How To Test A Throttle Position Sensor (Andy’s Garage: Episode - 162)

Andy Phillips shows how to test a throttle position sensor (TPS) using easy steps.
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The individual featured on the Phillips Vision KZbin Channel identified as Andrew Phillips, also known as Andy Phillips is not a professional mechanic, contractor or certified repairman. He does not have any formal training in the automotive field, or any other trade. He is strictly a Do It Yourself handyman.
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All Do it Yourself (DIY) repairs or modifications you perform are at your own risk. Proper safety precautions are always needed, and are the responsibility of the viewer to follow. In some cases, even if you perform everything properly, you can destroy or damage one or more things you are working on resulting is costly repairs.
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[@user-pd3sz2br1w]

thank you for the easy to understand video. Great job.

[@MrBill2U]

Thanks, I was going to just start feeding parts into my car. Nice tutorial thanks.

[@glenburns4232]

Cool man very helpful

[@jonesfred111121]

Thank you for showing me how to use a multi meter correctly.

[@ucnhtmenow1]

I know how to read one because I've been doing electrical for years, but many videos never tell the people who aren't experienced with them which setting to use which basically makes the "tutorial" useless. I'm sure it's very frustrating. He's one of the few that actually walked through the steps the correct way.

[@Tracks777]

amazing stuff

[@PhillipsVision]

MisterTracks thx

[@edwardzamorski3711]

Thanks for this video

[@yacinehammar1301]

Thank you for the video

[@majordog85]

Got yourself a new subscriber thanks!

[@PhillipsVision]

Thanks, I appreciate it

[@Really658]

Nice!

[@Joey-fq5rr]

Good video, hopefully my rough idle is because I have a bad TPS

[@BOC4ALL]

How would you adjust a T.P.S. with the slots. I have an 88 Sentra W/TBI. Tryin to figure out if it's that or the MAF.

[@keithlong2788]

tested my chevy tps sensor on throttle body and get no readings AT ALL on the sensors however i do get a reading for the motor. I do not have any DTC's and the car is running but idle and acceleration are not great. How is the car still functioning if throttle body isn't working?

[@JimBombo-oz3et]

THANKS ANDY PHILLIPS

[@wanifx7103]

On my 2000 Toyota Platz i saw the engine check light on when i was going up hill and it disappeared when i got on a falt road it also loss power sometimes i tried this but the Signal wire was showing me 2.57 and if i accelerate / the throttle body it drops to 0.56 is this a good reading or bad

[@111roofer]

Hello. My signal wire reads 1.02v and when throttle is pressed 4.68v. The ranger is dying when I let off the throttle though

[@PhillipsVision]

I would also check the throttle body intake. If you get carbon build up it can cause it to stall when not accelerating due to the air being obstructed coming in

[@Matthew-ez6qg]

When I unplug the tps sensor I have the same voltage as the reference wire which is reading high at 5.8 volts. What could cause this, computer?

[@gail6904]

are u backprobing into TPS with it connected to harness? and key on still? At end video? when i first start my 98 kia sportage it revs way too high at 4,000 rpm, then if i DISCONNECT THE IAC vlave it goes right back to normal about *%) RPM ..does this mean MY IAC valve is ok?????

[@PhillipsVision]

Yes, backprobing with key on. Easy way to test your IAC valve is to remove it but leave harness attached. Start car and see if the plunger moves. Your issue may be the MAP sensor. I had a similar problem and it was the MAP sensor. Get a GM OBD1 scanner and see if you have any engine codes, that will point you in the right direction

[@gail6904]

@@PhillipsVision HI ANDY THANK U SO MUCH ESPECIALLY ON MEMORIAL DAY...MY IAC VAVLE DOESNT HAVE A PLUNGER JUST TWO FLAPS IN IT ITS A 98 KIA SPORTAGE

[@henrytran7760]

This tutorial wrk for both mechanical & electrical throttle sensor??

[@PhillipsVision]

This is a mechanical tb, that’s why it has a separate throttle position sensor. Electric tb’s have everything contained in one unit.

[@robertmudd1848]

Mine is only reaching 3.7V at wide open. Bad sensor?

[@gail6904]

hello my signal only goes from 1.2 to 3.9 volts and rises and lowers but never above 3.9 volts when i manually moved throttle cable up and down but never got above 3.9 volts..is that OKAY? ALSO it wouldnt read continuity for ground UNLESS i turned KEY OFF...98 kia sportage

[@en4cer450]

My new TPS is reading .07V "closed" (red lead on glue wire, black to chasis ground). Would I need to do an adjustment to my TPS? And would it matter if the battery itself was like 1/2 of a volt low? Thank you.

[@PhillipsVision]

en4cer450 you should be between .2 - 1.5 at idle, but check specifics for your vehicle. As for your battery, what is the actual voltage on your voltage wire? Should be AROUND 5 volts.

[@en4cer450]

With red lead to grey wire and black lead to ground I get 4.8V... and red lead on blue wire I get 4.2V

[@TM-fx5le]

Is there any way to test the circuit itself?

[@zahidrao985]

Sir I have a Nissan moco; model; 2008 k6 engine i need tp sensor idle potion voltage

[@bartfarris6543]

I have a 1999 Chrysler Sebring. While doing the signal test, when I opened the throttle I got a steady decrease in voltage instead of an increase all the way to fully open. Is this a bad sensor or another problem?

