Q: will my car quit running if the throttle body injector goes out?

Hi there:

Unfortunately, like the Auto Zone employee’s recommended "fix", he is not accurate on his diagnosis of the throttle body being broken and causing your car to not function correctly. For a car to run smoothly, it needs the proper mixture of air and fuel. The amount of air in the engine is controlled by the air intake system. A throttle body is part of the air intake system that helps control the amount of air that gets into the engine. If the throttle body fails, the engine will not get the proper mixture of air and fuel and the engine may lose power. The best advice we can offer is to have one of our local mobile mechanics stop by your home and complete a check engine light inspection so we can determine what part of the throttle body or the fuel system is faulty; so the right repairs can be made.

Unfortunately it would be difficult to predict how long any part may last or say YES it will fail, or NO it will not fail. Any component in your vehicle can wind up needing replacement at any time for any reason. Some parts can last for years or hundreds of thousands of miles. Some require more frequent replacement. If your issues are being caused by bad gas, then some fuel system cleaner, fresh gas, maybe replacing the fuel filter and maybe putting some miles on it, may clear up the issue. But if the fuel injector fails, then most likely the vehicle will not start or run properly.

Have a certified technician inspect and/or replace the furl injector if needed.