Chrysler Repair: Pacifica 2005: air sucking sound, air intake hose, valve plate

Question
My pacifica was just in the shop about 2 weeks ago they told me that i needed to get the throttle body cleaned and a few other minor things (the dealer).  Every since then my vehicle has been making sounds similar to a air compressor or diesel engine under the hood.  at first you could hardly hear it but know its really getting loud.  It also get louder as you hit the gas.  i called the dealer back and of course they want to charge me to look at it again even after i told them they might not have put something back together again.  i feel like I'm being scammed do you think that my problem is related to the throttle body issue/

Answer
Hi Don,
It sounds to me like the fat air intake hose that attaches between the throttle body and air filter has been left ajar. You are probably hearing the sound of air being sucked into the intake manifold thru the throttle body. You can probably see this yourself if you open the hood and listen/look and if necessary have a helper rev the engine. There is probably a metal tape sort of clamp that secures the end of the hose to the lip of the throttle body, or it could be the other end of the hose that is ajar. You could go back to the shop and tell them my surmise and ask them to check to see if that is not the case and that they should attach it as they found it when you first brought in the car...or
I recommend you check this out yourself and get to know your engine compartment. Once you have familiarized yourself with the hose and the throttle body, you can probably do that "cleaning" job yourself. Turn off the engine. Remove the hose at the throttle body. Then have the helper operate the gas pedal so that you will see the throttle valve plate which moves in response to the pedal. That plate should be cleaned using a q-tip moistened with some solvent, cleaning both sides of the plate by holding it open. Also clean the throat of the opening, and there is also a small by-pass hole on the side of the throat that should be similarly cleaned with a q-tip. Replace the hose and you should have solved both problems.
Roland