My "Ranger Education" here has taught me that Idle Air Control valves can clog.
Is inspection and cleaning a smart thing to do to a 15 year old IAC at <50K?

RockAuto offers three IAC valve gaskets.
One is two circles forming an "8".
The other two resemble two oblong hexagons sharing one side.
I also looked at their IAC valves and saw no differences. How can I tell which is mine?

Is this an, "if it ain't broke don't fix it" thing? A valve which gets gunked up can handle a cleaning, no?

C.C.C. = Corona Confinement Craziness

 

As long as it is working electrically. clean it

 

The two ports on the valve and throttle body need to be connected but separated from each other, and also prevented from pulling in outside air

So the gasket to use is the one that does that, lol

Only use Motorcraft or Hitachi IAC Valves, just FYI

 

I cannot stress this enough. All other idle air controls will not handle the idle correctly, I've seen cheap versions from the parts stores do everything from causing the idle rpms to fluctuate (bounce) between 630-750, to causing the RPMs to shoot to 3,000 when you start the vehicle. The aftermarket replacements aren't worth the time or the frustration and are best left on the shelf at the parts store.

 

Just finished inspecting and cleaning my IAC valve.
There was no operational problem. There was some damp soot in the valve's chambers and a little oxidation on it's base.
AutoZone had the gasket listed on their website (Mahle #G32681) for $2.69. Advance didn't offer one; just an aftermarket (Boo!) valve.
The old gasket was still pliable. Better living through chemistry I suppose.