How to Repair a Ripped Throttle Cable

Throttle cable inside an engine
What You'll Need
Copper Tubing
Tubing Cutter
Solder
Flux
Blow Torch
Drill Bit
File
Flat Tip Screwdriver
Socket Wrench
Pliers
Sandpaper
What You'll Need
Copper Tubing
Tubing Cutter
Solder
Flux
Blow Torch
Drill Bit
File
Flat Tip Screwdriver
Socket Wrench
Pliers
Sandpaper

A throttle cable is the most important part of the throttle in a car engine. It is a braided steel cable that connects the gas pedal to the throttle body. When the gas pedal is pushed, it opens the throttle valve and lets air into the engine. Over time, a throttle cable can become loose due to excessive use and in extreme cases, it may get ripped and render the throttle totally dysfunctional. Although the easiest solution for a ripped throttle cable is to replace the ripped one with a new one, it can be pretty expensive. It is possible, however, to easily repair your ripped throttle cable if it is ripped at the throttle end. Follow this step-by-step guide for easy instructions for the repair.

Step 1 - Remove the Throttle Cable

throttle cable

Removing the throttle cable requires good concentration to prevent damage to the throttle body when pulling the cable out. First, open the hood of your car and locate the throttle arm. Now, if you pull the throttle arm downward, you can loosen the throttle cable. Use a flat-tip screwdriver to ease out the loosened cable from the body. When the cable is free from the throttle body, carefully remove the throttle cable pin that is connecting the cable with the body. Now, remove the pedal end of the cable by removing the pedal end pin of the throttle cable from the gas pedal. Finally, remove the ripped throttle end of the cable from the pin. It might still be attached by a few cable strands. Remove it by pulling it out.

Step 2 - Cut Copper Tubing

Using a tubing cutter, cut around one inch of copper tubing. The diameter of the tubing you choose will depend on the throttle cable tip you have.

Step 3 - Sand Copper Tubing

After you have around one inch of copper tubing, sand it inside-out carefully. This will help remove any oxides that could negatively affect the solder joint in the next steps.

Step 4 - Drill a Hole in the Tubing

Use the drill and bit to drill a small hole about 1/8 of an inch from the end of the tubing. Make sure that you drill the hole in just one side of the tubing and it does not go all the way through the other side. When you're done drilling, cut the tubing to 1/4 of an inch.

Step 5 - Prepare Throttle Cable

brake and accelerator pedals

Take the ripped throttle cable and cut off the ripped end. This will shorten the cable a bit but will not greatly affect the throttle mechanism. Now, insert the 'new' throttle cable into the hole in the copper tubing and pull it out of the bigger opening. Fray the end of the throttle cable so that it remains stable inside the tubing during soldering. After fraying, pull back the throttle cable enough so that only its end remains inside the copper tubing.

Step 6 - Solder and Finish the Job

Apply a lot of flux to the tubing and throttle cable to prevent oxidation during soldering. Now, using pliers to hold the cable, solder the throttle end with the copper tubing until the tubing is filled with solder. You will know there is enough solder when some of it starts crawling up the throttle cable. Stop right then. Your throttle cable has been repaired and is ready to use.