How to Adjust an Accelerator Cable

The tightness of the accelerator, or throttle, cable on any vehicle is important. If the cable is tightened too much, the car will not idle properly and consume fuel quickly. If the cable is too loose, the car will respond slowly when you press the gas pedal. You can adjust the cable yourself in your driveway or garage with a simple tool.

Things You'll Need

• Wrench

Instructions

1. Lift the hood of your vehicle and locate the braided accelerator cable on the right side of the engine compartment. There are two lug nuts on the cable. The nut closest to the front of the car is the lock nut while the nut toward the back is the deflection-adjustment nut.

2. Loosen the lock nut with a wrench.

3. Adjust the accelerator cable by turning the deflection-adjustment nut until the deflection in the middle of the cable is between one and three millimeters; the deflection of the cable is the distance that it bends in response to the tightness of the deflection-adjustment nut.

4. Tighten the lock nut once you are done adjusting and close the hood of the car.

References

• Miata: Adjusting Accelerator Cable

Resources

• Read this Article in UK English