Idle air control valve question

My 96 civic was idling irratically when it got warm.

I took the IACV off and just gave it a quick lube. It was working fine for a
little while. I then park the car for a few days...and it came back.

My question is, I believe I need to soak this for a couple of hours. What
solution would be the best to soak this to keep it lubricated?

thanks

 

The question on everybody's mind is: how is your coolant level? If the level
is low it drives the IAC crazy.

Mike

 

Just backing up Mike's comments. The IACV has coolant
passages in it. It's true that a low coolant level and/or
air in the cooling system results in improper cooling of the
IACV and is often behind an erratic idle. The first step
should be to top the cooling system off and do a thorough
air purge, all per the manual's directions.

IACV's have also been reported to fail here. Replacment may
be something to consider. You can price the part at
www.slhonda.com , parts section.

The online manual accessible via the link below has cooling
system maintenance instructions and a matrix yada for
troubleshooting idle problems.

See http://www.honda.co.uk/car/owner/workshop.html

 

thanks for the advice
The coolant level has not dropped a spoonfull.
The IACV is 349 canadian in my area. I'm gonna soak it first. Now if I only
has my question answered.

 

The part that is likely to be binding is probably a plastic sleeve, so
silicone is your best bet. For anything but metal silicone is a safer choice
than oil, which can attack plastics and rubber. The risk is that the
lubricant may get into the commutator of the motor and cause it not to work
at all. (That happened to my Volvo when oil from the intake got past the
O-ring.) Rather than soak the whole thing, I suggest you look it over and
find the areas that are potentially dragging, then target those. It's easy
to make the problem worse.

Mike