Throttle stuck wide open.
 

I have a 2004 MPV. I was driving the other day and push the accelerator to speed up a little. I didn't push the accelerator all the way down but the throttle stuck wide open and and I couldn't get it to release. I had to put it in neutral to stop the vehicle. When I got the vehicle stopped I turned off the motor. There was some smoke or steam coming from the motor when I raised the hood. I couldn't get the van to start again, had it towed, and have been told that the motor seized up when I put it in neutral. Has anyone had this problem and can anyone give me their insight into this situation?

Did the engine even turn over when you tried to start it again? If the throttle is at WOT then the computer will NOT give it any fuel so it will not start. Have you had any overheating or oil consumption issues previous? And strange noises? If not I really doubt it just magically seized up on you, the rev limiter should have protected the engine while in neutral, some cars wont even rev fully while in park or neutral. Physically try move the throttle (not the accelerator pedal) in the engine bay, it may just be a broken/seized cable preventing it from returning to idle. Depending on how long you were at WOT the engine may have gotten a bit hot and started to burn off some previous leaks or debris. If the cooling system and oil system were working fine they should have been more than able to cope with that situation for a time.

Also welcome to the forums! If you could add your vehicles info into your signature, info like year, model, engine, transmission etc. This helps us all out since we dont always have to ask :)