Comments on: Honda Odyssey EGR Valve and Port

By: Ron

Ron — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 15:35:40 +0000

I’ve got a 2001 Odyssey with 160,000 miles. My “check” light would come on and off for about a year. When I took the intake manifold apart to clean the port, I could not get the throttle off to fully remove the manifold, so I had to lift it up far enough to spray carb cleaner and use a drill bit, while not letting the carbon fall into the manifold, to clean it out.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 20:33:41 +0000

Since EGR valve gets clogged, you may clean it with fuel system cleaner.
I used Chevron Fuel system cleaner twice within 1K miles & poof, the CEL & TCS issues are gone(2002 Honda Odyssey).
http://www.amazon.com/Chevron-Techron-Fuel-System-Cleaner/dp/B00092893O

By: Nick

Nick — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 05:33:19 +0000

Hey Guys…….to know how to clean the EGR port on the Odyssey there are many videos on youtube, this link is one of them………thanks much for posting this article and the videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC6FkziI1ds

By: my10sense

my10sense — Thu, 06 May 2010 21:01:20 +0000

Check that, valve is probably ok–opens when voltage is applied; looks clean. Have to double check wiring, but fell that’s an unlikely problem–any other suggestions?

By: my10sense

my10sense — Mon, 03 May 2010 15:04:47 +0000

Essentially did what Jaye did–a few hundred miles later, engine light back on (although performance much better than before clean out). Thinking replacing valve is next step–are aftermarkets any good?

By: Jaye in SoCal

Jaye in SoCal — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 01:41:51 +0000

code PO401. Bought “CodeKey” from Costco for $17.00 to check code and reset.
The fix is easier than described in the tutorial, but you need to download it to get the torque spec’s and get a general idea of what you need to do. Min Odyssey is a 2000, now 10 years old and 143,000 mile. So I did not think it was worth the tube kit. If clean last another 50-75K I’ll just clean it again, but I doubt I”l have the van that long.

Short cut you can take.
1st. Don’t remove the throttle body from the manifold. Just undo the 3 hoses, 3 electrical plugs and the cables. That part takes about 10 minutes. And no need to replace the gasket and re-torque.
2nd. Before taking off manifold bolts, air dust to get rid of loose debris that might contaminate engine. Take off the back plate with vacuum hose and leave on engine- 2 10m nuts.
3rd. Once manifold is off, stuff clean paper towel to head ports to keep dirt out. Do the same to the manifold ports.
4th. Just use drill bits by hand to clean out the clogged port. Then stand manifold up with throttle body up. Spray the clogged port with carb cleaner. Be generous with the cleaner. While still holding manifold upright, spray the cleaner up into the back access port (2 plates on right side of manifold opposite the throttle body.) Use the small tube that comes with the carb cleaner to get way up. Spray until fluid come out clear. Inspect with flashlight. Air dust all ports. Inspect again with flashlight to make sure inside of manifold is clean. Do not spray cleaner into throttle body. That it – reassemble. Mine did not need a new EGR. So no parts cost. Takes about 45-60 minutes. Jaye

By: Dale

Dale — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 15:35:01 +0000

I purchased a self-diagnosis devise from carmd.com and it showed the P0401 trouble code. I was able to fix the problem by simply cleaning out the clogged EGR port with a can of carb and choke cleaner. I did NOTHING to the EGR valve.

After disconnecting the battery for 10 minutes, the check engine light went off and STAYED OFF! For anyone experiencing this problem with the P0401 code, go to YouTube and watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC6FkziI1ds

John Lee commented on his problem removing the throttle body from the manifold. This was the only part of the repair I had trouble with too. You need to use a hammer and a screwdriver to GENTLY tap the throttle body off the manifold. After that, the rest is relatively easy for an amateur mechanic.

By: Dave

Dave — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:14:52 +0000

Great procedure, but be sure to have the throttle body gasket on hand before you do the work. My gasket ripped in several places during disassembly. This is the gasket between the spacer and the intake manifold. $1.99 from Honda. My port was down to perhaps 30% after 145k on the 2000 LX Odyssey.

By: Scott Drew

Scott Drew — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:17:55 +0000

Thanks a TON. I just did this fix and saved myself approximately $385 that the dealer wanted to charge. After I was done (after disconnecting the battery for a few minutes), the “Check Engine Light” went off immediately. The port was COMPLETELY clogged……Thanks again.

By: hthomas

hthomas — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:30:42 +0000

If you have less than 80,000 miles and it’s newer than 8 years old…there’s a TSB that gets it fixed for free at your Honda dealer. I just had mine done on 2002 w/77,000 miles