Chrysler Repair: Cirrus dieselling/stalling, screwdriver blade, penetrating lubricant

Question
I have a 98 2.5l v6 cirrus.  When I accelerate after idling the engine sometimes hesitates and then gets into an erratic noisy dieselling mode and usually stalls.  Other times it seems to correct itself and then drives normally.  There are no fault codes generated.

Answer
Hi Tony,
One device that often causes poor idle/hard starting/poor acceleration is the egr valve. It can be compromised and still not set a code. Here is how to check it out as I described earlier this week to another owner of the V-6. Give it a try,
The first thing I would do is check the mechanical function of the egr valve which is located along a small pipe that runs from the left exhaust manifold (on the side of the engine facing the front of the car) to the intake manifold area (where the incoming air in the large rubber tube enters the throttle). That valve is metal and has a round fitting with a vacuum hose attached, mounted on the top of the valve, and the round part is attached to the main body of the valve (which is mounted in the pipe) by a sort of saddle.  Inside the open saddle you will see a metal rod (with a slot) that connects the round top fitting to to the valve body. That rod is a stem on the valve and it is supposed to go in and out in response to the engine vacuum which varies with RPM and throttle opening (gas pedal position). Take a spray can of WD-40 or other penetrating lubricant and spray the stem where it enters the valve body and then use a regular screwdriver blade tip inserted in the slot to lever the valve in and out to try and free up its motion. If the valve seems to open (against the action of a spring) and close firmly by the spring-action when using the screwdriver blade to facilitate the motion, then you should be able to now start the engine and idle it normally. You can, once it is idling, check that the valve stem moves when you rev the engine from idle to 2500 rpm and back to idle. If it still won't start, then removing and cleaning the interior of the valve, or buying a new one if it seems too crudy and corroded inside, is the next step to getting the engine to idle properly.
But I expect that just getting the stem moving and shutting tightly will solve this problem.
Roland