they found the problem.

For example, 2000-2004 Sentras have issues with the ECM (engine control module) going bad and causing weird issues due to excessive heat. Well most independant shops don't know this so they throw parts at the car trying to replace symptoms like check engine lights for oxygen sensors or cam sensors, false codes the ECM thinks its seeing when really the sensors are working just fine. So after alot of money spent on bad diagnosis the car finally ends up at the dealer where I, the dealership tech, verify the sensor in question is operating as designed using a oscilliscope or whatever, and therefore replace the ECM and it FIXES the problem. And here's the kicker... ECM REPLACEMENTS ARE FREE UNDER EMISSIONS WARRANTY OF 80K MILES so really they just spent all this money for nothing.... I just did one on thursday lol.
 
#15 ·
a security light could be the cause of the no start. if there's a fault in the security system then it disables your fuel. how sure are you that the aftermarket radio is causing the security light?
 
#16 ·
Thought I'd chime in on this, even though it's kind of a dead thread.
Had my TB go out on me last Friday. Drove it to work (sub zero temps) just fine. Went out to go home, started (kind of slow cranking due to the cold temps), but a few seconds after popping off it almost wanted to die, also had the check engine light on and also odometer displaying "reduced power". If I floored the throttle I'd get just over 2000 rpm. *sigh*. Call dealer, they said tow it in or drive it if you dare. I'm cheap. I drove it almost 20 miles to get it there. Max speed was 45, downhill with a tailwind. On the level it was more like 30. And of course to go downhill I first had to go up hill, which yielded more like 5 to 10 mph. The surprising thing was I only seemed to hold up traffic in town (hate morons who won't pass when they really should), out in the country I had NO one come up behind me at all.
They thought it might be that intake valve problem, but had to wait for Monday before they could look at it. They said it's the throttle body. $475, although they forgot this coupon I had, so that'll get me $40 back, so $435 with that.
Also said battery is weak, they wanted $200 to replace that, so uh "NO" I'll do that soon. WHAT is so weird about the Colorado battery? Anyways the "zone" has it for $109.
BUT there's more. He calls to say the truck is done, and also "have I ever had a problem with the drivers window?". Ummm, nope, no problem there, just the "no throttle" complaint. It was weird, he was like 'the tech says the window won't go up, oh no wait now he says it went up.......". Really confidence inspiring. Anyways I picked it up yesterday evening and running fine and the window works. Is the battery really hard to replace on these???? Anything to be aware of? Oh has about 61000 on it too.

Gilly
05 I5 LS extended cab, L85 option.
 
#18 ·
OK, so it's running good, the windows and locks work. Still wondering about "resetting" power to the window module.

Kicker is this: I replaced the battery, yeah it was cool. Once I figured out those funky battery terminals.
So I was turning in my core battery (the original) and out of curiosity, I asked if they would test it. Tested out "fine". So really torqued. I don't know if I trust this dealer at all anymore.
Right now i am convinced that it was just the cold weather that tripped the code (slow cranking and yeah the voltage on that cold start might have been enough to trip a code and put it in the limper mode. Wondering if I shouldn't have gone by "the zone" onmy way home with it, can those guys also erase codes or just read them?
On the battery I guess I won't dwell too much on it, it was about 4 yrs old, but still...........
Thanks for any comments
Gilly
 
#20 ·
Well if it makes you feel any better, the stock battery sucks anyway and you just upgraded. It could be possible you have a weak battery that the GM tester recommneded replacing but the aftermarket auto zone one prob passed it. Don't worry about it too much, im sure its time was comming soon.
 
#21 ·
ok I know this thread is a bit old but I just wanted to chime in and say last week my 54k 05 Z71 stalled on me 3X's in a matter of minutes, wierd thing was finally I got it started but my window/door locks on the drivers side no longer worked :evil: anyways i dropped it off at the dealership on monday and boy o'boy am i glad I paid for the GM majorguard warranty. The tech ( who's a friend of mine ) proceeded to tell me they had to replace the door lock/window relay, the throttle body, and also the cam actuator. My lord, between this and the head replacement done about a 2 months ago this thing should've just been given a donor motor!! Anyways why would the window/door lock relay blow when the cam actuator/throttle body go bad, WIERD?! :clueless
 
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