Spent all morning chasing a rough idle that cleared up with a vacuum line check...
Had this older truck in the shop with a shaky idle and stalling at stops... replaced the plugs and cleaned the throttle body, but it still ran rough. On a hunch, I started inspecting the vacuum lines and found a tiny crack in one behind the intake manifold. Replaced that short section of hose, and the engine smoothed out right away... can't believe I almost overlooked it. Makes you remember to check the simple stuff first, even when it seems like a bigger issue. Anyone have a similar story where a vacuum leak caused weird symptoms? How do you usually find them without spraying stuff everywhere?
Right? It's that same shock when you finally spot the 10mm socket sitting in plain sight on the bench. Or when the weird noise you've been chasing for a week turns out to be a loose heat shield, something you checked three times already. That moment of pure relief mixed with a little bit of rage for all the time wasted. It's the universal sign you were looking too hard at the complicated stuff.