[@lazyfred5759]

It could also be just the way it works, cause it's old, as long as it's consistent, but idk lolk, sowhat happened?

[@bartfarris6543]

When I replaced the to sensor I didn't notice that I also had a fried wire going back to the computer po122 code. The car wouldn't start, so I replaced the sensor again and replaced the end of the wire with a already flared end from a junkyard......and that fixed the problem

[@deanbrown2829]

I have a 97 Saturn SL 2 having problems with my throttle position sensor and service engine soon light testing the pigtail I have between 4.98 and 5 V on the gray wire have no ohms on dark blue signal wire I just have a cheap scanner so I can’t see real time and I’m just at home shade tree mechanic any help would be greatly appreciated thanks Dean

[@PhillipsVision]

Signal wire should not have ohms. Power will shows voltage and ground will have ohms.

[@deanbrown2829]

@@PhillipsVision Will retest tomorrow I greatly appreciate your help thank you

[@A_Stereotypical_Heretic]

Ok so my signal wire is showing 4.5 volts at all times, even with throttle completely closed. Im getting a p0171 code and the severity of it is medium. (High current to TPS) i just changed the TPS, same thing. Soooo...also the vehicle is stalling at WOT, severely stalling, backfires, bucks and shuts down until it cools off. Where am i getting this extremely high voltage from?

[@terrynarrainsamy976]

have you resolve the problem ...got same things as u

[@A_Stereotypical_Heretic]

@@terrynarrainsamy976 well my issue wasn't the TPS, tho it was bad. I just went and got another one. I believe I over tensioned the clock spring in it when I was trying to set it up and possibly broke the internals, or it was bad out of the box. My actual issue wound up being my fuel pump. Missing, stalling, then eventually dying at operating temp. Wouldn't crank back until it cooled down then the same all over again.

[@jludtxs]

If the plug readings are correct, does that mean the wiring is good? problem with the sensor? It's ok if the ground readings on the plug are bouncing around?

[@PhillipsVision]

Yes, if harness is giving a correct reading then the wiring is good

[@LuisMartinez-nq6kp]

Will this method work on an atv?

[@PhillipsVision]

It should

[@websurfer1585]

If you don't get the correct base voltage at idle, does this mean you may need to adjust the idle stop screw to obtain correct throttle valve position?

[@PhillipsVision]

If your tps has an adjusting screw...yes you could try that.

[@JustmePeter12]

What color on your tps is the signal wire

[@PhillipsVision]

Dark blue, the middle wire. Grey is voltage, black is ground and dark blue is signal.

[@angelf9800]

Can a bad throttle body sensor cause shifting issues.

[@sellomorapedi8590]

​@angelf9800 100% sure

[@vincentmeadows1]

I have a 1984 Pontiac Fiero. I replaced the TPS and now it won't start, can someone please help me?

[@illstudiocheapertricksandh6447]

Same here. You fix it?

[@vincentmeadows1]

@@illstudiocheapertricksandh6447 inspect the center wire of the distributor cap from end to end. Mine was broken on the engine side. Good luck friend

[@tonyfrommer7886]

I have a 2008 crysler sebring the battery light comes on and the lights flicker what's wrong with it ?????

[@PhillipsVision]

Will the car start? Is this happening when driving?

[@tonyfrommer7886]

@@PhillipsVision yes after a few minutes of running it starts to do it The car runs fine

[@PhillipsVision]

@@tonyfrommer7886 sounds like the Alternator. Here’s a video I did I showing how to diagnose and fix the problem: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d4G1oKyugZ1sg8k

[@tonyfrommer7886]

@@PhillipsVision check everything l replaced alternater the battery cables still doing it

[@PhillipsVision]

@@tonyfrommer7886 its an electrical issue, you’ll need to test everything and trace the cause

[@boostedmadness5487]

I tried this and 2 of my 3 leads on the connector are a little over 5 volts. I figured maybe the connector was bad so I tried it on the map sensor and got the same result. Can’t be sure which one is the current in, signal wire, or the ground because I didn’t want to test the resistance on either lead with 5 volts. So I’m assuming both the current in, and the signal wire are both 5 volts in my situation. The oddball is probably the ground. Any idea why this might be happening?

[@Kickbasser]

Have exactly the same issue. Tried all 3 leads and 2 of them show volts 5.0 and 5.7. Maybe faulty ECU? Any update on yours man?

[@redwoodjewellery]

​@@KickbasserGot same problem. What was your problem?

[@Kickbasser]

@@redwoodjewellery Hello, it was a faulty Throttle Position Sensor. I replaced it with new oem and it fixed the problem. I got high revs on idle and while driving. The sensor is reading volts from 0,4 up to 5+ so it was worn out and showed higher voltage in idle than normal, 5,7 in my case. I hope that helps. Good luck

[@redwoodjewellery]

@@Kickbasser problem for me is that in measuring 5 v in both signal wire and The signal fender wire wit the TPS disconnected. I guess my ECU is dead then?

[@Kickbasser]

@@redwoodjewellery My initial thoughs was the same. My readings were as yours with TPS disconnected. 5 volts in both wires. So I went and bought new one regardless. 40 euros for oem. You could try an aftermarket for around half the price of an OEM.

[@bartfarris6543]

I keep getting engine code po122

[@Dezmon2jz]

Low input code. I’d replace the TPS