Chrysler Repair: car dies when idling...where is egr valve on 2.5L V-6?, sebring lxi, autozone


Question
Hello Roland,
Can you please tell me where the EGR valve is located on my car?? I have the 99 sebring lxi v6
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Roland,
 It does take like six seconds sometimes ten to start.  When ignited it sounds like it wants to start then after a few seconds it starts.  It's never been longer than 10 seconds.
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Hello and thanks
When I say shuts completely off, I mean it stalls and dies...It was not doing that prior to them fix the terminals connector.  I took it back and the guy said that the test shows that something is wrong with the alternator...but my question is when I took it to autozone, they checked it and said that the battery and alternator were both good and that the terminals needed to be tightened on the battery. All of this was done in one day.



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hello i have a 99 sebring lxi...I went to get the car checked and found out that when the battery was replaced 5 mos. ago, they connectors were loose.  I went and got the connector chords tightened on the battery and also got one of them replaced.  The mechanic sprayed something on the battery to stop the corrosion and the new connector was tightly placed on the battery.  He also sprayed the red stuff on the battery...now my car shuts completely off whenever i stop...it was not doing this before...help???
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Hi Shai,
What do you mean by "shuts completely off whenever i stop"?.
Does the engine die but you can still use the starter motor, but the engine will not "catch" and idle? Or that the starter motor won't crank the engine at all? Or that the entire electrical system of the car is shut down, just as if the battery were disconnected?
If it is the last one I would look at both battery cables and their clamps: start at the the - post clamp and follow the cables to where two of them are attached to the body at the front top corner of the strut tower (in the engine compartment right in front of the driver) and one of them is attached to the rear of the transmission and make sure all those cable ends are tightly attached.
Then do the same thing with the + clamp and its cables, follow to their attachment points, only before you touch any bolts or fasterners on those cables you need to disconnect the - clamp at the battery so you don't get a burn by touching a metal tool used on any of the positive cable connectors to any place on the car which would be a short circuit. After all the + wires and  connections are checked, then reconnect the - post clamp.
I don't know what the mechanic sprayed on the battery proper, as that itself could be shorting one post of the battery to the other post. I would wipe off all that stuff. Then if that doesn't solve the problem go back and ask the mechanic what he sprayed on the battery and why? It sounds to me like a misuse of a battery post compound that is not supposed to be used that way.
If the other types of "shuts completely off" are what you are experiencing, then write back and more specifically tell me what you mean, please.
Roland
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Hi Shai,
It would still be of interest to me to know if you have had any trouble restarting the engine after it dies. If not, then I would suspect something electrical; if so then I would suspect something related to mixture such as the egr valve.
But it is very difficult for me to know without looking at the situation in person. I would just be ready to ask questions and challenge the charges if they can't back them up with failed/defective parts that they should return to you if you are charged for new parts, and that they stand behind the labor that they charge you for if the problem is not fixed. They should redo the work if the repair is ineffective.
Good luck on this situation.
Roland
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Hi Shai,
If the car will start right up, even after a few seconds of cranking, then I doubt this has anything to do with the electrical connections or the ignition. Rather it makes me suspicious that the fuel/air ratio (mixture) is going bad when you take your foot off the accelerator and coast to a stop with the throttle closed. There is one device which can do this and is often the cause of such poor idling: the exhaust gas recirculation valve, which if not closing tightly when the throttle is closed will cause a too lean mixture. It will often do this because the valve stem is sticking due to a build up of exhaust crud in the valve. It can be checked easily with the tip of a screwdriver to verify whether it closes tightly with the aid of an internal closing spring. So that is what I would want to check first. The remedy would be to simply spray the stem with WD-40 and work it back and forth. If it still won't close reliably it can be removed and cleaned, and if that doesn't work then replace the valve.
Aside from that, checking for fault codes is always relavant. So let me know if you get any new codes.
I hope this is helpful to you.
Roland

Answer
Hi Shai,
It is located at the driver's end of the engine, near the housing where the top radiator hose enters the engine and where the thermostat is located.
If you look just below the oil fill cap you will see a round object with vacuum hoses and a small cylindrical electric device mounted sideways on its top. That is the egr control assembly near the egr proper.  Follow the vacuum lines attached to the assembly to where they join the egr valve which is mounted in a pipe that carries the exhaust gas from the front manifold around to where the pipe empties near the air intake for the engine.
Those vacuum hoses are attached to the top and the bottom (body) of the valve. Between the round top piece and the body of the valve is a flange and inside the flange you will see the stem of the valve with a slot around its circumference.
That slot is what you want to test for ease of movement of the stem with tip of a screwdriver as described in my earlier response.
Roland