low cold start idle on my m20

[Tad]

OK what should my idle be at cold start?
it's a lot lower than once the car is warm. Its at like 450-550
and warm around 700.

shouldn't it be higher during cold start?
like 1500 or something?

I recently tried cleaning my ICV with some carb cleaner,
could that have damaged it?

[jlevie]

The idle should be higher, perhaps 1000-1300rpm, on a cold engine. Carb cleaner shouldn't damage the ICV, but the low cold idle might indicate that the ICV is bad.

But the problem could just as easily be intake leaks, bad/misadjusted TPS, or a bad DME engine temp sensor.

[Bimmerboy91]

cold start valve?

[jlevie]

This car doesn't have a Cold Start Valve.

[Tad]

hmm.. I guess I should look into testing those pieces.

I swapped out my plugs and fuel filter to no avail.

are fprs a common cause of this?
the bentley makes it sound like its most likely a fuel problem..

[jlevie]

A bad FPR or failing fuel pump will cause problems. Run the pressure and delivery tests in the Bentley and you'll know if there's a fuel problem.