You’ve likely already heard of the renowned EGR valve, the anti-pollution valve. It is not usually appreciated by drivers because it is likely to develop more concerns than anything else… In actual fact, determined by the use you are going to make of your vehicle, it can become blocked and cause you a lot of complications. If this is the situation, you are likely wondering how to clean the EGR valve of your Chevrolet HHR ? Don’t be anxious, we’ve prepared this article content to help you with this task. To do this, we will initially check out the intent of the EGR valve, then what are the failures that the EGR valve of your Chevrolet HHR can provoke and at last the part that will likely appeal you the most, how to clean the EGR valve Chevrolet HHR?
How to Clean your Chevrolet HHR EGR Valve: Role and Operation
Goal of the EGR valve
The EGR valve of your car has been integrated to diesel engines mostly to lower pollution released by automobiles and to meet EURO specifications on Chevrolet HHR . It will therefore control the quality of exhaust gas output and eliminate toxic particles, mainly Nitrogen Oxide.
Operation of the EGR valve
Before we learn how to clean the EGR valve on your Chevrolet HHR , we will have a look at how it works. As described before, its mission is to clean the exhaust gases, so it will be positioned at the engine outlet, thanks to a valve, it will be able to return the unburned exhaust gases to the engine for a second burn which will eliminate all unburned toxic particles. It will run mostly at low speed because at high speed the combustion is enough to burn all these gases.
How to clean your Chevrolet HHR EGR valve: Identifying faults
The EGR valve, nevertheless very important to limit the pollution emissions of your Chevrolet HHR , will sadly tend to clog up because of soot/gas deposits that will build up in its mechanism, which will inevitably risk obstructing the operation of the valve, until completely blocking the engine unit, here are the symptoms that a faulty EGR valve on your Chevrolet HHR can bring about:
- Motor light on
- Power loss
- Technical inspection refused
- Black fumes
- Vehicle that grazes at low speed
- Low RPM settings
How to clean your Chevrolet HHR EGR valve: In practice
And now we’ll start the part you are most serious about, how to clean the EGR valve of your car. Here are the two methods that you can use.
Do it yourself
How to clean your Chevrolet HHR EGR valve system: Without dismantle
Despite the fact this technique is less efficient, it is however possible to consider a “rough” cleaning of your EGR valve, in fact, you will only need to use fuel additives, equivalent to the products used to clean the injection. These specific products must be injected into the running engine, at the right operating temperature, diluted in about 20 litres of fuel and run the engine for 3 or 4 minutes in high rev to clean the EGR valve of your Chevrolet HHR.
How to clean your car EGR valve: With disassembly
Here is the best technique, which will require enough access to the EGR valve to conduct the treatment without help. If so, the procedure is fairly simple. You will need to disconnect the electromagnet from the EGR valve, remove the few screws that hold it in place, and remove it. Once these steps are achieved, now comes the time for cleaning. To accomplish this, you will need to use a product such as solvent, petrol, oven cleaning product, which you will leave to act for ten minutes, then scrape off the rest using a scraper, finish cleaning with wire brush. If you want to go further, you can even clean the two conduits on which it is connected which may be scorched, for this, use a scraper and a vacuum cleaner to avoid dropping deposits in the conduits. You will only have to reassemble it and you will have finished cleaning the EGR valve of your Chevrolet HHR.
Have it done by a professional
If, your EGR valve is not reachable because of the series or the engine of your car and if removing it would cause too many difficulties (removing too many parts that hinder access for example), how to clean the EGR valve of your Chevrolet HHR? In cases like this, it would be better rather than launching yourself into an overly complex task, you turn to an auto mechanic. He will be able to perform the job more cleanly and will be able, if required, to change the valve if it is dead. The cost of cleaning determined by the difficulty of access is between 70 and 300 €.
Remove the EGR valve of your Chevrolet HHR
Finally, some people make a more radical decision to limit the risk of a failed valve. Rather than cleaning the EGR valve of their Chevrolet HHR, they just choose to block it in the closed position. This manipulation will have the outcome of greatly increasing the pollution released by the vehicle, of no longer complying with pollution requirements, of having an engine warning light all day on and ultimately risk fouling the engine. We strongly suggest against making this choice. If you have other questions or want to learn more about your car, don’t hesitate to take a look at our dedicated page.
In the event that you have any additional questions about the Chevrolet HHR, do not hesitate to consult our Chevrolet HHR category.
